THE Economic and Financial Crimes Commission has concluded plans to commence the probe of the former President Goodluck Jonathan with investigations into the financial transactions of his ministers and aides.

The PUNCH learnt that the Chairman of the commission, Mr. Ibrahim Lamorde, had already directed that all petitions against former public officers at the federal level should be forwarded to him to be acted upon.

Findings showed that former ministers, special advisers, heads of parastatals and those of other Federal Government agencies would be invited for interrogation by the EFCC in few weeks from now.

Our correspondents learnt that the anti-graft agency would focus on those whose establishments attracted huge allocations from the Federal Government when Jonathan was in power.

Such ministries and agencies, it was learnt, included defence, petroleum resources and power.

Three top sources in the anti-graft agency confided in one of our correspondents that Lamorde was “determined to expose any corrupt act during the administration of the former President.”

One of the sources, who confided in one of our correspondents, explained that anti-graft operatives had yet to arrest any of the former ministers, special advisers and heads of agencies who served under the former President.

The source said, “I am not aware of anybody who has been summoned or interrogated by the commission. Those to be interrogated would be determined by the gravity of the allegations against them as contained in the petitions.

“What happened last week was that a directive was issued to move all petitions against public office holders under the former President to the office of the Chairman.

“The files will be studied and assigned to units to handle the investigations. It is based on the petitions that people will be summoned.
“Most likely next week, action would be taken on those petitions…”

But the Head of Media and Publicity of the EFCC, Mr. Wilson Uwajaren, denied knowledge of such a directive when one of our correspondents contacted him on the telephone on Monday.

“I am not aware of the directive you are talking about. It is not to my knowledge,” the agency’s spokesman said.

Reacting to the development, the Deputy National Publicity Secretary of the Peoples Democratic Party, Alhaji Abdullahi Jalo, said the party was not afraid of a probe.

According to him, the party and former President Goodluck Jonathan have nothing to hide, saying all the party is asking for is that any probe must be within the ambit of the law.

Jalo said the PDP as a political party discharged its duty of providing leadership for Nigeria for 16 years and that it did so transparently.

He said, “I am sure Nigerians still remember that it was because of PDP’s desire to deal with the scourge of corruption that our government under the leadership of President Olusegun Obasanjo established the EFCC and the ICPC. The records are there.

“All we are asking for is that there must be fairness and justice, whatever probe they want to carry out must have respect for the rule of law, good conscience and the fear of God.

“Such a probe must not be carried out based on vendetta or simply because somebody does not like the name or the face of somebody.”

Jalo also advised the All Progressives Congress-led administration to pay more attention to providing leadership to Nigeria, “rather than dissipating energy in the pursuit of trivialities.”

The Senior Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Mr. Femi Adesina, had in an interview last week, said President Muhammadu Buhari would probe Jonathan’s government.

He had said that the present administration would recover billions of dollars, adding that “the world is too small a place for anybody to hide if you are running from justice.”

“It doesn’t mean that anybody that has ill-gotten wealth will not regurgitate it. They will. Remember when he (Buhari) went to Germany for the G7 summit, he met with President Obama and Obama told him to just give us information on where the loot is hidden and we will help you recover it and the government has been working on that. So, that shows that looters will never go free,” he had said.

Operatives of the Department of State Services had invaded the houses of Jonathan’s National Security Adviser, Col. Sambo Dasuki (retd.) on Friday forcing the former NSA to a house arrest for 24 hours.

The security agency in a statement the following day accused Dasuki of felony, misuse of power and possession of destructive weapons.

It said it recovered from Dasuki’s home seven high calibre rifles (high assault weapons), several magazines, military related gear and 12 new vehicles, including five bulletproof cars.

A top officer of the DSS had confided in one of our correspondents that Dasuki would face further interrogations this week.

Also, the ex-President’s Chief Security Officer, Gordon Obua, was being detained as part of investigations into the security spending at the Presidential Villa during his time.

A lawyer to Obua has raised the alarm about the detention of his client.

The lawyer, Onochie Onwuegbuna, said in a statement that Obua had been in detention since July 16 without being told what offence he committed.

Picture: Chairman, EFCC, Mr. Ibrahim Lamorde

http://www.punchng.com/news/efcc-set-to-probe-jonathans-ministers-aides/

Probe is a normal thing in Nigeria...if guilty, they will grant them bail...Dis is Nigeria where anytin happen...

l support the probe but it should not be selective and witch -hunt. The past governors should also be investigated irrespective of party affiliations. Their human rights should be respected not like the case of Obua.

had EFCC won any case? They shud just shut up

l will advice PMB to start the probe from his house first.Then proceed to PDP.What l mean by his house is APC. Thank GOD,he has people to start with e.g Amechi,Kwakwaso etc. From there he takes the war to PDP massively. But l know as usual,it will be if you are not in APC you are corrupt. See Tinubu and Atiku hovering over the places,Amechi in USA, and Obua died in underground cell .

Correct!
Every one of them must account for their misdeeds.

I think EFCC itself needs probe, how many corrupt officials have they brought to justice since , all u have is another agency spending so much to retrieve a stolen fund that. And eventually the accused walk freely or go to 6month to 1 year imprisonment

If power hadn't changed hands,EFCC would have still be toothless. The only disadvantage is EFCC might become sectional and partisan.

There's no saint in Nigerian Politics. Probe yourselves first. Y'all are bunch of criminals. (Economic and Financial Criminals Commission) Hypocritical bastårds.

donholy28:
Even EFCC nowadays are becoming toothless and biased

Really? What was EFCC during the time of Jonathan's administration?

Beremx:
Really? What was EFCC during the time of Jonathan's administration?

No mind dem...

Okay by me.

Hope they will not calculate the stolen money with four figure table like Oshiomole.

These are my recommendations to make Police/DSS/EFCC/ICPC investigations of Ex-Govs and Officials easier and more successful:

Police/DSS/EFCC/ICPC should encourage petitions on financial impropriety from everyone including anonymous sources.

All petitions should be treated as plausible until proven otherwise. Petitions should not go public until after thorough investigation.

Police/DSS/EFCC/ICPC should stop arresting or interrogating financial impropriety suspects before completing their investigations.

After receiving petitions Police/DSS/EFCC/ICPC should gather and analyze the following information before interrogating the suspects:

• Petitioners are usually more than willing to supply evidences
• The time line of the alleged impropriety will be very useful
• The Code of Conduct Bureau assets declaration of suspects before and after leaving office should be obtained, valued and analyzed.
• The legitimate means of income of suspects within the time line should be valued and analyzed.
• With the new BVN registration cumulative worth of suspects (across all Banks) before and after leaving office is easier to obtain now.
• A random check on suspects' families and close associates assets and Bank account may solve some mysteries.
• Corporate Affairs Commissions activities of the suspects, friends and family during the time line may be useful.

Suspect interrogation should be the last stage before taking suspects to court. Information from suspects would help investigators affirm or edit the information they have.

On-the-spot investigations and interrogation should be swift and discreet as much as possible.

Suspects need not be treated as criminals even if there are incriminating evidences against them.

With thoroughness Judges may be able to determine criminal cases more expeditiously.

Cant wait

sainty2k3:
I think EFCC itself needs probe, how many corrupt officials have they brought to justice since , all u have is another agency spending so much to retrieve a stolen fund that. And eventually the accused walk freely or go to 6month to 1 year imprisonment

That was then, things have changed. You can even see that from the very stringent bail conditions given some of the high calibre suspects taken into custody recently. The chairman himself stated recently that the posturing of the previous government on corruption made them very handicap.

Investigation precedes indictment and prosecution. Let us keep our fingers crossed hoping to get a windfall of convictions this time. Things have changed bro.

Shortyy:
There's no saint in Nigerian Politics. Probe yourselves first. Y'all are bunch of criminals. (Economic and Financial Criminals Commission) Hypocritical bastårds.

All you do is just spam the forum with your inane rants. What's the point calling a people bastards simply because they chose to probe some people who are undoubtedly corrupt??

Get a grip on yourself before you lose it completely.

This is a right step in the right direction imagine a government that misappropriate 150 Billion Dollars I pity this nation called Nigeria! !!!

I hope this comes to fruition, if not for the slowness of this administration we should have recoverd lots of money

donholy28:
Even EFCC nowadays are becoming toothless and biased

but buhari has given them teeth to bite

It's allowed

I would prefer it were carried out to all past serving public office holders regardless of party affiliations.

Whoever is found guilty should be made to face the law.

omenka:
That was then, things have changed. You can even see that from the very stringent bail conditions given some of the high calibre suspects taken into custody recently. The chairman himself stated recently that the posturing of the previous government on corruption made them very handicap.

Investigation precedes indictment and prosecution. Let us keep our fingers crossed hoping to get a windfall of convictions this time. Things have changed bro.

I hope so o

omenka:
All you do is just spam the forum with your inane rants. What's the point calling a people bastards simply because they chose to probe some people who are undoubtedly corrupt??

Get a grip on yourself before you lose it completely.

You are a stupïd tout. Both you and those Criminals you call EFcc are Thieves. Let them probe themselves first before they look for who to probe. No body is a saint in Nigeria. Get that? Everyone have got a big skekelon in their stinky cupboard! Ugly bafoon!!

Shortyy:

You are a stupïd tout. Both you and those Criminals you call EFcc are Thieves. Let them probe themselves first before they look for who to probe. No body is a saint in Nigeria. Get that? Everyone have got a big skekelon in their stinky cupboard! Ugly bafoon!!

Hmmm. You sound really angry. Life must be really unpleasant down at your end. Sorry miss.

Shortyy:

You are a stupïd tout. Both you and those Criminals you call EFcc are Thieves. Let them probe themselves first before they look for who to probe. No body is a saint in Nigeria. Get that? Everyone have got a big skekelon in their stinky cupboard! Ugly bafoon!!

I don't get your point. So since everyone is corrupt in Nigeria and there is someone trying to mop up the mess, isn't that the right direction to go. Does that mean thieves should be allowed to bask in a wealth acquired via illegal means? Are you implying that people should continue to steal because there is corruption everywhere?

Rikidony:
I hope this comes to fruition, if not for the slowness of this administration we should have recoverd lots of money

How many did GEJ recover in 6 years?

lolaxavier:


I don't get your point. So since everyone is corrupt in Nigeria and there is someone trying to mop up the mess, isn't that the right direction to go. Does that mean thieves should be allowed to bask in a wealth acquired via illegal means? Are you implying that people should continue to steal because there is corruption everywhere?

Those people trying to mop up the mess are also corrupt. It's like a corrupt judge trying to judge another person. Let them all mop up their own mess. As long as i'm concerned, Those "mess mop ups" are more corrupt.

omenka:
Hmmm. You sound really angry. Life must be really unpleasant down at your end. Sorry miss.

Shuttup, Ugly mönkey

Shortyy:

Shuttup, Ugly mönkey

Come here gurl. Here's my shoulder, you can lean on me. Stop the hate, it does you no good. And try to speak like a lady.