Saraki, Ahmed not owners of Kwara Harmony Holdings ―GMD

MANAGEMENT of the Kwara state-owned conglomerate, Harmony Holdings Limited, has denied speculations that the company belongs to Senate President, Dr Bukola Saraki and Governor Abdulfatah Ahmed.

The company, charged with the responsibility of managing most of the state government’s investments was established about four years ago.

Appearing before the State House of Assembly Special Ad-hoc Committee Investigating the company in Ilorin at the weekend, the Group Managing Director (GMD) of the company, Mr Tope Daramola said that the company “is 100 percent owned by the state government.

“No single individual including the directors has a share in the company. The rumour that Senator Saraki owns the company is not true. Harmony Holdings Limited is managing all the state government companies for the state for efficiency, transparency and accountability. But the state Harmony Diagnostic Centre and Aviation College have not been fully handed over to the conglomerate. The state government says it still has an investment on those two.”

Mr Daramola, who spoke under an oath, also dispelled insinuation that the state government gave the company a sum of one billion Naira at the take-off, adding that the company got a sum of N404 million from the government.

Earlier, the company Secretary and Legal Adviser, Obafemi Oyetunji said that the company had faith in way the House was going about the investigation.

However, Mr Oyetunji added that “we are aware that a statement credited to a member of this House. He made a weighty claim that he was given a parcel of land in Abuja when he was a staff of the former Kwara Transport Corporation (Kwara Express). We want him to come forward with evidence as no such claim exists in our record.”

In his opening remarks, the committee chair, Alhaji Oyeleke Hassan said the exercise was not to witch-hunt anybody but to strengthen the operations of the company.

He added that the House was acting on complaints and rumours received from members of the public, saying that “we are operating under certain standard procedures.

“This is an open field. We want to look at issues as they relate to your responsibilities and functions. We will from today visit some of the properties owned by the state government that are under the control of Harmony Holdings Limited.”