People Against Lawmaker

Honorable Etinosa Ikponnmwonsa Ogbeiwi, a member of the Edo House of Assembly representing Orhionmwon South constituency

An Edo State lawmaker is being investigated by the state House of Assembly for allegedly collecting N8.5million from the Nigeria Gas Company
By Walid Ogunseri, Benin City
Honorable Etinosa Ikponnmwonsa Ogbeiwi, a member of the Edo House of Assembly representing Orhionmwon South constituency, is an embattled man. The Action Congress (AC) legislator has been accused of collecting N8.5 million from the Nigeria Gas Company (NGC), Warri, Delta State, on behalf of Orhionmwon people.
The N8.5 million, The Source gathered, was a public relations gift from NGC for communities in Orhionmwon Local Government Area. Ogbeiwi allegedly collected the said amount from the NGC and diverted the money into his private pocket. Consequently, a group, the Orhionmwon Development Association, has demanded for a probe and the withdrawal of Ogbeiwi from the House of Assembly if he does not account for and return the N8.5 million.
Orhionmwon Community Development Association, in its petition to the Edo State House of Assembly, signed by its president, Prince West Ogiemwonyi, said it had confirmed that Ogbeiwi unilaterally went to NGC’s office in Warri and collected the N8.5 million in a personalised cheque purportedly on behalf of the other committee members in particular and Orhionmwon people as a whole.
According to the petition, “we the leaders of the five youth bodies in the locality put a phone call through to the Manager Public Affairs Department of the Nigeria Gas Company, Warri, Mrs. C.O. Adekpogu, who confirmed that a personalised cheque of N8.5 million was given to Hon. Ogbeiwi on behalf of the youths, Enigie and Odionmwere as PR”.
Since then, the petitioners alleged, “rather than convene a meeting of all stakeholders in Orhionmwon, including the five youth organisations, Enigie and Odionwere, Hon. Etinosa Ogbeiwi has been evasive, dodging phone calls, daring to factionalise the youth bodies along party lines.”
The Source gathered that the NGC’s largesse was informed by the September 2008 threat by the Orhionmwon youths to shut down the largest gas flow station in Nigeria, which is located in Oben village in Orhiomwon local government area, as well as stop work being done by the (NGC) due to neglect.
NGC, a subsidiary of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), is currently laying integrated gas transmission pipelines from Oben in Orhionmwon to Ajaokuta in Kogi State for onward transmission to other West African countries through its contractors Zakhem Nigeria Limited.
Orhionmwon local government is the largest oil producing local government in Edo State and also receives the highest allocation from the federation account. The area is however one of the least developed in the state.
There is no community in Orhionmwon that has motorable road or adequate health care facility. The only General Hospital in Urhonigbe is considered a death trap, prompting people in the locality to seek medical care in the neighbouring Delta State.
Basic amenities such as pipe borne water are a mirage to the people of the locality even as buildings in many public schools in the entire local government have collapsed. Absence of basic infrastructures in the local government explains why many government officials including the council boss, live in Benin City.
The youths anger was borne out of the fact that, apart from the construction of a six classroom primary school blocks, in Oben, the NGC had not done anything to improve the lot of the people. The youths also claimed that Zakhem Nigeria Limited, in the course of carrying out its contract in the locality, refused to train youths from the area but rather engaged them as watch guards.
To avoid the threat of the Orhionmwon youths, stakeholders meetings were called in August and September 2008 at the House of Assembly complex in Benin City and the current Local Government chairman’s office at Abudu, the administrative headquarters of Orhionmwon Local Government Council. The NGC then signed a communique implying an agreement with the council chairman Patrick Asisien, Patrick Aisowieren, Etinosa Ogbeiwi, Princess Nomwengho Uhunmwangho, leaders of the youth organisations, Enigies and Odionweres, about the obligation of the NGC to Orhionmwon.
The petitioners are now angry because the said NGC and Zakhem Nigeria Limited have allegedly not fulfilled the promise.
They also claimed in the petition that the NGC has engaged the services of armed mobile policemen and the military to forcefully and hurriedly complete the project up to Oben community, which is the source of the gas, contrary to the signed agreement. The petitioners consquently, requested the Edo State House of Assembly for the following.
(1) Cause the NGC and Zakhem to suspend the militarised work on site and return to the negotiation table with them and their elected representatives.
(2) Compel Hon. Etinosa Ogbeiwi representing Orhionmwon constituency II to account for the N8.5million he collected from NGC in a personalised cheque.
(3) Summon other persons fingered in the scandal to explain their role in the entire episode.
(4) Summon the management of NGC and Zakhem to explain what benefit is due to the host access and impact communities of Orhionmwon courtesy of the gas pipeline project vis-à-vis the signed communique and the addendum proffered by the youth bodies.
(5) Cause the council chairman Patrick Aisien, his deputy, Deacon Newsman Ugiagbe and the leader of the council legislative arm, Godwin Osalaya to explain their pivotal role in the whole scandal.
Upon the receipt of the petition, the speaker of Assembly, Zakawanu Garuba, set up a three-man committee headed by Frank Okiye, the Majority leader of the Assembly to investigate the matter and make recommendations on their findings.
The matter was raised penultimate Monday on the floor of the House where the parties concerned were asked to brief the legislators.
Some of the persons mentioned in the N8.5million dispute spoke with The Source on the role they played.

Godwin Osalaya, Leader of The Council Legislative Arm
All I know is that I will not relent in my efforts, no matter what happens. I will go to the EDHA committee and tell the truth as to what I know in this matter. I have to protect the interest of the Orhionmwon people as one of the leaders. I was not given any money and no money passed through me at all. I am also informed that the Orhionmwon chairman also admitted that Etinosa Ogbeiwi gave him some money to share but I did not partake in their money sharing.

Hon. Larry Ogieva, former Chairman, Edo State Oil And Gas Producing Area Development Commission (Edsogpadec).
If I collected any money from the N8.5 million it would have been very obvious by now and Oshiomhole would have arrested me because my name would have been ringing the bell by now. What happened is that Hon. Etinosa Ogbeiwi went behind me to collect money after usurping our role. The only time they invited me in this matter was twice. Once we met at the EDHA for a meeting and the other time I was invited to Warri where we also held another meeting with the oil company. If there were to be any negotiations on behalf of the Orhionmwon people then, one would have expected that as the then chairman of oil and gas, I would have been the one. When and how Etinosa went behind to collect 8.5million naira is not known to Larry Ogieva.
I did not play any important role whatsoever since others like Hon. Aiseweren, Hon. Ogbeiwi, Hon. Aisien, Princess and others were mentioned I had to step aside for them.
Nomwengho Uhunmwangho, former Member Of EDSOGPADEC
I am surprised everybody is dragging me into this. What I stand for is the peace and development of the Orhionmwon people and I have never exploited any advantage as an industrious Orhiomwon daughter. I have no hand in all of this.
On his part, Hon. Etinosa Ogbeiwi, in his defence before the chairman and members of the adhoc committee on the gas project admitted that he collected a cheque for N8.5 million on behalf of his people, whose interest he represents.
Ogbeiwi said “the cheque could not have been written in any other name than Hon. Etinosa Ogbeiwi who is the true and the legal representative of the catchments area and people under focus.
“The cheque having been drawn, was given in cash to Hon. Patrick Aisien, the chairman, Orhionmwon Local Government Council, Abudu and in strict compliance with the communiqué or memoranda of understanding signed by all parties –that is, the representatives of the Nigeria Gas Company (NGC), the Local Government Chairman, Hon Patrick Aisowieren, and Hon. Etinosa Ogbeiwi. The cost of 2.5 million incurred in organising different fora and programes, which was agreed would be paid for by the NGC, was accordingly paid. This was explicitly captured in the communiqué of the N2.5million paid as our running cost incurred. Hon. Patrick Aisowieren collected one million naira and I, Hon. Etinosa Ogbeiwi collected one million naira. N500,000 was for logistics and other miscellaneous expenses.”
“The balance of six million naira, I told the panel members, the press crew and the entire public was left with Hon. Patrick Aisien. Hon. in his reaction admitted being in possession of the six million naira before the panel of enquiry and said he gave Hon. Patrick Aisowieren, member representing Orhionmwon East constituency over N350,000 in addition to the one million naira he initially collected and explained further how he eventually disbursed the money to all the traditional rulers in Orhionmwon Local Government Area and all the youth bodies. These were faceless, non-existent unregistered youth bodies that were severely attacked as not having the mandate of the youths of Orhionmwon but were employed and sponsored by political foes and detractors on a war of calumny and political vendetta.”
The chairman of the council Patrick Aisien, in his letter which was addressed to the chairman house committee on Oben-Geregu Gas Pipeline Project, dated June 18, 2009 and captioned “disbursement of the N6million received from the Nigeria Gas Company (NGC) through Hon. Etinosa Ogbeiwi”, gave the breakdown as follows
1. Traditional rulers (delivered through Princess Enomwengho and Hon. Osalaye Igbineweka)        N3,000,000.00
2. Hon. Patrick Aisoweiren (to the Edionza) N100,000.00
3. Youth Associations (5 groups) N500,000.00
4.     Logistics N100,000.00
5. Consultants N300,000.00 
6. Reimbursed Expenses for all the Committee members amounted to N2,000,000.00.