A member of the House of Representatives, Mr. Samuel Ikon (Etinam/Nsit Ibom/Nsit Ubium, Cross River) alleged to have requested hotel parking attendants in a US hotel to solicit prostitute for him said yesterday that his case was that of mistaken identity.
The lawmaker, who heads the House committee on Inter- Parliamentary Relations, in a chat withThe Nation, said he had taken steps to ensure that the mistake was corrected, his name cleared and his integrity restored.
Ikon said he was insisting that a comprehensive investigation be instituted by the United States government.
According to him, “I have issued a press statement clearly stating that this allegation on my person is false and certainly not me. I have taken steps to ensure that this mistake is unraveled.
“I’ve responded to the letter by the Ambassador to the Speaker because I was copied. So, I’ve sent two responses, one to the Ambassador in view of the letter he sent through the Speaker because I was reported to him.
“I have stated my position. I have also sent the letter to the Cleveland Council of World Affairs, whom the embassy claims sent a report to the Department of States. I have also sent a letter to the Secretary of State, whom the Department of States is under, and also I’ve sent a report to the US Congress through Congresswoman Shalla Jackson Lee, who heads the Nigerian-US legislative Group in the US Congress. And in all of these, I have taken pains to explain my innocence.
He added, “But critical to me is that I have called for investigation. And I have made it clear that I’m ready to subject myself to an interrogation to clear my good name.”
Ikon said he has attended over 30 conferences, seminars and meetings in 20 countries and has never been found wanting.
The lawmaker described the allegations against him as “baseless,” adding that he has also written the Minister of Foreign Affairs on the matter because the allegation affects not only his person but the National Assembly as an institution, and the country in a larger sense.
“I find it unbelievable that I can be linked to something that I did not do. So, I believe there is a mix-up somewhere and only a thorough investigation would clear the air and unravel this mistake.”
Meanwhile, Mrs. Sophia Gbilla, an engineer and wife of Mark Gbilla one of the accused lawmakers, has said she is not based in America as earlier reported. According to her, she is Nigerian-based and would like to correct the erroneous impression given by the said publication.
“The aspect of the report that I am based in the United States is completely untrue and misleading, I work and live in Nigeria,” she said.
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