Corruption
Nigeria’s Anti-Graft Agency, EFCC Probes Central Bank Over Multi-Billion Fraud As Attorney-General, Malami, Emefiele Battle To Stop Investigations
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission has begun an investigation into an alleged multi-billion naira fraud at the Central Bank of Nigeria which centres on the disbursement of a loan facility being managed by the Director in charge of the CBN agricultural loans.
SaharaReporters learnt that the CBN Governor, Godwin Emefiele, presently jittery and fighting hard to stop the probe has reached out to the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami (SAN), to wade into the EFCC investigation of the CBN director of Development Finance Department (DfD), Yila Yusuf.
Yila’s DfD is in charge of gricultural loans at the CBN.
SaharaReporters gathered that the EFCC operatives last week stormed the CBN department over some atrocities committed by Yila Yusuf. He was accused of owning expensive houses and cars in Abuja and in the Lekki part of Lagos State.
“Last week, the EFCC went to CBN DfD, the department that deals with agric loans and more. That is the cash cow of Emefiele and is led by a corrupt director, Yila. Since last week, Emefiele has been doing all he can through the Attorney-General, Malami, to ensure Bawa does not investigate the department.
“Changes have also been done in the department by redeployment of staff who Yila and Emefiele assumed were leaking the atrocities in the department.
“The said director was invited to Lagos but the matter has been shut down by Emefiele and Malami. Yila Yusuf is accused of owning expensive houses and cars in Abuja and Lekki part of Abuja,” a top source in the CBN told SaharaReporters.
The CBN has in the past claimed it distributed billions of naira as loans under the Agricultural Credit Guarantee Scheme Fund (ACGSF) to farmers.
The latest investigation by the EFCC only adds to the growing list of atrocities and scandals that the lavish CBN governor, Emefiele, is enmeshed in.
SaharaReporters had on September 20 reported that the Arewa Youth Assembly, a socio-economic and socio-political group, called for the resignation or sacking of Emefiele.
According to the northern group, doing so will save the nation from further economic meltdown.
They had insisted that the sum of N500billion which was stolen in a private Dubai investment towards the end of 2018 should be investigated as well as other funds that went missing during Emefiele’s administration.
SaharaReporters had in May 2019 made public a phone conversation of Emefiele; his deputy, Edward Lametek Adamu; Director for Finance, Dayo M. Arowosegbe and one of the Special Advisers to the CBN Governor, Emmanuel Ukeje discussing how to cover up the loss of over N500billion stolen from the CBN in a private investment that collapsed.
Two audio files, exclusively obtained by SaharaReporters, revealed how the governor and top officials of the apex bank discussed plots to conceal the loss of huge sums of money in a Dubai investment.
The CBN claimed the audio conversation was genuine but no money was missing from the bank.
Speaking to journalists on Sunday, Mohammed Salihu Danlami and Abdulsalam Kazeem; Speaker and Deputy Speaker of AYA respectively alongside other group’s leaders had urged the CBN Governor to resign over his alleged inability to stabilise the country’s bleeding economy.
Also on September 23, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) asked the CBN governor to resign over allegations of overseeing looting of funds in the nation’s apex bank.
According to the PDP, the allegations are based on the affirmations from the Secretary of the National Caretaker Committee of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Senator John Akpan Udoedehe during a Channels TV programme.
“The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) demands the immediate resignation and prosecution of the Governor of the Central bank of Nigeria (CBN) Godwin Emefiele going by allegations by the All progressives Congress (APC) that he superintended over massive looting of funds in the CBN.
“Our party calls on the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to immediately invite Emefiele for questioning over allegations by the National Secretary of the illegal APC National Caretaker Committee, Senator John Akpan Udoedehe, that the CBN governor supervised over the pillaging of the nation’s vaults under his watch,” the party had said.
“Our party insists that beyond Akpan Udoedehe’s allegation, the tenure of Emefiele as CBN governor under the APC administration has witnessed colossal failures of monetary and fiscal policies, requiring him to vacate the office and hand himself over for investigation.
“It is instructive to note that when Emefiele took over office as CBN Governor in 2014, naira exchanged for N164 to a dollar. Today, in the hands of Emefiele and the APC, the naira has tumbled to a near N600 to a dollar, putting the nation’s economy on its knees.
“Painfully, under the leadership of Emefiele, the CBN has failed in its core mandate of managing the economy and took a dive into propaganda with claims that do not reflect the harsh economic reality on the ground.
“The PDP, therefore, urges the EFCC not to allow this revelation to be swept under the carpet as it borders on serious economic sabotage for which sanctions are clearly spelt out under our laws,” it had added.
On September 16, a coalition of civil societies backed the Arewa Youth Assembly, calling for the resignation of Emefiele.
Seven different groups joined others who wanted the governor to resign over his alleged inability to stabilise the country’s bleeding economy.
In a statement made available by the coalition and signed by seven of them, the groups noted that the current high poverty rate in the land on the failure of the country’s economy under Emefiele’s watch as CBN governor.
The groups which signed the press statement include; the Nigeria Citizens Action Group, Unified Nigerian Youth Forum, Concern Northern forum, Igbo unity forum of Nigeria, Federation of Idoma Youths, Igbo Youth Assembly and Itsekiri National Youth Council.
“The Nigeria Citizens Action Group (NCAG), a coalition of 35 civil society organisations is constraint to lend its voice with that of numerous other concerned Nigerians that have been calling on Mr Godwin Emefiele, Nigeria’s CBN to resign with immediate effect to save the country from total collapse.
“This call became necessary following the extensive review of the tenure of Mr Godwin as the head of our apex bank which has come to the sad conclusion that he should humbly step aside and allow a more competent person to step in to save our country from total collapse.
“We understand that it will be difficult for him and his heirs to reason with us, but we wish to beg on them to put on their garment of patriotism and save our country”, the coalition said.
The statement continued, “Based on the Arewa Youth Assembly earlier call on the Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Mr Godwin Emefiele to resign his position as the apex bank boss over his inability to stabilise the glaring nose-diving country’s economy, we have noticed the sponsored backlash and propaganda against our persons instead of the issues we have raised.
“The fact that the sponsored messengers of the propaganda couldn’t come up with an issue-based argument is a clear indication that Mr Emefiele has truly failed and they are only helping in further exposing his flaws because Nigerians are watching.
“Mr governor would have proved us wrong with facts and figures, and possibly, engage the services of those with related intellectual to defend his inability to stabilise our bleeding economy.”
(SaharaReporters)
Corruption
SDP Presidential Candidate, Prince Adewole Adebayo Speaks On Fighting Corruption In Nigeria
The presidential candidate of the Social Democratic Party, Prince Adewole Adebayo has said the fight against corruption in Nigeria needs to start from inside the government, for it to be successful.
He said his party will change the mode of fighting corruption, as Nigeria has been getting it wrong all these while.
Prince Adewole was speaking at the Centre for Awareness on Justice and Accountability (CAJA) Integrity Award Public Lecture, which held on Wednesday, 14th December 2022 in Kano State.
The theme of the event was ‘Promoting Integrity as a way of Fighting Corruption’.
He said, “We are getting something wrong in Nigeria; government cannot fight corruption in Nigeria, government can only fight corruption inside government. Why we have failed is that government is not fighting corruption inside government but is fighting corruption inside other people’s bed room, so we’ll change that”.
He further noted that there is a need to watch out for the institutions used to fight corruption because corruption is capable of capturing institutions.
“Corruption is dangerous to institutions; any institution that you can use to fight corruption, corruption will capture it. So we must watch out for institutions, including religious institutions”.
“The thieves sit in the front and the hard working people sit at the back when you go to the mosque or you go to the Church. So you have to make sure these institutions are not captured”, Prince Adewole said.
He further said that the government must be willing to keep policemen with integrity at the top in order to help tackle the problem of corruption.
“There’s a fight between the police and the government – a good police knows that people in government will go to jail, that is why they look around to look for bad policemen to put on top of the good policemen”.
Dignitaries present at the event were – Prof. Usman Yusuf, Professor of Haematology-Oncology, Former Executive Secretary, National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS), Barr. Solomon Dalung, Former Minister, Federal Ministry of Youth & Sport Development, Malam Auwal Musa Rafsanjan, Executive Director, Civil Society Legislative Centre (CISLAC) and Kabiru Dakata, Executive Director, CAJA, Pst Ade Alabi, Pst Light, Engineer Yusuf Salisu Buhari, SDP vice presidential candidate, Sen. Ugochukwu Uba, Mr Patrick Anethua, Chief Godwin Osigbeme, members of the SDP Presidential campaign organization and others.
The event was organized by CAJA in collaboration with The Penlight Center.
Corruption
Wike accuses Iyorchia Ayu of corruption
Rivers State Governor Nyesom Wike has accused the national chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party PDP, Iyorchia Ayu of corruption. He accused Ayu of collecting the sum of one billion naira to compromise the May 28 and 29 Presidential primary in favour of one of the aspirants. Governor Wike who challenged Ayu to deny the […]
Rivers State Governor Nyesom Wike has accused the national chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party PDP, Iyorchia Ayu of corruption.
He accused Ayu of collecting the sum of one billion naira to compromise the May 28 and 29 Presidential primary in favour of one of the aspirants.
Governor Wike who challenged Ayu to deny the allegation says he proof to show how Ayu was paid the money through some businessmen in Lagos.
He had a few weeks ago promised to speak on developments in his party the PDP and also make disclosures about the character of some key players in the party.
And true to his words, Governor Nyesom Wike has decided to speak with no details spared.
The first person on his radar is the PDP National Chairman, Iyorchia Ayu whom he accuses of corruption and compromising the may Presidential Primary of the party
The Rivers State Governor is also not sparing the party’s Presidential candidate Atiku Abubakar whom he accuses of consistently failing to keep to his promises
He adds that majority of the people surrounding Atiku Abubakar do not mean well for the PDP; warning that any suggestion that the party can do without votes from Rivers State would be a big mistake.
And as an opposition party desirous of winning the next election, Governor Wike says the PDP must demonstrate its integrity and spirit of justice, fairness and inclusiveness by ensuring that the National Chairman of the party who coincidentally is from the same zone with the Presidential candidate steps aside for a chairman from the South to emerge.
While still keeping his doors open, Nyesom Wike notes that the party is already exhibiting arrogance even when it has not won any election.
The Rivers State Governor says he has no intention of leaving the PDP, the party he owes his political success to, rather the Governor says he would remain in the party and continue to speak and fight for truth and justice.
Corruption
Court Orders Forfeiture Of 10 Properties In Abuja, Kaduna, Maryland USA, Funds linked To Former Zamfara Gov, Yari
A Federal High Court in Abuja has ordered the interim forfeiture of about 10 properties and funds in banks allegedly owned by a former Zamfara State governor, Abdulaziz Yari.
A report by this medium quoted Justice Obiora Egwuatu as giving the order on Wednesday while ruling on an ex-parte application by an ICPC lawyer, Osuobeni Ekoi-Akponimisingha.
Mr Egwuatu said the interim order granted would last for 60 days to enable the ICPC to conclude its investigation, following which the commission could apply for final forfeiture.
The judge ordered the ICPC to publicise the order for any person or persons with interest in the affected properties to show cause within 14 days why they should not be permanently forfeited to the Federal Government.
Some of the properties, according to the ICPC, are in Maryland (USA), Abuja, Kaduna, among others.
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