IPAC poll: Parties accuse chairmanship aspirant of N12m fraud

Ahead of tomorrow’s elections, some political parties under the umbrella of Concerned Leaders of Nigeria’s Political Parties (CLNPP) have accused an aspirant for the National Chairman of Inter Party Advisory Council (IPAC), Mr. Peter Ameh, of diverting N12.7m belonging to the council between 2013 and 2015 when he served as Secretary General of the assembly.

In a protest letter signed on behalf of CLNPP by Bankole Okowa and Edozie Madu, who are both chairmen of Unity Party of Nigeria (UPN) and Independent Democrats (ID) respectively, the parties demanded explanations from Mr Ameh on his stewardship between 2014 and 2015.

The letter which was made available to newsmen in Abuja, and addressed to Ameh, who is also the National Chairman of Progressive Peoples Alliance (PPA), alleged that of the N12.7m collected by the former IPAC scribe, N8.8m was transferred to his personal account, as indicated by a bank statement of account operated by IPAC within the period.

CLNPP, which included United Party of Nigeria (UPN), National Action Council (NAC), Freedom and Justice Party (FJP), Independent Democrats (ID), United Peoples Party (UPP), Accord (A), APA, ZLP, ACPN, SNP, among others, in the letter alleged that one school was paid the sum of N2.4m for ICT projects. 

They insisted that no computer training or any ICT related project took place during the period he served as the Secretary General of IPAC.

“A search at Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) in Abuja has revealed that you Peter Ameh is the sole proprietor of the school in Abuja. You and Dr. Tanko, made questionable payments of N5,000,000.00 to one Bala Sa’ad Nasir and another N4,200,000.00 to one Nguveren Chekwas. At the end of your tenure, you left a paltry balance of N23,398.00 in the account,” the letter reads in parts.

When contacted, Mr Ameh said the allegations were not enough to indict him.

“I was also never the Chairman of the council during the period so state. The action is mischievous action of mischief-makers because they are afraid of the forthcoming IPAC National election on 5th of September, 2018 so they have therefore resulted to feeding our members half-baked information in order score cheap political point.

“Such matter is supposed to have been brought before the highest decision body of IPAC which is the General Assembly where all National Chairmen of registered Political Parties are automatic equal members. So they are liars and morally-bankrupt and afraid of losing the coming election, hence their resorting to blackmail,” Ameh said.