The Senior Special Assistant on Public Affairs to former President Goodluck Jonathan, Dr Doyin Okupe, said on Wednesday that Jonathan instructed the payment of N400 million to Olisa Metuh.
Okupe stated this while testifying in the trial of Metuh before a Federal High Court in Abuja.
Metuh, the National Publicity Secretary of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), is standing trial for allegedly receiving N400million from Office of the National Security Adviser, headed by retired Col Sambo Dasuki.
The prosecution claimed that the fund was collected through the defendant’s company Destra Investment Ltd.
However, the defence witness said the instruction for the approval of Metuh’s proposal and immediate payment of the project fund was given by the former president in November 2014.
“Sometime in November 2014, some members of his cabinet and party members were called for a crucial meeting with the president where issues of great national importance were discussed.
“I remember vividly that on that fateful day, Chief Metuh presented a proposal to the president immediately after the meeting.
“The president also gave approval for the payment of the N400 million to Metuh,’’ Okupe said.
Okupe further said the money was to be used for the enhancement of Jonathan’s negative public perception before the 2015 general election.
He said as the leader of the PDP and its presidential candidate, the president enjoyed tremendous goodwill, saying that several actions were to support the PDP.
He said such goodwill was demonstrated at the fund raising ceremony organised at the Villa before the election, in which about N21 billion was raked in.
“I am, therefore, surprised to hear that the Office of the National Security Adviser was used to distribute money for Jonathan’s presidential campaign.
“However, the president could also use his tremendous goodwill to source funds to assist his party or help to execute special programmes.
“Besides, as the candidate for election, the president has immense capacity to raise funds as a candidate. He did not use any government establishment as his pseudo-sponsor,’’ he said.
Okupe said: “It is natural that the N400 million given to Metuh would have come from the amounts the former president received as donations towards his campaign.
“It was evident that Metuh had used the money to execute the job required of him.
“After the publicity campaigns by Metuh, we got feedbacks from the public that the results of the campaigns were favourable.’’
During his cross examination by EFCC counsel Sylvanus Tahir, Okupe denied knowledge that the former NSA gave the money to Metuh.
Okupe also looked the other way when he was shown the e-payment mandate that authorised the transfer of the N400 million from the Office of the NSA to Destra Investment Ltd, owned by Metuh.
He said: “I have seen the payment mandate from the office of the former NSA to Destra, but this thing does not make any meaning to me.’’
Earlier, a witness Collette Odenigbo, a Consultant to the PDP Spokesman, testified that Metuh earlier told EFCC operatives he was ready to refund the N400 million, if it was proved the money was not released from the presidency.
Justice Okon Abang adjourned the case till May 19 at the instance of the defence team.
