Nigeria Content Online

More
details have emerged of how German auto-maker, Daimler AG, distributed
bribes to public officials in Nigeria in exchange for government
patronage. The automaker had, in April paid $185 million (N28 billion)
to settle allegations that it had violated U.S. anti-bribery laws by
giving bribes to foreign government officials to win contracts.

A complaint filed
against the company by the United States’ Security and Exchange
Commission and obtained by NEXT yesterday indicated that the bribes
were distributed to top Nigerian government functionaries through
officials of the Anambra Motor Manufacturing Company (Anammco) with
which Daimler had a joint venture agreement. The foreign company made
the payments, amounting to N2.3 billion, between 1998 and 2005, to
corner sales contracts worth approximately $73 million, from at least
seven different government customers.

The bribe money
given to Nigerian officials comprised of DM 3.9 million, $1million and
230, 000 Euros. Daimler dished out the slush fund – exporting some of
it in raw cash from its headquarters in Germany – while unnamed ANAMMCO
officials help funnel the money to corrupt government functionaries who
approved the contracts. In one instance, the document stated, “Daimler
employees withdrew DM 400,000 and $150,000 from the cash desk (in
Germany) and transported the Marks. and US dollars to Nigeria to pay
bribes to government officials.”

Daimler, ANAMMCO
and Nigerian officials involved in the scandal were not named in the
document because they are not U.S. citizens. But analysts say if
Nigeria has the political will to get to the bottom of the case, it can
get full details of the investigation from the US Department of Justice
by virtue of the Mutual Legal Assistance Treaty it has with the States.
While the names of the allegedly corrupt officials remain under wraps,
their crimes and modus operandi are clear.

Investigators made
the following findings regarding the corrupt payments to Nigerian
officials: Daimler made the bribe payments and kept funds that were not
properly recorded on its books through four TPAs (third party accounts)
that were held by Anambra Motor Manufacturing Company (“Anammco”), a
then Daimler-controlled joint venture between Daimler and the military
government. Daimler later sold its interest in the joint venture in
2007.

Moreover, a portion
of Daimler’s proceeds from the sale of vehicles in Nigeria was credited
to the Anammco third party accounts. Senior executives of Daimler then
used a portion of these credits to fund improper payments to foreign
government officials. Between 1998 and 2005, Daimler made approximately
N2.3 billion in improper payments to Nigerian government officials.
These payments were either improperly recorded in Daimler’s books and
records or were not recorded at all and were made as a result of weak
internal controls.

The third party
accounts were controlled by a former head of overseas sales, and the
former head of Daimler’s Nigerian office through which Daimler carried
out its business in Nigeria (the “Nigerian representative office”); he
was also the managing director of Anammco.

These two former
executives had decision-making authority over the sales operations in
Nigeria, and they were able to direct large-scale bribe payments. For
example, in order to obtain a deal to sell armoured vehicles to the
Nigerian government, the former head of overseas sales authorized the
former head of Daimler’s Nigerian representative office to debit an
Anammco TPA and pay DM 200,000 and OM 50,000, respectively, to two
senior Nigerian government officials, who had decision-making authority
over the contract. Daimler employees then wired the funds to the
personal foreign bank accounts of these two officials in England and
Germany.

Similarly, in order
to obtain another deal involving the sale of commercial vehicles to a
Nigerian state-owned entity, the former head of the Nigerian
representative office effectuated a debit of nearly €200,000 from an
Anammco TPA and had the funds wired from a Daimler bank account in
Germany to a bank account in England held by the entity’s managing
director.*The former head of Overseas Sales and the former head of the
Nigerian representative office also routinely withdrew large sums of
cash in various currencies from Daimler’s corporate cash desk in
Germany to make bribe payments to secure business in Nigeria.

Daimler failed to
adequately monitor the amount of cash that could be withdrawn through
the cash desk or understand the purpose of the withdrawals. The former
head of the Nigerian representative office, for example, was authorized
by the former head of Overseas Sales to debit an Anammco TPA to obtain
DM 400,000 in cash from the cash desk for use towards the hotel stay,
travel, dining and shopping of a senior Nigerian government official,
his delegation and their relatives. In connection with the contract to
sell buses to a Nigerian state-owned entity, the former head of the
Nigeria representative office withdrew $110,000 in cash from the cash
desk and delivered the funds from Germany to Nigeria to make bribe
payments to government officials affiliated with the entity.

At one point, the
former head of the Nigerian representative office and a senior sales
manager for Anammco opened up at least two Swiss bank accounts, which
were funded by credit balances in Anammco TPAs. The former head of
Overseas Sales authorized approximately DM 2.1 million to be
transferred from Anammco TPAs into these Swiss bank accounts for
payment to government officials to obtain sales contracts with various
agencies of the Nigerian government. In all, Daimler is believed to
have made improper payments totalling at least $56million to secure
business in 22 countries, including Nigeria.

Nigerian probe

Chairman of the
Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, Farida Waziri, on Monday said
her agency had commenced investigations into the matter. cials and
representatives of Daimler and Anammco in Nigeria,” Mrs Waziri said.
“We have equally gone ahead to seek the assistance of the
Attorney-General to obtain the certified true copy of the US judgment
from the America authorities. We are working hard to see how we can
crack some of these high profile cases with international dimensions”.