By Soni Daniel, Regional Editor, North

Abuja — Chairman of the Senate Committee on Establishment and Public Service Matters, Senator Alloysious Etok, on Monday asked the Economic & Financial Crimes Commission to take urgent steps to probe him over allegation that he took a N1 billion bribe from a pension suspect standing trial in Abuja for fraud.

One of the top pension funds suspects, Dr. Teidi Shuaibu, last week claimed that he gave the N1 billion bribe to Etok to give a favourable report with a view to freeing him from prosecution.

But addressing journalists in Abuja, Etok described the allegation as a figment of a drowning man’s imagination, goaded by those who aided and abetted him to loot pension funds running into hundreds of billions of Naira.

Etok, who denied the allegation in its entirety, swore that he never asked for any money, movable or landed property from the suspect or any member of the pension scam that his committee probed.

Etok said: “I did not collect any bribe, I have no cause to do so and I will never do that because I am aware of the implications of taking what belongs to the elderly, who have no other means of livelihood. It is like partaking in blood money.

He said that he had, however, done his investigations and discovered that the suspect, who was still at the Kuje Prison, neither engaged anyone to speak on his behalf nor wrote any petition to the EFCC accusing him of taking the said money.

Etok accused the former chairman of the pension task team, Abdulrasheed Maina, whom, his committee indicated for misappropriating N273 billion pension fund, of being behind the bribe allegation against him.

He said: “Let me say without equivocation that Maina acting in concert with my political detractors are behind the devious allegations and publications against me. It is a calculated ploy to smear me and by extension, demonise the entire report of the committee, which was hailed by both chambers of the National Assembly. “

Etok expressed regret that the security agencies to whom Maina’s case was referred, allowed him to walk around as a free man without being prosecuted for the looting of pension funds.

The lawmaker said with Maina and other indicted pension thieves on the prowl, his life was in danger and pleaded with President Goodluck Jonathan and the security agencies to come to his aid.

Etok said, “It is a pity that some very highly-placed Nigerians, who should be seen as role models for the youths are shamelessly acting as lapdogs for Maina, thereby insulting our collective sensibility. I wonder iif we are conscious of the fact that the rest of the world is watching us.

“With the likes of Maina on the loose to do whatever he likes with his loot, the extent of his plots can only be imagined. I am therefore crying out to the public especially the Inspector General of Police that my life is not safe.

“If Maina had been investigated and copiously indicated by the National Assembly superintended by a committee I headed can be gallivanting all over our towns and cities without fear or inhibition, then I need all the protection that I can get.

“I was literarily the hunter with a resolve to bring some supposed criminals to book, but it is a pity that all of a sudden, I have become the hunted just because I insist that the right thing should be done for my country.

“Let me reiterate that I am innocent and that I will never do anything that would bring disrepute to my name, my family, my fellow Senators, the National Assembly and indeed, my constituency.

“I am by this meeting today, surrendering myself for investigation by the EFCC and other relevant anti-graft agencies on the supposed allegation by Dr. Shuaibu’s undercover and should there be any other by any member of the group I investigated and If I am found culpable, I should be brought to book without hesitation,” Etok pleaded.