Dino Melaye’s kinsmen petition CCB, EFCC, ICPC, OTHERS

MEMBERS of the Kogi West People’s Assembly have urged the Code of Conduct Bureau (CCB) to investigate an alleged breach of paragraph 3, Part I of the 5th Schedule to the 1999 Constitution as amended and Section 7 of the Code of Conduct Bureau and Tribunal Act by Senator Dino Melaye. The lawmaker represents Kogi West in the upper chamber of the National Assembly.

In a petition through their solicitors – Messrs A.Y. Mohammed & Co – to the CCB Chairman, Mr. Sam Saba, the group accused the senator of violating the laws of the land, which bar public office holders from maintaining and operating foreign bank accounts, alleging that the lawmaker has two accounts in the United States (U.S.).
An official of the CCB yesterday confirmed the receipt of the petition. The official, who pleaded for anonymity, said: “Yes, the petition is with us and we are working on it.”

When asked the date the petition was received and how far the bureau had gone with its investigations, the official declined comment.

The group also alleged that the two accounts -a current and a savings- were opened with the Bank of America in the State of Maryland under a false claim by Melaye, who allegedly posed as a student. It gave the current account number as 446016498396 and the savings account as 4460164775966. Both accounts were opened in the name of “Daniel Din Melaye”.

The group’s members said the petition was informed by their “firm belief in the sanctity of the constitution, the rule of law, the anti-corruption drive of the present administration and, finally, the burden of duty to hold public office holders to account, especially elected representatives of the people, for their actions while in office.”

The petitioners alleged that the last transactions on the accounts took place last December 4 when the owner authorised payment relating to the purchase of goods from a Kremlin-based “Magnitkkosmetic store”.

They alleged that a similar payment approved on September 1 last year by Melaye to a New York-based Schweppes Dermatology, was reported by an online news publication, Sahara Reporters, on March 14.

Insisting that the senator, falling within the public officer categorisation, going by paragraph 16 of Parties II of the 5th Schedule to the 1999 Constitution as amended and the Second Schedule to the CCB & T Act, has run foul of the rules, they urged the bureau to act on their petition.

Copies of the petition, signed on behalf of the group by A.Y. Mohammed Esq., were sent to the chairmen of anti-graft British agencies, Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and Independent Corrupt Practice and other related Offences Commission (ICPC), as well as the Director-General of the Department of State Services (DSS).

Source