OKONJO IWEALA BUYS N1.2 BILLION ABUJA MANSION

As Nigerians groan over fuel subsidy removal, one of the proponents and architect of the controversial policy, Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala has just purchased a massive home in Maitama, Abuja for a whooping N1.2 Billion, pointblanknews.com investigation has revealed.

The Finance minister allegedly paid for the property located at No 3 Nwaora close, off Gana Street, Abuja in November 2011, according to a source at the Property Management office.

Okonjo-Iweala through a United States based company owned by her brother Chi-Chi Okonjo-GeorgeTown Consultancy, allegedly pocketed about $2 Billion in commission in the last debt buy back deal under the President Olusegun Obasanjo’s administration.

Pointblanknews.com sources hinted that Okonjo-Iweala forced her brother’s firm, down the throats of the Finance Ministry, and even the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), under Mallam Naisr El-Rufai when she was minister under Obasanjo.

On that Nwaora close, off Gana Street, Maitama, Abuja, are five massive properties with price tag between N1.25 Billion and N1.4 Billion.

“We still have other properties worth N1.25 Billion, N1.3 Billion and N1.4 Billion. The one we sold to madam was for N1.2 Billion,” an Estate agent with EFAB Properties confided in Pointblanknews.com.
Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala was a Managing Director of the World Bank.

From June to August 2006, she was Minister of Foreign Affairs of Nigeria, overseeing Nigeria’s External Relations.  From July 2003 to June 2006 she served as Minister of Finance and Economy of Nigeria and Head of Nigeria's much-acclaimed Presidential Economic team responsible for implementing a comprehensive home grown economic reform program.

``J'' level employees, or vice presidents of the World Bank earn about $289,540. Senior vice presidents and managing directors who have made it to the ``K'' class received as much as $311,000. The president's pay, when you include expenses, lands in the mid-$400,000 range.

The Coordinating minister’s mansion, is a 7 bedrooms duplex with boys quarters and a swimming pool, a massive Masters Bedroom with an adjacent bedroom dubbed “ Madam’s Bedroom. The mansion, which is still unfurnished, could wear a tag of over N2 billion after furnishing. It has a red clay roof
The property is complete with top shelf marble imported from Italy, gold trimmings and chandeliers in the living rooms, bedrooms and a very expansive kitchen.

Sources told pointblanknews.com that the property was built by a popular Abuja estate mogul, and owner of EFAB Properties Limited, Fabian Nwaora.

A source at the EFAB Properties who referred Dr. Iweala as “Madam”, told Pointblanknews.com that the mansion was the first to be purchased among several others in the estate.
“Madam paid for the property long before others were even completed and so that one is out of the market. We only have the ones on No.1, No. 2, No. 4 available.”

That deal led to her sack by the Obasanjo’s administration, when he discovered that Okonjo-Iweala made tons of cash from the deal at the expense of Nigeria. She was removed from the economic team, and redeployed to the Foreign Affairs ministry.

Aside from Chi-Chi Okonjo who gets multi-million dollar contracts in Nigeria without due process, through his sister, Ngozi, another very close friend of the finance minister who gets patronage is Bimbo Ogunseitan.
In 2004, She sent a letter dated March 18, 2004, HMF/FMF/003, addressed to Mallam Nasir Ahmed el-Rufai, OFR, Minister of the Federal capital Territory, saying:

“I am in receipt of your letter dated 15th March 2004 requesting an approval for a RUNNING OPEARTIONAL REVIEW ROR) on the Ministry of the Federal Capital Territory’s Operations.
 In your letter you stated that a consultant would be hired to review the internal organization processes of the FCT and the day to day finances of the FCT.

2. Please accept this letter as an approval for the Running Operational Review on the request indicated above.
 3. Do accept the assurances of my continued highest regard.
  Yours Sincerely, (Signed) Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, Minister of Finance.”
Pointblanknews.com learnt that the minister As Minister of Finance under the government of Olusegun Obasanjo, Okonjo-Iweala, steered public contracts to her brother worth up to $50 million, with the help of the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Mr. Nasir El-Rufai, yet another WikiLeaks US cable issued in 2006 says.
 The contracts were said to have been awarded to the man, identified only as “JonJon,” for consulting work for the ministry.

Previously, she pursued a 21-year career as a development economist at the World Bank, where she held the post of Vice President and Corporate Secretary. This included two tours of duty (six years) working in the East Asia Region, the last tour (1997-2000) as Country Director Malaysia, Mongolia, Laos and Cambodia during the East Asian financial crisis; two duty tours in the  Middle East Region, the last (2000-2003) as Director, Operations (deputy vice-president) of the region. Dr Okonjo-Iweala also served as Director of Institutional Change and Strategy (1995-1997). In this post she assisted with the implementation of the Bank’s reform agenda.  From 1989 to 1991 she was Special assistant to the Senior Vice President, Operations, an assignment that enabled participation in high level policy formulation and discussions for countries as diverse as China and Burkina Faso.-Point blank news