Orji Kalu Weeps At Valedictory Session, Says Nigeria’s Not Fair

The Outgoing Chief Whip of the Senate, Orji Kalu, broke down in tears at the chamber’s valedictory session as he recalled his ordeal in an alleged N7.1 billion fraud

The Abia senator also noted Nigeria has not been fair to most people.

Kalu broke into tears as he spoke about the allegations during his speech at the end of the ninth Senate on Saturday.

He and a former director of finance and accountant, Ude Jones Udeogu, were found guilty and convicted of N7.1 billion in money laundering in December 2019 and were already serving a 12-year prison term for the crime when the Supreme Court overturned the proceedings that led to his and his co-defendants’ convictions in 2020.

Kalu said he was labelled a thief by some entities who conspired against him, saying, “Before I came to the senate before I came into politics, I could buy anything money can buy. I’m not a thief. Those that put me in prison know the reason they put me in prison.

“They took over my businesses and wanted to kill me yet I survived it and I’m in the senate with you.

“I have never lacked, while I was in the Peoples Democratic Party, I was a governor for two terms. I brought the money that they used in forming that party, every penny, in 1997 and 1998, and I later became a thief.

“People I gave transport money from my house in Victoria Island became angels. This is what Nigeria represents. I want to thank my colleagues for giving me four years of uninterrupted support. This country is not fair to so many of us.”