Sen. Jonathan Zwingina In N2B Fake Currency Scandal
+The Documents That Nailed Him
Senator Jonathan Silas Zwingina is one of Nigeria’s A-list politicians in the current political dispensation. A four-time senator who represents Adamawa South Senatorial District in the senate and Chairman of the Board of Rural Electrification Agency, Zwingina has been a notable figure in the political landscape since the aborted 3rd republic when he was appointed National Coordinator of Late MKO Abiola’s Hope 93 Campaign Organization.
Subsequently, he became Commissioner for Health and later Water Resources and Rural Development in Adamawa state between 1994-1997. A former lecturer, he is a member of several committees in the senate, and was the chairman, Works & Housing. In 2011, he was Consultant Director General of the President Goodluck Jonathan Campaign Organisation.
Investigations revealed that Senator Zwingina has used a fair chunk of public money in public offices he held to feather his nest quite comfortably.
The senator has to his name several choice properties and big investments within and outside the country, including a university in Ghana, which is under construction. He is also the owner of IEI Anchor Managers Ltd, a pension administrator that has its head office at Plot 51A, Oro Ago Crescent in Abuja.
Sources told us that the Adamawa-born politician who was born in Falu Guyuk Village has a strong desire for wealth. This we learnt makes him to fall into temptation of easy profits even in businesses that run afoul of the law.
It was alleged that the former deputy senate leader recently joined the fraternity of counterfeiters when he allegedly attempted to clone $11.5million (over N1.8billion) in Abuja.
Few months back, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) expressed serious concern over the increasing prevalence of currency counterfeiting in the country. The CBN Governor, Sanusi Lamido Sanusi while speaking in Abuja at the regional workshop on Banknote and Currency Management in Central Banks organised by the West African Institute for Financial and Economic Management (WAIFEM) in collaboration with Currency Research USA Corp., said currency counterfeiting has become a major challenge for the apex banks on the continent in performing one of their critical functions of currency management.
Sanusi said counterfeiting in Nigeria as well as in the continent of Africa is becoming even easier to accomplish due to advances in technology.The Bureau of Engraving and Printing and the United States Mint are both in charge of the production of American dollar. However, it happened that Senator Zwingina, who is a professor of international relations, contracted the services of two companies, Skybird Incorporation and Global Monetary Trust about three months ago to print $ 11.5million for him.zwingina doc 1
The phoney companies, which posed as affiliates of United States of America Department of Treasury have their offices at Transcorp Hilton Hotel in Abuja.
Inside sources told us that Senator Zwingina first close a deal with Skybird Incorporation on the 12th of August when he paid some millions of naira to the phoney company for the printing of $5m (about N800m). Later on in September, he approached Global Monetary Trust for the production of another $6.5m (over one billion naira).
It was said that he paid a combined sum of N150m to both companies for the printing of the fake dollar as well as filling and signing two forms, which copies( pictured above) were made available to our source.
It was further gathered that some materials for the printing of the fake currency were handed over to the senator, which we learnt are presently housed in his No 7, Chuba Okadigbo Street, Apo Legislative Quarters residence.
Efforts made by our reporter to confirm or deny the illegal printing operation from Senator Zwingina through his mobile phones, an etisalat and MTN lines did not yield fruit as calls made to him were not answered.
Source: orijoreporter.com
