Senator Albert speaks on alleged refusal to declare asset

Senator representing Akwa Ibom North East Senatorial District and Chairman, Senate Committee on Gas Resources, Bassey Albert Akpan, has described as a ploy to distract him, allegations by the Special Investigation Panel for the Recovery of Public Property, that he refused to declare his assets.

Speaking with newsmen in Abuja, Thursday, he explained that the panel had approached the Federal High Court before on the same matter and lost.

While describing the fresh suit against him by the panel headed by Barrister Okoi-Okono Obla as malicious, he added that the fresh allegation was a face-saving measure as a result of the libel suit he instituted against the panel which was tilting in his favour at the Federal High Court of the Federal Capital Territory.

Albert said, the move was an exercise in futility, noting that those properties were being declared every four years.

“To set the record straight, the same panel had initially filed an application ex-parte with suit no. /FHC/ABJ/CS/378/18 to forfeit my properties and abandoned the suit. ”

“My lawyers filed a counter affidavit deposit to a true state of facts that the properties sought to be forfeited were duly declared in 2015.

It will be recalled that the lawmaker got a return ticket to contest for Senate in 2019 general election on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party in the just concluded primaries.