EFCC should do its work & stop Harassing us – Governors threaten “showdown”

Zamfara Governor, Abdulaziz Yari

The Nigerian Governors Forum (EFCC) has revealed plans to petition the Federal Government over the activities of the Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Ibrahim Magu.

According to Punch, this was disclosed by the chairman of the forum and Governor of Zamfara State Abdulaziz Yari.

The Governor, speaking to journalists on Thursday, said that EFCC engages in media trials, never tidying their cases before proceeding to court, hence their losses.

He said governors are tired of being harassed by Magu.

“To me, I am going to write to the Federal Government that enough is enough; that either the EFCC should do its work or we should ‘do showdown’ with them (EFCC) because nobody became governor to be intimidated, to be harassed, to be abused by a DCP (Deputy Commissioner of Police, Magu).

The problem with the EFCC is that it only wants Nigerians to know it has invited a governor or that one former governor is arrested.

The commission will not tidy its work before going to court. It goes to court and lose all the cases because of the way it initiates the case; but never do so to achieve success.

You can’t fight corruption that way and forever, they (EFCC) will not achieve anything,” Yari said.

He also addressed the case EFCC has against him, where he was accused of diverting parts of the Paris Club refund for his personal use. A Federal High Court had ordered that the sums of N500m and $500,000, said to have been diverted from the Paris Club refund be temporarily forfeited to the Federal Government.

The sums of money were said to have been recovered from two companies – First Generation Mortgage Bank Limited and Gosh Projects Limited – which were allegedly linked to Yari.

According to Yari:

In the case of my humble self, I have no idea why the EFCC is actually interested in the issue of the London Paris Club refund.

It has been on this since inception up till now. It has been repeating, contradicting so many things especially about personalities.

So, if there is anything wrong there, it should approach the person whom it suspects did something wrong, and not to be making noise about it.

I challenge the chairman of EFCC to open up and say if he has ever come to me and interviewed me about what happened.

We didn’t commit any fraud. I am not a signatory to that account but I am the head. We have director-general, we have head of finance, we have other officers of finance.

So, it is what governors agree that I, as chairman, append my signature on. So now, they are saying $86m fraud, N19bn fraud, $3m hotel; which one do we believe?

When it came to the issue of hotel, I challenge them that wherever they sighted a hotel in Lekki or anywhere, let them present it to the public and how did $2m get in there, through who, through which account? Who made the payment? Who is the owner of the property initially that took the money.

Is the EFCC saying that before I became a governor, I didn’t have N150m? In my Code of Conduct papers, I have property and money worth billions.

Because, to the best of my knowledge, the EFCC was set up for the nation not for the governors.

But since the establishment of the EFCC in 2004, if I am not mistaken, the EFCC has been pursuing governors.

To me, I am going to write to the Federal Government that enough is enough; that either the EFCC should do its work or we should do showdown with them (EFCC) because nobody became governor to be intimidated, to be harassed, to be abused by a DCP (Deputy Commissioner of Police)  http://www.konga.com/?k_id=gistme9ja 

The problem with the EFCC is that it only wants Nigerians to know it has invited a governor or that one former governor is arrested.

The commission will not tidy its work before going to court. It goes to court and lose all the cases because of the way it initiates the case; but never do so to achieve success.

You can’t fight corruption that way and forever, they (EFCC) will not achieve anything.

The Acting President Yemi Osinbajo had on Thursday said that Magu will remain the EFCC chairman as long as he is Acting/Vice President.