* Seeks stoppage of Lekki Concession Company, probe of Alpha Beta Consulting deals
A chieftain of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Chief Olabode George, has alleged that a former governor of Lagos State owns three private jet planes.
He did not, however, mention the name of the former governor.
In an interview with Arise TV, George stressed that greed is a major problem in Nigeria.
The politician warned that if leaders and officials fail to act right, youths may descend on their graves after death.
“Look at the former governor of Lagos State, he has three executive jets, private jets. The other one, 900X, can fly from Lagos to New York. Where is his business?
“Look at the Falomo Shopping Mall that was built by Brigadier Mobolaji Johnson; you know what they have there now? The horse cable for…. What kind of madness is that? These are our heritage.
“Look at the end of Awolowo road there, the nursing home (School of Nursing). We can’t even train nurses anymore in Lagos State. These are issues; I am talking as an elder statesman.
“I am in my mid-seventies, what am I afraid of if I can’t say it? If things go well, fine; if things don’t go well, our children – these same youths – will come and exhume our bodies and be mad with us.
“Today, every day, we keep talking about Papa Awolowo, Herbert MacCaulay, talking about our heroes’ past because of their contributions. The greed is too much”, the ex-Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) Chairman declared.
He also called for an investigation of Alpha Beta Consulting LLP.
The firm handles the computation, tracking and reconciliation of Internally Generated Revenue (IGR) in Lagos State.
The body reportedly gets 10-15 percent as commission on monthly revenue collection.
Critics say with adequate manpower and capability, the job is what the Lagos Internal Revenue Service (LIRS) can effectively handle.
They insist that delegating such responsibility to a private firm for a fee is a corrupt practice.
Some have said despite America’s large population and the number of businesses, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) handles all tax issues, not a government-appointed consultant.
Stating his position, Bode George said the commission Alpha Beta collects could be used for infrastructure development or injected into other sectors of the economy.
The former Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) Chairman also called for a probe of payments at Lekki toll gate controlled by the Lekki Concession Company (LCC)
“Who owns the Alpha Beta? What is the essence of Alpha Beta? Where else in the world…you have an IRS and their staff who are supposed to go out and collect”, the retired Nigerian Navy Commodore told Arise TV
“But now you have an independent company. Who owns that company supposedly collecting the internally generated revenue from a state. It grosses around 40-50 billion (Naira) a month.
“You know how much that company is paid? 15 percent of it! Let’s say it’s N50 billion a month, 15 percent of that is N7.5 billion in 30 days going to a company. That is a leakage; that is sacrilegious. You can have your savings from that.
“Now this (LCC operated) tollgate has been going on, you know how much they gross averagely a day and in a year? That would have paid off for that road,” George said.