Just when it seemed that normalcy had
returned to the Performing Musician Association of Nigeria, Saturday
Beats learnt that its president, Pretty Okafor, was invited to a police
station in Ikeja last week. When Saturday Beats made its
enquiry, it was revealed that one of its members, Harris
IbezimOkeilo
a.k.a Dr. Zimakoy, petitioned the police to arrest the association’s
president for his involvement in fraud within the association.
When Saturday Beats reached out to PMAN’s boss, he explained what transpired in the police station.
He said, “Some disgruntled members of
the union that were suspended because of fraud and corruption, felt they
could use the police against us. When we came in, we brought in the new
generation of artistes, we made up our minds to be transparent and
accountable.
Okafor alleged, “One of the
remaining old members in the executive, Zimakoy, who was appointed as
treasurer even though he was not elected to the position, started
getting involve in fraudulent activities even after several warnings. We
got reports from state chapters how he would ask them to send money
before they got their letters. I reached out to him to warn him against
behaving in such manner but he would not listen. We got another report
from Rivers and Delta that he also requested money from them. In the
last meeting before he and some others were suspended, I remember that
Sunny Nneji told him to return the money he collected from those state
chapters.
“After events, we usually had overflows
and also allowances for all the members of the executive of the union.
On one occasion, while the rest of us went to Abuja for an assignment,
he went to the account department to say he hadn’t collected his
allowance even when I was the one who signed his cheque. I even approved
N20, 000 extra for him because he claimed his daughter was ill and
needed urgent medical attention. But even with all this love from us,
Zimakoy still went behind to dupe the account people. I challenged him
on the matter and he said he had family problems and that was why he had
to do that. He promised to return the money but I never set my eyes on
him again. For two weeks he didn’t come to the office.
While we were preparing for our 200th
day in office, he came around and said he knew someone who could handle
all issues related to IT. I told them to get a sponsor for the project
but himself and Rass Baker and one other person said no, that we should
mobilise the guy. I refused and asked them what they expected me to tell
the younger executives. Eventually we approved N300, 000 and
immediately Zimakoy and his allies shared the money.
“After three weeks, he returned to ask
for more money for the IT project but I told him they should forget
about doing the job and return our money. He did not do that and he
stopped coming to the office. We did not see him for another one month
and that was when we were forced to issue him a query which he didn’t
reply. After an emergency meeting, he was suspended. He later went to
write series of allegations that the leadership of PMAN embezzled money.
That was why the police invited me. When they asked for evidences of
the account, I gave them everything and nothing incriminating was found.
That was when they turned against Zimakoy and accused him of making
false claims. They accused him of not also disclosing that he had been
suspended. They arrested him there at the station and he started crying.
Our industry is a very funny one. Some people gave him money thinking
our hands were not clean. The police said they would give us some time
to go and settle the matter which is a family thing but I told them no
because Zimakoy made malicious allegations against me. The police
started begging me on his behalf.
“The AIG of police who handled the
matter told me that the mistake I made was not expelling some of these
old guys when I assumed leadership of PMAN. But how would I do that? I
cannot just be chasing people away because I became head of the union.
This type of fraud has been going on in PMAN for more than 20 years.
Some people have taken it as their job,” he said.
When contacted, Zimakoy denied Okafor’s
allegations, claiming that it is the PMAN president who had been
misappropriating the association’s funds together with his wife.
Zimakoy who also disclosed that he was
the one who brought Okafor into the union against the latter’s claims,
told Saturday Beats that the whole accusation is just a ploy by Pretty
to blackmail him for refusing to connive in the looting of the
organisation’s funds.
“The entire allegation by Okafor are all
lies meant to divert the truth. You can check with other members of the
association and even the police officers investigating the matter,
there is no truth in all he is saying. Okafor has been running PMAN like
his personal property, siphoning the union’s funds together with his
wife. The issue is still under investigation and in due course the world
shall know the truth. No amount of blackmail can stop me from telling
the truth,” he said.
0 Comments