TheCable

Victor Uwajeh, an Abuja-based private investigator, says Andy Uba, a senator representing Anambra south, forged his O-level certificate from the West African Examinations Council (WAEC).

He also claims that Uba owes him legal fees to the tune of £1.9 million.

On Tuesday, the senator in a petition to Ibrahim Idris, inspector-general of police, had said Uwajeh was attacking him by spreading falsehood.

But speaking with journalists on Wednesday, Uwajeh said he only took Uba to court in 2016 when he refused to pay his legal fees and wondered how that amounted to blackmail.

Uwajeh explained that he met Uba in 2012 when he had problems with the UK authorities, hence he was contracted to lift a ban preventing him from entering the country.

The investigator said in 2015, the senator also gave him power of attorney to lift an arrest warrant on him in Los Angeles, US, which he claims he did.

“Sometimes in 2012, I met with senator Andy Uba who briefed me that he had issues with the UK authorities because he was banned in 2008 from entering the United Kingdom and being a British citizen and a private investigator. He wanted me to lift the exclusion ban on him from entering the UK,” he said.

“And he made available to me some documents, this is one of the first document in her majesty’s court seeking for judicial relief to enable him enter the UK. He also made available to me the grounds for seeking relief to the home Secretary who is now prime minister Theresa May to lift the ban taken against him.

“In 2012, I met with Andy Uba at his Asokoro residence where gave me the power of attorney duly signed by him, both of us appended our signatures and it has his picture, I have his originals kept.

“It was authorising me to work on his behalf and he was going to return the expenses back to me that will assist him on lifting the ban on him.

“He also had an arrest warrant against him in the state of Los Angeles, he also gave me a power attorney in 2015 signed by senator Andy Uba and lift the arrest warrant against him.

“After everything I sought for my professional fees and sent it to him, it kept lingering, he refused to pay so at the end of the day I filed a court process against him, seeking for payment of my professional fees.

“We started from 2016, we have been in court since 2016, so I don’t see the reason he is alluding to blackmail, because we are in court, he was served through the clerk of the national assembly. I don’t understand how a case in court is blackmail. The amount in question is £1.9 million which is in the court process.”

He said examination body, WAEC, had confirmed that Uba’s certificate which was presented in a UK court was forged.

Uwajeh continued: “He presented a lot of documents to be presented to the UK authorities, some forged documents WAEC certificate and others which were part of the documents filed in court.

“WAEC confirmed that the certificate Nnamdi Uba is parading is a fake document and I expect the authorities to look into this vehemently because forgery in the national assembly is alarming and I feel the media is crucial to straightening issues in Nigeria.”

When contacted, Onyi Omegido, spokesperson of Uba, said the case was in court and they would not comment on it.