Harmony Holdings: KWSG debunks allegation of planned lease of state-owned properties

…as GMD keeps mum on resignation

Stories by Matthew Denis

The Kwara State Government has debunked the social media claims purportedly attributed to the former Group Managing Director of Harmony Holdings Limited, (HHL), Dr. Shehu Kuranga Mohammed, alleging corrupt practices concerning state government properties managed by the company.
Mohammed had resigned on Thursday over yet to be known reasons.
The state government debunked the allegation in a statement signed by Senior Special Assistant, Media and Communication to the Kwara State Governor, Dr. Muyideen Akorede  and made available to this medium.
It explained that the claims of corruption at HHL involving management of state-owned property are creations of the fertile imagination of its authors.
The statement absolved Governor Abdulfatah Ahmed and the Senate President, Dr Bukola Saraki of any involvement in the planned lease of a prime state-owned property located in Lagos or in any illegal transaction involving other state-owned assets.
Rather, the government maintained that transactions relating to the proposed lease followed due process and involved relevant state agencies.
The statement further denied the claim that  Mohammed resigned due to pressures from Government House to engage a particular company to manage the Victoria Island, Lagos property and to financially disadvantage the state in favour of a private company or individuals.
Instead, the government said Mohammed was asked to review the companies shortlisted for managing the property, recommend one or come up with an alternative company, but resigned before the process was completed.
The government stressed that  Mohammed was personally head-hunted by Governor Abdulfatah Ahmed based on the former incumbent’s corporate finance experience and capacity and not at the request of the Ilorin Emirate Descendants Progressive Union (IEDPU) as wrongly claimed.
It, therefore, urged the public to ignore the lies about HHL and warned those bent on playing politics with government-owned entities to  have a rethink and be mindful of the long-term impact on the image of Kwara State as investors may be reluctant to partner the state if the negative atmosphere of needless controversy is allowed to persist.
Part of the statement reads thus “This need for a Chief Executive with relevant requisite capacity for HHL was the spirit behind Dr Mohammed’s recruitment by the state government when the previous board’s tenure expired. “His mandate was to focus not on HHL’s ongoing concerns that were already contributing revenue but on turning high value but dormant assets into income generating ventures for the government. One of the assets was a state government-owned commercial property located at Victoria Island, Lagos.
“Before Dr Mohammed’s appointment, the said property was the subject of litigation. Subsequently, the property was tied up for the duration of the court case which the state government eventually won.
“HHL was then instructed to review a shortlist of companies bidding for the lease, to recommend one or make new recommendations.  Dr Mohammed resigned before the ongoing process to choose a preferred bidder with the required competence and capacity to manage the property, which followed necessary processes and involved other state agencies, was completed.
“It is therefore untrue that Governor Abdulfatah Ahmed is involved in any corrupt deals at HHL or any effort to influence the selection of any company to manage government assets.
“The state government also exonerates the former state governor and Senate President, His Excellency, Dr Abubakar Bukola Saraki of any involvement in any aspect of HHL’s operations, including the management and sale of any state government asset assigned to the company or indeed any other government property.”
Meanwhile, several attempts to get the Dr. Mohammed on his resignation proved abortive as he didn’t pick calls nor responded to messages sent to his contact.
However, the Head of Corporate Affairs of HHL, Mr. Tunde Abodunde while speaking in a telephone chat with Pilot Business on Sunday confirmed  that the former GMD is yet  to react to the development.
He said, “The state government has spoken on the issue so we are adopting that as the company position.