YAKUBUGATE: We want the money back in community – ResidentsI begged him for N20,000 house rent – neighbour
//Gobroadsheet Exclusives//
Up till now, both the conventional and social media are still talking about the amazing huge some of foreign currencies found in one of Kaduna houses of erstwhile Group Managing Director of Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), Andrew Yakubu. But the locals around the ricket property where the recovers loot was unravelled apart from angry with themselves not to have smell the hard currencies ab initio, want the money to be reinvested in basic social amenities within the community where it was discovered. SHOLA CREATES visited the area and talked with locals. EXCERPTS:
Located at a place that can be best described as government rejected area, Kagarko street, Sabon Tasha area of Chikun Local Givernment Area of Kaduna State. The house was errected on a single plot of land with four trading shops and three mini flats. Though it is not certain when the mini bongalow was built, but the inscription on its pavement was dated 23-05-2005. The house is said to have been managed by Yakubu’s younger brother who is living elsewhere within the same community. Some say his elder sister is living in the house but was not around as at visiting time. Gobroadsheet Exclusives
Operatives of Economic and Financial Crime Commission (EFCC) according to its Chairman Ibrahim Magu on Thursday 9th February 2017 declared that, the sum of $9.772million and 750,000 pounds were uncovered in a fire proof safe carefully conceded in one of the houses of ex GMD who seeved in that caoacity between 2012 and 2014, a situation that had received more condemnation than commendation in recent times. Only a fraction of community in southern part of Kaduna State where the former NNPC boss originated from are saying otherwise even though they are poverty laden.Gobroadsheet Exclusives
Ordinarily, many Nigerians would have probably sympathized with him as usual but for the several reasons which include his inability to invest the monies into productive engagements that would have better the lots of many Nigerians.
Eyewitnesses accounts revealed that the EFCC staff alongside two mobile Policemen stormed the area on Sunday, 5th February 2015 and inquired from people around before they could locate the house, carefully opened the door and moved the safe in an 18 seaters capacity bus without living any trace of destruction. As at the time this Correspondent visited, the business owners in the building are busy but declined speaking with the press.Gobroadsheet Exclusives
Some of the locals however differed on number of safes found in the naked house without a perimeter fence let alone of car park lot. But the unique thing is that, there were two giant window air consitioners probably cooling the room to prevent the monies against high temperature the zinc could generate while some said EFCC went with more than one safe, others said three safes had been moved away shortly before the arrival of operatives of the anti crime agency. Gobroadsheet Exclusives
The general atmospheric condition of the area can be likened to that of Biblica Lodebar where the only surviving cripple son of Jonathan, King Saul’s late son was picked by King David. It was a place of less communication despite sitting atop goldmine!
Now, the people living close to YAKUBUGATE are in dare need of good electricity transformers, good road, clinic or hospital, pipe-borne water and security which many belief, a fraction of the recovered money can conveniently take care of and scale up the standard of living of people who had once unknowingly sleeping on ocean of wealth.
A neighbour, who spoke under the condition of anonimity told Daily Stream that, “we found ourselves in this very painful situation. We never knew we were sleeping and waking up with that kind of money. You can see the state of our road and imagine how much can fix it for us.
“Our area is not a slum as many of you people are calling it. It is a place that was carefully mapped out and planned even though the state government has abandoned us for years. Even the ongoing massive drainage construction project by state government is yet to reach our side. We don’t have hospital. We don’t have standard light voltage either because our transformer is nothing to write home about. We are just here, waking up in the morning, bath and hit the town on daily basis to get what to eat. For many of us here, good living remains a luxury.Gobroadsheet Exclusives
“It is personally painful to me. This is a man I pleaded with to assist me with just N20,000 to settle my house rent but said he didn’t have money. ‘Chai chai chai chai….’! We have missed fortunes in this area! It is quite unfortunate that none of the boys in the area suspected any money not to even talk about foreign once are here with us. This is a place we walked along everyday. That man was just wicked”, he yelled…. FOLLOW US FOR OTHER PARTS