The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) is on track to recover about N1. 5 trillion which will go a long way reviving Nigeria’s battered economy. The money will be recovered from looted funds, both from the arms deal and other sources.
The 1.5 trillion Naira will come from most of the corruption cases being investigated and those already in court is N1.5 trillion. According to the acting Chairman of the EFCC, Ibrahim Magu recently in Abuja, the commission has already recovered billions.
“We have many corruption cases in court. We are getting them every day from everywhere and we are recovering stolen money and taking corrupt people to court. The money we have recovered and the money we are going to get back from them, billions and billions of naira, is being paid back to government and will be used to do what it was originally meant for, build hospitals, send our children to school, build roads and railways, create employment and defend our country”, said Magu.
The arms procurement scam involving former National Security Adviser, Sambo Dasuki is to the tune of $2.1 billion and another N643 billion. Out of this amount, prominent Nigerians including former Minister of Defence , Haliru Mohammed and his son, former Minister of State for Finance, Bashir Yuguda , former governor of Sokoto State, Attahiru Bafarawa and son, are alleged to have shared from this amount.
Another tranche of the arms deal being investigated and which involves the Nigeria Air Force (NAF) and former and serving service chiefs is worth $2 billion and another N29 billion. For this investigation, former service chiefs, Alex Badeh, Adeshola Amosu and others are being detained by the EFCC.
In a related development, the Nigerian Army last week, forwarded names of about 15 officers to the EFCC on this case, indicating that if found culpable they would be court-martialed .
Furthermore, other money allegedly looted by individuals includes about N37 billion involving former Nigerian Maritime and Safety Agency (NIMASA) boss, Patrick Akpobolokemi who has five cases in court being prosecuted by the EFCC. One of the cases involves N34 billion Maritime University land scam in which he was linked to former Niger Delta militant , Government Ekpemupolo also known as Tompolo. Another case against Akpobolokemi involves N2.6 billion aside from three other cases involving different amounts of money.
The latest cases being prosecuted is the one which involves former Minister of Interior, Abba Moro and five others worth about N676 million allegedly got from applicants in the failed immigration recruitment scam of March 2013. This money if recovered may have to go back to the applicants.
It is not yet clear how much may come from the planned probe of the petroleum industry, as the EFCC is currently investigating former Ministers of Finance, Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala and former Minister of Petroleum Resources, Diezani Alison-Madueke.
If the four tranches of investigations currently going on are brought to a conclusion with the money fully recovered, then the EFCC would have recovered N1.5 trillion for the Nigerian economy.
The money involved in the investigations include: Dasukigate: $2.1 billion and another N643 billion, NAF: $2 billion and another N29 billion; Abba Moro and others N676 million; Akpobolokemi, Tompolo : N34 billion; Akpobolokemi: N2.6 billion. The summation of these funds amounts to N1.5 trillion, using N200 as exchange rate for the dollar components.
This N1.5 trillion would be a fraction of the amount to be recovered by the EFCC because several other corruption cases inherited by the Muhammadu Buhari administration are still ongoing in courts. They include cases involving former governors.
Those still being investigated and prosecuted in this category include the chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Ali Modu Sheriff and former governor of Imo State, Ikedi Ohakim and others. So far in the arms procurement case, about 40 persons have been arrested by the EFCC, starting with Col. Sambo Dasuki himself.
Since the EFCC seized Sambo Dasuki, scores of others from politicians to military personnel, to persons in the oil and petroleum industry as well as the media have also been arrested and quizzed.
They include former Air Mashal Alex Badeh, Air Mashal Adeshola Amosu, ex- Chief of Air Staff, Air Marshal M.D. Umar; Col. N. Ashinze and AVM A. M. Mamu. Others are: AVM O.T. Oguntoyinbo, AVM R.A. Ojuawo; AVM J.B. Adigun; and AVM JA Kayode-Beckley; AVM T Omenyi, Air Cdre A.O Ogunjobi; Air Cdre GMD Gwani; Air Cdre SO Makinde; and Air Cdre AY Lassa.
At the Nigeria Air Force (NAF), another $2 billion and N29 billion fraud was allegedly discovered in contract award spending. Majority of those arrested and being investigated are still remanded in detention.
Others arrested and quizzed for their share of the arms money from the office of the former NSA. They are mostly politicians and media personalities.
Prominent names in the list includes: former Minister of State for Finance, Bashir Yuguda, former governor of Sokoto State, Attahiru Bafarawa and his son, former Minister of Defence, Haliru Bello Muhammed and his son, spokesman of the Peoples’ Democratic Party (PDP), Olisa Metuh among others.
