Magu, Presidency in dilemma

The Acting Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Ibrahim Magu, might have put himself and the Presidency in a tight corner over the latest foreign cash seizure, which is said to be over N13 billion when converted.

This is coming on the heels of confusion over the ownership of the funds. While there had been brickbats over the temporarily forfeited sum, a Presidency source told Saturday Telegraph that some people within the corridors of powers are not happy with Magu for not letting The Presidency know about the latest operation before rushing to the media.

The EFCC had on Wednesday circulated photos and video footage of the cash hoard, which was recovered at Osborne Towers at 16, Osborne Road, in Ikoyi area of Lagos on Wednesday.

The hidden money, said to be in different currencies; $43,449,947; £27,800 and N23, 218,000 were hidden in safe cabinets inside one of the apartments in the building.

The source, who happened to be a high-ranking officer in one of the armed forces, explained that most of those who had spoken about the issue were not happy with Magu because he had put the Presidency in a difficult situation.

“It was silly of the EFCC to have rushed to the media. Now, it has put itself in trouble because the money belongs to those we call BGP (Big Government People) in our own phraseology.”

“How do you now expect the issue to be handled? And you know with the anti-corruption posture of the government, President Muhammadu Buhari and his people will wash their hands off.

And this will cause bad blood. Magu has really goofed this time”, he said. However, in the midst of claims and counter claims about the ownership of the building as well as the fund found in it, a former Minister of Aviation, Chief Femi Fani- Kayode, had alleged that the money belonged to Amaechi, the incumbent minister of transportation.

Though the Nigeria Intelligence Agency (NIA) had reportedly claimed ownership of the money, Fani-Kayode disagreed on his tweeter handle, saying that the “NIA does not keep cash in minister’s flats”.

The former minister, who twitted to put the record straight after conflicting reports on the issue wrote: “The $43 million is Rotimi Amaechi’s. He owns the flat it was found in too.

NIA story is fake news.” But a media aide to the minister, Mr. David Iyofor, who replied Fani-Kayode on the same channel, wrote that the ex-minister is spreading “FAKE NEWS”. Iyofor in a replied tweet said: “Show us the title documents with Amaechi’s name as the owner or shut up.

Someone will just sniff something then come on Twitter to rant incomprehensible nonsense.

Some fellows really need help, serious help. Lying outright to defame someone is not politics”, he said. However, sources within the EFCC also told the Saturday Telegraph that the NIA had denied knowledge of the report linking it with the money.

The EFCC source hinted that some NIA officials were at the anti-graft agency’s office in Lagos on Thursday to deny the report. In the same line of refutation, a former chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party, Adamu Mu’azu, who declared to have originally owned the high-rise home also denied any link with the cash, claiming to have sold the building to repay a bank loan.

The former Bauchi State governor in a statement issued on Friday explained that he built the property with a credit facility acquired from a bank, but had since sold it to repay the loan.
“I acquired the land and jointly develop it using a bank loan I obtained about nine years ago.

However, all the flats had been sold to prospective buyers in order to pay back the loan. I do not own or occupy any of the apartments.

“I sold all the apartments through established estate agents as such I have no knowledge or interest in who purchases or rents any of the flats. I strongly believe that the efforts being made will surely unveil the real owner of such flat and the money recovered,” Mu’azu stated.

On the alleged ownership of the money by the NIA, the source said that the stunt being put up by the intelligence agency is a face-saving effort aimed at shielding the real owner of the money.

He further noted that the money is a pool of fresh notes recently brought into the country from the United States by a top government official who is very close to the corridors of power. “Such money is not brought in by ordinary people.

It takes only a very strong government personality with powerful backing to bring in such tranches of money. “We use private jets and special government flights to freight such huge currencies, especially when it is US notes.

The US government does not just allow such big amount to move anyhow. There are procedures.

“Did you notice the large size and the blank wrappers? That shows it is fresh from the mint.

It can only be brought in with special status as it is done with government money. “The NIA is just trying to defend the indefensible. If the money belongs to them, they should have kept it with the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) or place it in an escrow account, as it is the normal practice with security agents”, he said. Asked whether the Presidency would sanction the leadership of the EFCC, he noted that the BGP are in a dilemma as to the next line of action.

“Though they are not happy with Magu’s rush to the press, there is nothing they can do to him now, because he is seen in public as fighting Mr. President’s war against the Senate. “If they fire him, the Senate will win and if they leave him, the BGP will not be happy with Buhari.

It is a like matter between the devil and the deep blue sea, because some of the BGP actually believe that Magu knew the owner but deliberately wanted to rubbish them.

“These are some of the people that does not want him confirmed as the EFCC chairman and it is not unlikely that he is fighting back to expose them. Some of them believe that he knew and he purposely put the matter in public domain”, the source noted.

When contacted, the phone of Femi Adesina Senior Special Adviser (Media) to the President rang out. But an online portal, Premium Times, quoted him as saying that the issue is a security matter and not a presidency issue, so he couldnt comment.

https://newtelegraphonline.com/news/ikoyi-43m-rivers-claims-ownership/

hmmmmmmmmm noted

Cleansweep Buhari

Abeg una wey dey 'like' dis post I dey gbadun una only say seun never allow me like your like

Seems a good many Nigerians passed by Jeffrey Archer's fine writing

BGP, that means the Amaechi angle might still be the correct angle. He is the only Big Government Person that has been fingered in the case so far

I know very soon,another will still be discovered

Why won't they be in Dilemma when the one indicted is sacrosanct of the law and constitution of the land. They were the corrupt figures that fought for Buhari's victory.

Now the ambits of the law is so finetuned to make only men of the past administrations corrupt in their dealings whether good or bad and the thiefs all enmeshed in bandwagon of the sinking ship called APC emancipated from all forms of corruption.

Tinubu and Amaechi. The faces of change Nigerian youths are celebrating

leave uncle ex governor alone"who no dey steal"

Lies lies everywhere

their are some element of truth in this write up....


because i ask...... when was the money loaded there.

how where the able to get a key to the safe where the money was kept.


how come the dollars where all in mint.

how can a whole federal government agency keep such amount in a public house without putting it in CBN first




let me pause here

They said it was PDP that brought recent mint clean pretty dollars into Nigeria .

BMC it will never be well with una.

Bunch of deluded beings
magu n presidency should go hug wet transformer
thieves

Magu and his boss are both incompetent.

Gaaaawwwwdddddaaammmiiitt! Is Nigeria still a country? Is there a constitution? See how they are playing ping pong with over 200 million heads....... over "$43million and nobody is in jail, in detention or has even been called!!

May that dilemma kill them all.


Shebi dem think say everybody na Zombie.


2019 don reach finish.

Amathief a. K. a ATM should better go and claim his money. No peace for the wicked.

Which kind of useless dilemma?

“It was silly of the EFCC to have rushed to the media. Now, it has put itself in trouble because the money belongs to those we call BGP (Big Government People) in our own phraseology.”

These guys are jokers. So this is the kind of thing Mr Integrity is permitting in this saintly government. OMG.

sdindan:
They said it was PDP that brought recent mint clean pretty dollars into Nigeria .

BMC it will never be well with una.

In dilemma of wielding the stick against one of their own?


When they say the corruption war of this administration is selective and targeted at the opposition, some people will come out defending what they know nothing about.


Una don see una life?
Phitting kwarraptian indeed.

Just like I defined Nigeria b4....."CARTOON NETWORK"

PMB and Osinbajo now

they should just arrest amaechi and that her girlfriend mo abubu

I dont know why but somehow this has started looking like a staged propaganda gone wrong to me.
These propaganda experts seem to have wrongly predicted the direction that this drama meant to distract 160m mumus will take.
Thanks to the whites for giving us the internet.
We will follow this up until somebody is hanged for this or the govr will no longer be taken serious

“It was silly of the EFCC to have rushed to the media. Now, it has put itself in trouble because the money belongs to those we call BGP (Big Government People) in our own phraseology



Amaechi name has just been confirmed here. Imagine some dolts are still defending Amaechi




Shame on you all

really.

Its official.... Nigeria is a Jungle

I can help their dilemma. They should just send it all to my account and forget they ever found it. End of Discussion.

The real change is here

It's on record that the NIA do receive money in cash, they recieved money through the former NSA,
This write is just mere conjectures,
I don't have the video link to show you that NIA does have a budget of $160M, the NIA is not trying to cover any up.

N.

Who are dey deceiving

Dilemma again

I hope the dilemma has nothing to do with the version of 'truth" to present to the gullible public.