The Audio conversation that made rounds yesterday was allegedly between the oil Magnate, Femi Otedola and the embattled Legislator, Mr Farouk Lawan.
Lawan's Camp has made statements to attempt to Invalidate the Audio recordings.
The conversation verbatim
Otedola: How are you sir? I don’t want to bring it to my house
Lawan: Oh, you would take it to your house
Otedola: No, I don’t want to bring it to my house; it is a lot of money
Lawan: err… so where? Because I’m rushing to the… they are at the airport now?
Otedola: ? Yes they are in the airport in the aircraft
Lawan: Well, I can’t come over now and before they can come over now unless I send somebody to but
I can’t because…by the time they come I should be…I have a lot of things to do myself
I can’t because…by the time they come I should be…I have a lot of things to do myself
Otedola: Is there anybody you think I can give it to or maybe I should just postpone my trip to China till tomorrow?
Lawan: No, no it’s ok…I’ll arrange it with someone…let me give you his number 080
Otedola: hold on hold on
Lawan: 08036513355
Otedola: (Repeats number after him)What’s the name?
Lawan: TJ
Otedola: Sorry?
Lawan: aaarrh… TJ
Otedola: Ateezay?
Lawan: TJ!
Otedola: Teezay?
Lawan: No, Tj
Otedola: OK. So I will give him the balance; that is erm… 2.5 million dollars, yea?
Lawan: that’s right. Hold on. I’m calling him to be sure his phone is on…..
Lawan Farouk reacts
Meanwhile, Mr Farouk Lawan has reacted to the audio conversation which was broadcast on Channels Television saying Mr Otedola manipulated the audio and challenged the business mogul to produce the complete audio video unedited and undoctored.
In a statement issued on behalf of the lawmaker by his counsel, Chief Mike Ozekhome, SAN, he said,
“we have listened to and watched the audio with our client, Mr Farouk Lawan. On his instructions, we hereby state that the audio is infertile, vague, puerile and inadmissible in evidence by any Court Of Law or Tribunal.
“Professionally, Channels did make the vital point that the audio was “purported to be their voices”. One simple question here: where is the visual of the audio? Recall that Mr Otedola had told the whole world that he used SSS to carry out a so called “Sting Operation”, which showed Farouk Lawan not only pocketing the sum of N500,000 US Dollars, but also putting some under his cap, in Mr Otedola’s Lagos home. On Farouk’s instructions, we had debunked this allegation and challenged Mr Otedola, or the Police and SSS to produce this complete audio video, unedited and undoctored.
“Mr Otedola had the opportunity of doing this through Channels TV. But he did not. Rather, he brought highly doctored, manipulated and incomprehensible voices purported to be his and Lawan’s. He will certainly require forensic evidence to prove this to be true in this highly technologised world of manipulative evidence that can easily turn a man into a woman. Certainly, the audio was a sorry anti-climax to what Nigerians had been expecting.
“Even at that, let us take the audio “evidence” itself for whatever, it is worth. The conversation started somewhere in the middle, not from the beginning and ended abruptly. Our client hereby still challenges Mr Otedola to air the entire audio visual and also the complete video for Nigerians to see the setting and environment in which the alleged bribe took place, who said what, to whom and for what.
“Secondly, our client believes that the entire footage is devilish, satanic, luciferous, mischievous and completely taken out of context. Even then the audio shows that it is Mr Otedola offering to pay the balance of the alleged bribe of N2.5 million US Dollars, not Mr Farouk Lawan.
“Even from what was said, there was no mention of the purpose of the alleged balance of N2.5 million US Dollars, or any mention of Mr Otedola’s indicted companies, Zenon Oil and AP Petroleum, Whose desired removal from the Committee’s indicted companies list allegedly formed the fulcrum of the bribe itself. If it was actually a “sting operation”, why is it Mr Otedola and not the SSS officially releasing it on Channels TV? The audio has raised more questions and doubts than answers. Mr Farouk Lawan says it is a doctored anti-climax”.
Click to signup for FREE news updates, latest information and hottest gists everydayAdvertise on NigerianEye.com to reach thousands of our daily users
Ohhhhhhhhh!!! Than God for ICT guru. You do what ever want now. You can form and marge voice and video or voice alone. Gurus beware ohhhhhhhh.....
ReplyDeleteSet up
ReplyDeleteIt does not make sense asking somebody to produce a visual evidence in a telephone conversation between two people in differnt locations. Is it a home video?
ReplyDeleteThe questions need answers to are:
1. Was there monetary exchange?
2. Were the purpoted names removed?
3. Why was the money offer made and received?
4. Is SSS actually in the picture?
- AJ
Thank you and God bless you AJ for your comment and especially the questions you raised, they are very important and I like people that reason like you.
DeleteWe should not be too fast to exonerate anyone, including Otedola from this issue. Investigations should be done and culprits punished. That is the only way to fight corruption not by saying at this level that someone is or not guilty. At least before the issue of audio and video was mentioned, Lawal said he was not offered or took money from anyone.
Let us stop being childish in our reasoning, no one is guilty until they are proven to be by the court of law. Saying it is a set up is disgusting and my question still remain that:
1. Why did Lawal collect the said bribe or money as he puts it?
2. Why did he plead for Zenon to be removed from the list? Because his committee made mistakes in their findings or God spoke to him to do so?
3. He said the money was collected to expose the giver, why did he not do it when presenting his report or immediately say so when the issue was first made public instead of making a press statement (published on NigerianEye) that neither he nor any of the committee member collected money for what they did?
I would not make a comment now till some issues below has been clarified;
ReplyDelete1. Where was the $620,000 payment made, Farouk's Hotell room or Otedola's House?
2. A case like this, is it SSS that suppose to carry out a "sting operation" or EFCC/ICPC?
3. Why didnt Otedola appear at the sitting?
4. Why would Otedola agreed to pay bribe when he was not guity?
5. Why did Otedola waited for more than a month to talk about the money if truely it was jointly handled by SSS and him?
6. Why is the audio tape not played from the begining to the end?
These are questions that will nail the liar.
I am not siding any of the duo, they are in one way or the other cheat Nigeria, but the truth must be spoken and known.
Some Nigerians are not fools!
This lacks logical coherence and connectives.a sting ops is planned nd prepared for.the conversation should have been flowing better if it wasn't doctored.otedola claims he was part of the sting operation.his end of the conversation should have been inquisitorial and clear.please let them not insult the Nigerian people with this unintelligent sham.
ReplyDeleteA vry big shame n disappointment 2 Lawan n d legislature as a body. Wat r they reactin 4, dat he didnt collect moni which he said he did or wat. It really annoy me when a distinguished house member lk Lawan who claim he is makin laws cant b sincere 4 once. This incident alone shows d kind of corrupt, selfish leaders representin us
ReplyDeleteA divertion from d oil subsidy proper. Abeg let PDP stop taking 9ja as fools.
ReplyDeletetoo much corrupt leaders is killing Nigeria. none of them lives in the fear of GOD anymore. GOD will certainly judge those corrupt leaders sinking this great country.oh GOD arise for the sake of your children in Nigeria and save Nigerians.
ReplyDeletelet be sincere here, both parties are corrupt. the giver and the receiver and should be punish accordingly.
ReplyDeleteNigerians have raised intelligent questions above but the one that strikes me most is why on earth did Farouk has the Committe to remove Zennon Oil's name from the list if actually he did not collect the alleged bribe? How come he did not confide in any Security Agent when Otedola 'offered' him the bribe; not even the Senate Leader that appointed him the Chairman? Why would he have waited until the saga started making waves? Why would the House or CLO find it inappropriate to do their findings openly, if they dont have skeleton in their cupboard? Why cant they go to the Telecomunication Company that Farouk uses[the number Otedola dialled/used for the conversation-MTN or AIRTEL or GLO, to get the recorded call log, which they automatically posssess? These people shd be careful if they dont want what befell Ghanian Leaders under Rawlings to be their lot. See millions of Graduates jobless in Nigeria, see Niger/Delta pple suffering unnecessarily, see PHCN that has been aplague to this Nation. Nigerians suffering in the midst of plenty and the so-called Boko Haram in disguise are syphony are wealth, God will judge them. Thank God DANA AIR is still in operation in Nigeria!
ReplyDelete