The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission has reopened
money laundering cases against 13 former governors and some former
ministers, with the amounts involved running into over N853.8bn.
Sunday punch findings revealed that the amount
at stake in the high-profile cases involving the former governors and
ex-ministers was not less than N772.2bn, however, the anti-graft agency is
currently investigating the N81.6bn that was allegedly looted in the Ministry
of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Alleviation.
However, another $2.2bn was alleged to have gone missing
through money laundering, fund diversion and misappropriation in recent times.
The $2.2bn was allegedly diverted by a former National Security Adviser, Sambo
Dasuki; late media mogul, Raymond Does; former governor of Soto State, Attahiru
Bafarawa; and former Minister of State for Finance, Bashir Yuguda, and others.
According to the EFCC, the money was meant for arms
procurement in support of the war against terrorists, but it was laundered,
diverted, and misappropriated.
While Dasuki was in custody of the Department of State
Services in 2015, the EFCC arrested Dokpesi, Bafarawa, Yuguda and others.
They were all arrested after being indicted by a
presidential committee that investigated arms procurement under former
President Goodluck Jonathan’s administration.
Olukoyede had on Friday declared that all high-profile cases
would be reviewed and revisited, while noting that indicted former or incumbent
public officials’ corruption cases would not be overlooked or abandoned by the
commission.
He made the declaration in Abuja through the acting Director
of Public Affairs, EFCC, Wilson Uwujaren, who spoke to journalists following a
protest by members of the Zamfara Alternative Forum at the commission’s
headquarters in Jabi, Abuja.
Members of the group had urged the anti-graft agency to
revisit the probe of the immediate past governor of the state, Matawalle, over
alleged N70bn money laundering.
Responding to the request of the protesters, Uwujaren
revealed that Olukoyede had reviewed all inherited high-profile cases since he
assumed office, adding that the commission would proceed with the probe of
every indicted high-profile person.
He said, “I want to assure you that, as far as the
commission is concerned, nobody is above the law. What the EFCC Chairman, Ola
Olukoyede, has done since assuming office is that he has reviewed all the
high-profile cases he inherited.
“And the EFCC Chairman has asked me to assure you that this
case, like others, will not be an exception. The case will be reviewed, and the
chairman assures you that something will be done under the law, and no one is
above the law and no case shall be swept under the carpet.
“Rest assured that these cases will be revisited because the
EFCC believes that no case should be swept under the carpet. If you have done
something wrong and if our investigation is able to establish that you have a
case, we will proceed with the matter.”
On May 18, 2023, the EFCC, through its spokesman, Osita
Nwajah, had said Matawalle was being investigated by the commission over
allegations of monumental corruption, award of phantom contracts, and diversion
of over N70bn.
He stated, “The money, which was sourced as a loan from an
old-generation bank purportedly for the execution of projects across the local
government areas of the state, was allegedly diverted by the governor through
proxies and contractors, who received payment for contracts that were not
executed.
“The commission’s investigations revealed that more than 100
companies received payments from the funds, with no evidence of service
rendered to the state.
“Some of the contractors, who had been invited and quizzed
by the commission, made startling revelations on how they were allegedly
compelled by the governor to return the funds received from the state coffers
back to him through his aides after converting the same to United States
dollars.”
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