Ondo State born publisher of SaharaReporters, an online platform that is notorious for blackmailing top public officials, especially those sympathetic to the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has been caught in the web of a $350,000 (N169 million) bribery scam.
In an attempt to distract Nigerians from the gravity of electoral crimes committed by agents of the Federal Government caught on video across Rivers State during the last Saturday’s National and State House of Assembly rerun elections, Minister of Transportation and immediate past governor of Rivers
State, Rotimi Amaechi and Director General of Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA), Dakuku Peterside paid Omoyele Sowore a sum of $350,000 on Tuesday.
Sources who confirmed the deal, said the $350,000 was sourced from NIMASA and Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), with NIMASA releasing $220,000 as payment for “international image laundering consultancy” while NDDC paid $130,000 for what they called; “publicity retainer ship.”
One of the sources said N6 billion was gotten from NIMASA and NDDC to fund the Rivers State rerun elections.
Omoyele Sowore’s assignment was to use his Sahara Reporters to publish anything that will shift the attention of the public from the shameless involvement of federal government security agents in ballot snatching, hijacking of ballot boxes and indiscriminate shootings during the Rivers State rerun elections.
