Breaking: Anti-graft Agency Reopens Cases Against Fayose, Kwankwaso, Others
Afimag.com –
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, has announced the reviving of money laundering cases against 13 former governors and some former ministers, involving over N853.8bn.
It was learnt that the amount involved in the high-profile cases involving the former governors and ex-ministers was not less than N772.2bn. The commission is also investigating the N81.6bn that was allegedly looted in the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Alleviation.
Recently, according to the Anilti graft Agency, another $2.2bn was alleged to be missing via money laundering, fund diversion and misappropriation. The money was allegedly diverted by a former National Security Adviser, Sambo Dasuki; late media mogul, Raymond Dokpesi; former governor of Sokoto State, Attahiru Bafarawa; and former Minister of State for Finance, Bashir Yuguda, and others.
The commission noted that the money was meant for arms procurement in support of the war against terrorists, but it was laundered, diverted, and misappropriated.
Recall that EFCC apprehended Dokpesi, Bafarawa, Yuguda among others, in connection to ar!ms procurement deal while Dasuki was in custody of the Department of State Services in 2015.
People involved were two former Ekiti State governors, Kayode Fayemi and Ayo Fayose; former Zamfara State governor, Bello Matawalle; two former Enugu State governors, Chimaroke Nnamani and Sullivan Chime; former Nasarawa State governor, Abdullahi Adamu; former Kano State governor, Rabiu Kwankwaso.
Others are former Rivers State governor, Peter Odili; former Abia State governor, Theodore Orji; former Gombe State governor, Danjuma Goje; former Sokoto State governor, Aliyu Wamako; former Bayelsa State governor, Timipre Sylva; and former Jigawa State governor, Sule Lamido.
Matawalle, who is currently serving as the Minister of Defence in the administration of President Bola Tinubu, is being probed for alleged N70bn money laundering; while Fayemi, who served as Minister of Solid Minerals Development in former President Muhammadu Buhari’s cabinet from November 11, 2015 to May 30, 2018, before resigning to contest the governorship election for his second term, is being investigated for an alleged N4bn fraud, while Fayose, a two-term governor of Ekiti State, is being investigated by the anti-graft agency for an alleged N6.9bn fraud.
Nnamani is being investigated for an alleged N5.3bn fraud; Chime is being investigated over an alleged N450m campaign fraud as part of the N23bn allegedly shared by a former Minister of Petroleum Resources, Diezani Alison-Madueke, while Adamu is under probe for alleged N15bn fraud.
Kwakwanso was a cussed of not remitting N10bn pension fund, while Orji is being investigated over alleged N551bn money laundering; while Odili is similarly being probed for alleged N100bn fraud. It is not yet clear how the probe of the ex-Rivers State governor will be handled as he obtained an order of perpetual injunction restraining the EFCC and other security agencies from a Federal High Court in March 2008, which has not been vacated to date.
Goje is being probed by the commission for an alleged N5bn fraud; Wammako is being investigated for allegedly diverting N15bn; Sylva, a former Minister of State for Petroleum under Buhari, is under probe for alleged N19.2bn money laundering; while Lamido is being investigated over an alleged N1.35bn fraud.
Diezani (Minister of Petroleum, under former President Goodluck Jonathan) is questioned over several alleged money laundering cases running into several billions of naira and millions of dollars.
“The chairman is reviewing all high profile cases, and he has ordered the investigators not to treat anyone differently, especially politically exposed persons, such as former governors and ministers, who were indicted for money laundering,” said a source who does not want his name in print.
