Alleged N400M Fraud: Metuh says fund used for ‘special assignment’

A former National Publicity Secretary of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Olisa Metuh, has told an Abuja Division of the Federal High Court that the N400 million he is accused of collecting from the federal government was spent on “special national assignment.”

Mr Metuh said this during the continuation of his trial on Tuesday.

Mr Metuh who did not state the exact task he called special national assignment, also refuted claims made by previous witnesses who had informed the court that he paid them parts of the controversial N400 million.

The former PDP spokesperson is facing trial for alleged diversion of the money through the office of the former National Security Adviser, Sambo Dasuki.

Mr Metuh, who had asked the court to compel former President Goodluck Jonathan to appear as a defence witness, told the court on Tuesday that he was paid N400 million by Mr Jonathan.

He, however, said the money was meant for the execution of an unspecified national assignment.

According to Mr Metuh, he executed the special assignment with the fund and tendered a report of the assignment to Mr Jonathan after he and late Oronto Douglas reconciled the account of his expenses.

Mr Douglas, a former special adviser to President Jonathan, passed on after battling cancer for years.

Mr Metuh denied that the task listed as part of the special assignment included any campaign activity of the PDP.

The defendant particularly named a prosecution witness, Abba Dabo, who had told the court that Mr Metuh paid him N25 million from the alleged diverted fund for campaign activities.

According to Mr Metuh, the N25 million was paid from PDP’s treasury and not from the money given to him by Mr Jonatan.