The Economic and Financial
Crimes Commission has
detained the Resident
Electoral Commissioner in
Abia State, Mr. Sylvester
Ezeani, for his alleged role in
the N23bn ($115m) that was
disbursed by a former
Minister of Petroleum
Resources, Diezani Alison-
Madueke, during the build-up
to the 2015 presidential
election.
According to the EFCC, the
suspect allegedly received
N20m while he was the REC in
Cross River State during the
March 28 Presidential and
National Assembly elections.
An EFCC operative told our
correspondent that the REC
had failed to explain what
the N20m was for and had
thus been detained.
He said, “The REC was on
Tuesday interrogated by
operatives of the EFCC in
Port Harcourt, Rivers State,
in connection with an alleged
N20million electoral scam.
“While serving in Cross
River State, he was alleged
to have collected the sum of
N20m out of the entire
N241,000,000 which was
released to Cross River
State from the controversial
$115million lodged with
Fidelity Bank Plc, by Diezani.
Ezeani, who has now been
redeployed in Abia State,
was quizzed over his
involvement in the scam. He
is still in custody.”
Meanwhile, the commission
also quizzed the lawmaker
representing Oron federal
constituency of Akwa Ibom
State, Nse Bassey
Ekpenyong, for his alleged
involvement in a certificate
forgery scam.
According to the anti-graft
agency, Ekpenyong ran into
trouble when a non-
governmental organisation
petitioned the EFCC, alleging
that he committed perjury
and financial crimes by
submitting a forged Ordinary
National Diploma/ statement
of result of the Abia State
Polytechnic to the
Independent National
Electoral Commission in the
build-up to the 2015 National
Assembly election.