‘N438m contract scandal’: Interior minister opens up
Minister of Interior, Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, was among ministers who were sighted within the Presidential Villa, Abuja, on Tuesday, January 9, scheduled to meet with President Bola Tinubu.
Other ministers sighted at the Villa were Ms Hanatu Musawa (Arts and Creative Economy), Shuaibu Audu (Steel Development) and Adebayo Adelabu (Power).
However, Tunji-Ojo, who was said to have visited for a routine briefing of the president on developments in his ministry, as well as other ministers, was unable to meet President Tinubu as he was reportedly engaged with some visitors from the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS).
There were insinuations in the media, especially many online news platforms that Tunji-Ojo was at the Villa because he was summoned by the President to respond to issues surrounding a company linked to him, which reportedly received a N438 million consultancy contract from the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Alleviation.
It was, however, learned from reliable presidency sources that Tunji-Ojo was not summoned as claimed in the media, but had visited, like his other three colleagues, for a scheduled routine briefing of the President.
Meanwhile, the Minister of Interior, Tunji-Ojo, had on Monday evening, while being a guest on the Channels Television’s daily current affairs programme, Politics Today, revealed that he founded the company linked to him, New Planet Projects Limited, some 10 years ago, but resigned from its directorship in 2019 when he contested for House of Representatives.
He described the reports claiming he committed an infraction as shocking, insisting he is only a shareholder in the company and not involved in its day-to-day operations.
He said: “I have to say this, I saw it and I was shocked because the company in question was a company, where I was the director.
“About five years ago, I had resigned my directorship. Yes, I founded the company 10 years ago. In 2019 and when I got to the House of Representatives, when I won the election precisely, I resigned. I resigned 4th of February 2019 with a Certified True Copy of Corporate Affairs Commission as far back as 2019 to prove this.”
