A nominee of President Muhammadu Buhari for the position of Commissioner in the National Population Commission (NPC), Dr. Saadu Alanamu has been remanded in prison custody by Justice Mahmud Gafar of a Kwara State High Court sitting in Ilorin, the state capital.

Buhari had last week forwarded Alanamu’s name to the Senate for confirmation, a year after his nomination into the board of the Independent Corrupt Practices  Commission (ICPC) by then Acting President, Yemi Osinbajo was withdrawn following public outrage and petitions.

Alanamu is accused of a ₦182 million fraud during his time as Chairman of the Governing Council of the Kwara State Polytechnic, during which he served as the Chairman of the Kwara State Polytechnic Tenders Board.

According to the ICPC which charged him to court, Alanamu conspired and collected the sum of ₦5 million as bribe from a contractor on February 11, 2015 to facilitate the award of a building contract.

The ICPC revealed that the accused collected the said bribe from his friend and Chief Executive Officer of Namylas Nigeria Limited, Salman Sulaiman, to award him the contract for the construction and furnishing of an auditorium in Kwara State Polytechnic at the cost of ₦182, 369, 625.00 despite knowing that Sulaiman’s company was not qualified to execute the contract.

The anti-corruption agency added that its investigation into the petitions revealed strong evidence of collusion, bid rigging and corrupt practices against Namylas Nigeria Limited who, the agency alleged, had falsified, forged and doctored PENCOM Compliance Certificate, Tax Clearance Certificate and ITF Certificate of Compliance to submit its bid during the bidding process.

Justice Gafar, who had earlier on Monday granted the accused bail, ordered him to be remanded in prison custody for violating his bail conditions. The Judge further disclosed that some individuals had approached him with a mouth-watering offer to dismiss the case against Alanamu.