Report reaching viewpointnigeria indicates that the senator representing Adamawa Northern Senatorial Zone in the ninth Assembly, Sen. Ishaku said that the police are investigating his personal assistant, Zaman Abasiriyu for alleged impersonation and forgery.

Zaman who was top on the list of Navy officer’s shortlist last year following Senator Ishaku Abbo’s influence was arrested on 1st June, 2020 following allegations of forgery and impersonating the Senator.

The PA is being accused of using the Letterhead documents of his principal to write letters to MDAs in Abuja, demanding award of contracts and employment for unsuspecting persons he extorts monies from.

Zaman’s alleged criminal activities using the office of the Senator dates back to October 2019, when his principal was “accused of obtaining 2 million Naira fraudulently”.

The police was petitioned from Lagos” the senator said. State Criminal Investigation and Intelligence Department (SCIID) Panti in Lagos was “petitioned against me, a case of obtaining money by fraud against Senator Elisha Ishaku Abbo”.

“When I went through, I discovered that people put up my picture on Facebook, soliciting for money and names were called.”

“Along the line I started investigating, this thing I am saying is documented” saying “my PA was involved. I got enraged I said you’re insulting me not my PA because I am his father, you’re telling me that I didn’t bring him up well”. He said.
He further said “What I am saying is actually written, we even chatted on WhatsApp. I told the woman who is incidentally a Margi. I said my PA is your brother, my PA cannot steal. She said Ok, this is the number we are communicating on and she gave me the number”
“I never know him with that number, when we put it on, true caller identified it was my PA. I called him, we sat down. What is happening he said he doesn’t know anything, I said Ok go!” he added.
I told the women we would find a way in which we can sort you out. Since then put close eyes on them, maybe there were things I was not seeing before, since October last year I have been following events watching them closely”.

“News started flying about that I, senator Abbo collect money from my constituents, from people in my village before I give them job in Abuja, what an insult”.

According to Abbo, “it was too much” for him “to swallow, accuse me for anything but not stealing, not disrespect to the poor”.
I said I can’t do that, they said they’re taking money. We now open up a discreet investigation” he added.

Abbo continued “few days ago, we received credible information that my PA registered company” which he said uses the letterhead of my office bearing his name and forged signature writing to Ministries, Departments and Agencies of the Government “to solicit for contracts from these agencies, that I am nominating the companies for job.”.
“There are some things here that you don’t know, I was accused of obtaining money by false pretense, I was accused of taking money from my constituents to give them job and now my letter head paper is flying about that I am soliciting for contracts to a particular company” he said.
Abbo mentioned that “the former Governor of Adamawa State, His Excellency Bala Ngilari went to prison, not because he was guilty, was because there was an alleged infringement on the procurement processes of Bureau for Public Procurement (BPP)”

“As a Governor, as a Senator, as a commissioner, as a Member House of Representatives, you have no right to take a letter from your office asking an agency that I am nominating your company for a contract somewhere” saying “it means you are trying to use your office to influence procurement process, it actually a punishable offence, you’re going to prison. I can’t be here and go to prison for anybody”
Now the worst happened, I received a call from SSS office National Headquarters, that me, Senator Ishaku Abbo, that the letter I sent to them asking for recruitment, that they are not recruiting, that when they start, they would get to me through the committee chairman on national security.”

“I was alarmed, me, send letter to DSS? I have never done that. If I want to write a letter, I would write a letter to the chairman committee of that ministry”.
“So, when I want to apply, I have to go through a senator not through the Ministry so that I won’t actually influence procurement”

The Senator further cautioned that “if there is anything I hate is for one to disrespect my letter headed paper. Even in my own company, because I was an MD of a company before I got to this place; a company I founded when I was virtually young, I don’t want somebody to take my letterhead paper and shred it. I don’t like it. So I go to you and we discuss.”
“When the SSS called me that the employment I asked for… they would inform me, I got alarmed. I called the police. I said come, I found out and I said let me see the copy of the letter. ”
“I petitioned the police officially on my letter head paper” as he narrates what he saw on the letter.
He continued “And I went to my house, my PA and his friends and everybody, they live, they live in my house. I left the whole duplex for them… My properties are still there”.

“I went with the police, and I started checking for my things. That’s where I discovered acknowledgment copies of letters sent out with my forged signature on my official letterhead paper. When it happened we went and locked him up”.

Other missing personal effects of the Senator including wrist watches and fabricated duplicate keys to the Senator’s office at the National Assembly was also found.
The senator claimed to have a recorded his conversion with Zaman’s senior brother by name Ijai Abasiriyu “who called and I called him back” the senator said at around 3 minutes past twelve. Where he was begging on behalf of his younger brother.

“I said ok, this is not the matter of begging, please come to Abuja. I want you to come and see what your brother did. Come and see what he did, so that you would advise him let him know that there is law.”
They called my pastor, and my pastor said come and take money and go to Abuja. He said he would not come. I said ok, send someone in Abuja that you trust, so that I would hand your son to them to go and talk to him. He said no because of political issues he don’t want”.

According to Abbo he started saying that “they are suffering in Madagali because of me, because his family are supporting me that’s why Governor Fintiri doesn’t love them, they are third class citizens.”
They now discovered we are the same religion with them, they now said it’s because Zaman is Margi that I took him to the police station and I locked him up because he is leaking my document for Fintiri. And so what, my documents are missing here, of cause so many are doing it for governor Fintiri and also people are sending me his own. I am also getting his own here… we are exchanging documents, its politics”.

“The issue is simple, when you politicized crime, crime would consume all of you” he warned.
I decided to open up for one reason, my PA that I paid last week his salary hired me a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, what happened sir? When we put him on watch list, we discovered he bought a car yesterday.”

Abbo mentioned that he discovered that letters were flying all over the place “How can a small boy forge the letterhead of a senator and write to DG SSS, the number one secret police of this country?”
According to the Senator, Zaman is the only person having access to his mobile phone passwords including his social media account.

Information available to The Gazette Nigeria indicates that Zaman after complaints dissociating himself from letters coming from the Senators office to MDAs in Abuja was released on bail claiming that the Senator’s cousin Ephraim was involved in writing and submitting the letters.
Meanwhile, the PA’s friends have already launched a social media campaign, #FREEZAMAN, accusing the Senator of highhandedness. They accused the Senator of leading thugs to beat up his PA, claiming “for supporting Adamawa Governor Ahmadu Fintiri, Zams kinsman from Madagali.
Recall that Senator Abbo recently fallen out with Adamawa governor, following political disagreements. The group campaigning for Zaman says the Senator’s anger was borne out his PAs perceived support for Fintiri who comes from Madagali as Zams.

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My PA is under Police investigation -Sen. Ishaku Elisha Abbo.