Ex-NHIS boss surrenders to EFCC; denies ownership of $2.1m

A former Executive Secretary of the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS), Dr. Olufemi Thomas, yesterday surrendered to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) for interrogation on the seized $2.1million cash.

Ibiteye after his arrest…on July 3 / •The cash said to have been found on Ibiteye

The appearance of Thomas foreclosed plans by the EFCC to declare him wanted after a three-week search.

Thomas  denied ownership of the said cash and claimed yesterday that he was never on the run as reported by the media.

The EFCC has continued with its investigation of the matter, even as there were indications, last night that the EFCC might  invite a former Minister of Health for questioning on how NHIS paid N990million for a plot of land estimated at  N350million, while Thomas was in office.

Thomas, it was gathered, arrived Abuja on Thursday night and  reported at  the EFCC  headquarters, Abuja  early yesterday.

He was grilled for several hours  by the agency  and moments after wards, his  media aide, Mr. Sola Adeyemi,  issued a statement  describing   Thomas  as “a law-abiding person, a true professional and a man of his words.”

He said: “Today (yesterday), we were at the EFCC headquarters in Abuja in reaction to media reports that Dr. Thomas was wanted by the anti-graft agency  in connection with a  $2.1million cash seizure, where my boss made an official statement on the allegation of money laundering.

“This shows that he was never on the run, and he would never do anything against the law of the land. He has gone to answer the EFCC call. So we believe my boss’ visit  will put to rest all these allegations and help the anti-graft agency in their further investigation of the matter. Therefore, until the investigation  is concluded, we would not speak on this matter.”

He appealed to the media to  “maintain a high level of professionalism in the discharge of your duties in order that the anti-graft agency can focus on  a thorough investigation on the various allegations. ”

A reliable source in the commission told The Nation that the  former Executive Secretary of NHIS voluntarily came  to the EFCC office for  interrogation on the seized  cash.

“We have interacted with him and we asked him to make statement accordingly on what he knew about the cash,” the source said.

“ We also grilled him on the relationship between him and the Bureau de Change operator, Ibiteye John Bamidele, who was arrested with the money by the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA).

“We are proceeding with the next stage to investigate issues highlighted from the submissions of the two people. There are other clues we are also considering too.

“The ex-NHIS is on administrative bail and he has given assurance that he would report to the EFCC anytime he is needed.”

The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) on July 3, 2015 arrested one Ibiteye John Bamidele at MMA Terminal 2 (MMA2) Lagos with the said $2.1million.

The Head of Public Affairs, NDLEA, Mitchel Ofoyeju, said Bamidele was arrested by anti-narcotic officials, who suspected that the amount was for money laundering.

The NDLEA handed over the suspect to the EFCC on July 8, 2015, following admission of being on errand for money laundering and the implication of the ex-NHIS boss.

Meanwhile, there were indications last night that a former Minister of Health might be quizzed by the EFCC on how the Tenders Board of the ministry approved N990million for NHIS to buy a plot of land whose value was put at N350million.

When a former Executive Secretary of NHIS, Mr. Waziri Dogo-Muhammed, was in charge before Thomas came on board, he refused to buy the same plot for  N350million.

The EFCC source said: “This is one of the pegs of the investigation we are looking at. We are going to invite the affected former minister for interaction. Thomas said the purchase of the plot of land went through a Ministerial Tenders Board.

“Some officials of the Federal Ministry of Health might also be questioned too.”

Ex-NHIS boss surrenders to EFCC; denies ownership of $2.1m

Revelation: Former NHIS Exe. Secretary owns $2.1m seized at Lagos Airport

The man the Economic and Fiancial Crimes Commission (EFCC) is seeking to question over the $2.1 million cash seized at the Lagos Airport yesterday denied that he was on the run.

Ibiteye after his arrest…on July 3 / •The cash said to have been found on Ibiteye

A former Executive Secretary of the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS), Dr. Olufemi Thomas, said he was ready to be at the EFCC whenever he is invited.

His media aide, Mr. Sola Adeyemi, in a statement in Lagos, said: “Dr. Femi Thomas is a law-abiding public individual that has traceable addresses in Lagos and Ekiti. He is a man that I work with and I know him for his words and actions. As I speak, we are yet to receive any formal invitation from any quarter on the allegation.

“For the avoidance of doubt, my boss is not on the run, he is in Nigeria, he is available and ready to present himself to the EFCC as soon as he is invited.”

But an EFCC source yesterday said investigators were awaiting Thomas, who reportedly could not be located in the last three weeks.

It was gathered that the EFCC was considering calling on the International Police (INTERPOL) to arrest him, after watch-listing the former Executive Secretary of NHIS.

Even as the EFCC seeks to quizz Thomas, there is a fresh revelation that the NHIS bought a plot of land for N990 million.

The seized cash is suspected to be part of the inflated land deal, The Nation learnt.

A source, who spoke in confidence, said: “There is pressure on the former Executive Secretary of NHIS to surrender to EFCC. I think he has decided to go to the anti-graft commission voluntarily to ‘protect his name and family.”

The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) on July 3, 2015 arrested a bureau de change operator, Ibiteye John Bamidele, at MMA Terminal 2 (MMA2) Lagos with the $2.1 million.

The Head of Public Affairs, NDLEA, Mitchel Ofoyeju, said Bamidele was arrested by anti-narcotic officials, who suspected that the cash was for money laundering.

The NDLEA handed over the suspect to the EFCC on July 8, 2015, following his “confession” that he was on a money laundering errand for the ex-NHIS boss.

Besides the $2.1 million, the EFCC is said to be probing how NHIS bought a plot of land for more space at its headquarters in Abuja for N990 million.

A source said: “When a former Executive Secretary, Mr. Waziri Dogo-Muhammed, was in charge before Thomas came on board, he refused to buy the same plot at N350million.

“In order to evade scrutiny by the Federal Executive Council (FEC), NHIS bought the land at N990 million. Any expenditure from N1 billion upward goes to FEC for consideration.

“This is still a major accountability challenge facing NHIS. The anti-graft commission has received complaint on this too.”

Dr. Thomas, speaking through his aide on July 26, said the land near the NIHS’ Abuja Head Office was acquired to solve the acute accommodation challenges facing the scheme, the need to have enough space for future expansion and the appreciating value of land in the highbrow Cadastral Zone.

Besides, he described “as total falsehood that due diligence was not followed in the acquisition of the landed property”, pointing out that NHIS’ supervising Health Ministry approved it.

His words: ‘’When the management wanted to buy the land, as it is the practice, we called the Federal Ministry of Works, and they sent their evaluation department to evaluate the property and the report by the ministry put the value of the property at N1.5 billion.

‘’Beyond that level of due process, the purchase was approved by the Ministerial Tenders’ Board because it was beyond the approving power of the NHIS Tenders Management Committee.

‘’The negotiation was so tight that we could not pay agency fee. The evaluation report by the Federal Ministry of Works showed that the landed property, which is about 4000 square metres, has a piled foundation for the development of a seven-storey building valued at N300 million.”

Adeyemi said it was news to the former NHIS chief that the management before his turned down offers.

The allegation, Adeyemi said, was a calculated attempt to discredit his boss and tarnish his image.

“My boss was not aware of previous offers made to his two predecessors at N300 million and N450 million,’’ he noted, adding that “the need to purchase the land was necessitated by the acute shortage of space for staff. In the office, two or more staff were sharing a desk and we realised this may hamper operation and efficiency.

‘’We also know it made a sense of economic of scale  to buy this parcel of land, which has two plots beside our head office than having another headquarters extension in Gudu. We were also conscious of the rate at which the value of land in Abuja appreciates. So, we believe it is not a bad investment for the scheme’’.

The statement described as “unfounded” that N49.5 million was paid as agency fee to a firm believed to be owned by Thomas’ associate, saying no agency fee was paid on the property.

Revelation: Former NHIS Exe. Secretary owns $2.1m seized at Lagos Airport