Ex-governor of Kogis state, Ibrahim Idris, has been invited by the Kogi State House of Assembly to appear before its adhoc committee investigating alleged revenue shortchange by some companies operating in the state.
The Assembly passed this resolution at its sitting on Tuesday. The invitation of the former governor is to let him explain what he knows about the transfer of Kogi State’s 10 percent share in Obajana Cement to Dangote Industries Limited.
The invitation follows the submission of the report of the committee on revenue generation and other matters at the plenary.
Matthew Kolawole, Speaker of the House while ruling on the matter, said, though people are happy that Dangote Industries is investing in the state, the House would want to know how the benefits are accruing.
He said, given that the transaction took place during Idris’ tenure, the former governor has a lot to explain to the House on what happened to the state’s share capital.
The management of Dangote had, earlier, requested more time to enable it to present all necessary documents in relation to the agreement. It added that it would require someone who has had years of knowledge about the transaction to explain what really transpired.
Meanwhile, the House directed the Kogi State Internal Revenue Services (KGIRS) to interface with the management of Dangote Cement to ascertain the actual amount of tax paid by the company to the state. Dangote had said in the last investigative hearing that it paid over N14 billion as tax: a claim the state’s internal revenue services disagreed with.
Recall that the counsel to Dangote Group, Liman Salihu, had earlier prayed the House to allow amicable settlement with the committee, saying this would fast track the resolution of gray areas
