Former Senior Special Assistant on public
affairs to ex-President Goodluck Jonathan, has
clarified on the N100 million he collected from
former National Security Adviser, Sambo Dasuki.
Okupe in a statement he released on Sunday
gave a breakdown of how the money was
expended saying he chose to make
clarifications based on reports in circulation that
he was involved in N162million and N85million
fraud.
According to Okupe, the N100 million was paid
in two tranches, just as he stressed that
Jonathan ordered Dasuki to pay him N50 million
from the former president’s security vote.
Okupe added that he received the N50 million
balance after he told Jonathan that his monthly
had been cut from N10 million to N5 million.
He said, “The initial N50m was approved by the
president to be paid to me from his security
vote. N10m was to furnish my rented living
apartment and another N10m for my office. The
balance N30m was approved as take-off grant,”
he said in a statement issued on Sunday.
“The N10m I received from the ONSA monthly
was to run my office, pay salaries of staff,
including overheads, pay expenses for our
numerous press conferences, pay for
publications in newspapers, magazines, local
and foreign, television programmes, bulletins,
and media consultants who assist and facilitate
our work. I had about 23 staff, 11 were
graduates out of which five were master’s
degree holders.”
On the money spent on the network of the
Nigerian Television Authority (NTA) during
Jonathan’s re-election campaign., he said, “The
second N50m was approved again by Mr.
President when I reported to him that the
monthly allowance had been cut from N10m to
N5m and that I was no longer in position to
keep running a one-hour NTA network
programme called INSIGHT which was aired
9-10am every Friday,” he said.
“We paid NTA about N1.2m monthly for airtime.
Two presenters were paid N600,000. We paid for
tapes and editing per programme. Besides we
also pay honorarium for guests either directly or
in form of hotel bills for those outside Abuja, or
transportation.
“This cost averagely N500,000 weekly or about
N2m monthly. All in all we spend about N4m
monthly on the programme. Mr. President
promised to help with the expenses. About a
few months later when we had incurred some
debts the NSA sent me this N50m which was to
cover the cost of the programme for 12
months.”
Okupe also criticised the Economic and
Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) for
releasing sensitive information about his health
to the media without his consent.
He said while he decided to confide in the anti-
graft agency, the commission chose to
embarrass him.
“Without clearance or authorization by me this
information was revealed to the media. I woke
up to hear it on radio broadcast nationwide and
was published in many newspapers,” he said.
“This is a sad development and a definite
breach of the confidence I reposed on the
commission as an institution of government.
“I was born with sinus bradycadia, a non-disease
based slowness of the heart. It precluded me
from vigorous exercise from childhood but I
have by God’s grace been able to live a normal
and active life.
“With age the slowness grew worse and life
threatening. I sought medical help and went
through a procedure at the Arrhythmia Cardiac
Research Centre in Atlanta, where this defect
was corrected. It was just a year ago and I am
still under satellite monitor from the USA. This
is what I revealed to the EFCC and they made it
a public issue.”