THE Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has so far recovered N30billion in the ongoing probe of suspended minister of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Alleviation, Betta Edu.
EFF Chairman, Mr. Ola Olukoyede, who disclosed this in the March edition of the Commission’s monthly e-magazine, EFCC Alert, released on Monday, April 8, said the anti-graft agency has also placed 50 bank accounts under investigation over alleged fraud involving the suspended chief executive officer of the National Social Investment Programme Authority (NSIPA), Halima Shehu.
Recall that President Bola Tinubu had in January this year, suspended both Edu and Shehu over alleged payment of N585million humanitarian funds meant for vulnerable groups in Akwa Ibom, Lagos, Cross River and Ogun states into a private account.
The President also suspended the Social Investment Programme and directed the EFCC to take over the case and probe both embattled officials, including anyone involved.
Olukoyede, in the magazine, said the agency was making progress on the investigation, emphasising the magnitude of the case and the need for Nigerians to exercise patience.
“With respect to this particular case, we have recovered over N30billion, which is already in the coffers of the Federal Government. It takes time to conclude investigations; we started this matter less than six weeks ago,” he said.
He added that there are cases that take years to investigate, as there are so many angles to it, stressing the need to follow through with some of the discoveries already seen.
According to him: “Nigerians should give us time on this matter; we have professionals on this case and they need to do things right.There are so many leads here and there.”
He said the Commission was investigating over 50 bank accounts the funds have been traced to, adding: “That is no child’s play; that’s a big deal. And again, we have thousands of other cases that we are working on.
“Nigerians have seen the impact of what we have done so far by way of some people being placed on suspension and by way of the recoveries that we have made. You have seen that the programme itself has been suspended.”
Olukayode stated that the Commission was exploring so many discoveries it had stumbled upon in its investigation, noting: “If it is about seeing people in jail, well, let them wait, everything has a process to follow.
“So, Nigerians should wait and give us the benefit of the doubt.”
The EFCC chairman urged the judiciary and the National Assembly to assist the Commission in its anti-corruption fight, saying: “Nobody can fight the corruption war alone. So, we want Nigerians to believe in our capacity to fight this battle. We must also come together and agree that corruption is bad, and so when we are prosecuting corrupt persons, Nigerians should believe in it.
“Every Nigerian must be a corruption fighter. When you see something wrong, say something. Challenge corrupt politicians in your locality; take them up. Take your governors up on the allocations they receive and make them accountable.
“If we agree that corruption has contributed greatly to underdevelopment, then we must adopt extraordinary means to fight it. And, one of the things we can do is by setting up special courts to deal with the issue of corruption, so that corruption cases will be adjudicated expeditiously and also timely.
“Of course, when we do this, the speed of getting justice will be increased. Even for those that we prosecute, it is good for them to also get justice on time. Like they say, justice delayed is justice denied.
“I have always been an advocate for the creation of special courts, and I will continue to be. I believe that the time has come for this, and I also appeal to the members of the National Assembly to help us in facilitating this. This will be a great boost to the corruption fight in Nigeria.”
