The war between the Pinnacles Communications Limited Nigeria and the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission may not be nearing its end soon as they have both resumed the cat-and-dog-game. The management of the Pinnacle Communications is alleging that the ICPC invaded their Abuja office on the 15th of January, 2020, while the Commission claimed it is false and unfounded and a clear attempt to attract media sympathy over its fraud case currently in court.
The story is that some operatives of the ICPC had stormed some buildings belonging to not less than fourty-four(44) property owners against who they have threatened legal actions and according to the Commission, in the process stumbled on the buildings belonging to the company during their investigations.
The company claimed that the two buildings which house its operational office on Charles De Gaulle Street, Asokoro, Abuja were illegally invaded by operatives of the ICPC. The management also held a news conference alleging that the operatives of the Anti-Graft agency attempted to break into their office in a bid to arrest the Chairman and Managing Director.
During the press conference, the company’s Legal Adviser, Mr Abayomi Oyetola explained that the alleged invasion is despicable and contemptuous after a fraud case filed against it by the ICPC was already in court.
Narrating their own side of the story, the ICPC said the building in question was among the 44 building and landed properties the Commission is investigating on tax evasion and the operatives did not have prior knowledge that it belonged to the company. According to the Commission, the Federal Inland Revenue Service, FIRS had forwarded the list of properties to it for a totally different investigation to the one already pending in court.
Findings revealed that the owners of theses properties had denied ownership after the FIRS requested the owners pay the relevant tax due. ICPC claimed the name Pinnacles Communications was not mentioned as one of the owners of the properties listed and attached to the letter sent to it by the FIRS.
The Commission further dismissed as misleading efforts of the company to tag an honest investigation to with a court case that almost concluded, as a witch haunting attempt against the company and its chairman.
Meanwhile, the company claimed the operatives of the ICPC attempted to forcefully arrest its chairman during their so called locating and validating investigation exercise, an allegation that ICPC immediately dismissed as false and skewed, saying it was Mr. Abayomi Oyetola who accosted some of its operatives, while denying them access into the premises with his legion of over ten armed policemen.
The Commission also described the company’s media briefing as unprofessional and misleading, saying Oyetola told concocted lies to the Press in order to buy the public and media sympathy over the case.
According to ICPC, rather than show up the next day, 16 of January 2020 at the office of the Commission after the fracas as he promised, Oyetola decided to play a smart one by inviting the press to cook up lies in order to paint the Commission in a bad light.
The clash between these two had begun in 2018 when the Anti-Graft Agency mentioned the Pinnacles Communications Ltd as one of the companies connected to a N2.5 million fraud. The ICPC had alleged that the company was fraudulently recommended to the Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed for the release of N2.5 million against the guidelines contained in the White Paper. An allegation. The case has since been in court.
However, the ICPC has now given the company three weeks to act in response to the new allegations as it was prepared to take further legal actions.