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In September, there was a riddle over the ownership of Pinnacle Contractors Limited whose identity could not be located in the database of the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC), but got at total of N2.7 billion as subsidy claims without supplying any litre of fuel last year.
The company is one of those listed by the Ministry of Finance and is being investigated by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
The Anti-Corruption Network, a non-governmental organisation, headed by a former member of the House of Representatives, Honourable Dino Melaye, had, two weeks ago, led a street protest at the Ministry of Finance's headquarters in Abuja to demand the identity of the company.
But sources close to the intelligence networks confirmed on Friday in Abuja that a serving minister in the cabinet of President Goodluck Jonathan is actually the brain behind the unregistered company and that some political forces had asked the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) and the EFCC to back out of the case involving the company.
It was also gathered that top echelons of the anti-graft bodies are being constanly reminded of the fate that befell the pioneer chairman of EFCC when he took on the matter of former governor of Delta State, James Ibori.
The EFCC and some officials of the State Security Services (SSS) had investigated the company and linked it with the serving minister.
Though sources refused to disclose whether the said minister was male or female, the minister, it was said, had just been named as a member of the White Paper committee on some reports on the oil sector submitted to the president recently.
"I can confirm to you that the minister involved is well connected. There are reports that the powers that be could be offended, if the EFCC goes further with the investigations."
It was also confirmed that the unregistered company was able to secure bank accounts through cloning of Forms Co2 and 45 of another company with a similar name registered with the CAC.
A search conducted on 18 September showed that only Pinnacle Company Nigeria Limited is registered on the CAC system.
The Federal Government had, in August, announced that Pinnacle Contractors Limited was one of the 25 companies that mismanaged different sums of subsidy funds.
Details from the Ministry of Finance showed that Pinnacle Contractors Limited got N1.2 billion for alleged importation of fuel into Nigeria when the vessel said to have supplied the fuel was not at the location where it could actually do so.
The company also got another N1.5 billion for supplying fuel through a vessel that was no longer in operation at the time of supply.
It was gathered from officials of the CAC that Pinnacle Contractors Limited could not have been registered since Pinnacle Company Nigeria Limited had already been registered on the CAC website.
Searches on the CAC system indicated that Pinnacle Company Nigeria Limited was registered on 18 September, 1981 with registration number RC. 8740. Its registered office is given as 12, Iwehen Street, Benin City, Edo State.
The directors are given as Samuel Okhorutomwen Uwadie and Samuel Omorodion Iwadie.
According to the data at the CAC, the company is registered as importers, exporters, manufacturers' representatives, as well as sellers and distributors of general goods.
The document released by the Ministry of Finance in August shows that Pinnacle Contractors is number 22 on the list of indicted companies.
SundayTribune
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