EFCC recovers N553m from southeast politicians

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission said it has
recovered N553.77m from corrupt politicians in the South East.

The Zonal Head of Operations of the commission, Mr Johnson
Babalola, made this disclosure at a news briefing on Tuesday in
Enugu.

Babalola said the news briefing was held to acquaint members of
the public on the activities of the commission in the past seven
months.

He said that the recovered funds were part of the public funds
the Peoples Democratic Party illegally appropriated to itself to
prosecute the 2015 general elections in the zone.

He said that the commission recovered N300m, N82.5m and N60m
from chieftains of the party in Ebonyi, Abia and Enugu States
respectively.

“We have recovered N300m out of N400m in Ebonyi. In Abia, we
recovered N82.5m out of N450m while we got N60m in Enugu out of
N450m.

“However, we are facing some challenges in Anambra and Imo but
the commission is working on them,” he said.

Babalola said that the commission had resolved to prosecute all
staff of the Independent National Electoral Commission in Imo,
Anambra and Enugu found culpable as soon as the courts resumed from
vacation.

“Within the period, we received a total of 503 petitions from
Nigerians out of which 333 were approved for investigation while
others not under our the purview of the EFCC were referred to
sister agencies.

“We charged 88 of such cases to court and have so far obtained
five convictions,” he said.

Babalola said that the judiciary had been of immense help in
line with its constitutional mandate in spite of the antics of the
suspects.

“Some of them have sued us for fundamental rights violations and
enforcement but the judiciary has been cooperating with us.

“We have not been found to have impugned on the rights of
others,” he said.

He said that the then executive members of the PDP in Abia were
under investigation for their alleged complicity in the 2015
campaign fund fraud.

“Recovering stolen funds from politically exposed persons is not
easy. The people we are dealing with take painstaking efforts to
perfect the fraud.

“Some of the money had left the shores of this country and we
have written the foreign countries from here,” he said.

Babalola said that the stolen funds must be returned to the
Federal Government coffers.

“We have discovered some of the bogus projects used by the
corrupt politicians to corner the stolen funds and very soon we
shall come out with our findings,” Babalola said.

(NAN)

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission said it has
recovered N553.77m from corrupt politicians in the South
East.

The Zonal Head of Operations of the commission, Mr Johnson
Babalola, made this disclosure at a news briefing on Tuesday in
Enugu.

Babalola said the news briefing was held to acquaint members of
the public on the activities of the commission in the past seven
months.

He said that the recovered funds were part of the public funds
the Peoples Democratic Party illegally appropriated to itself to
prosecute the 2015 general elections in the zone.

He said that the commission recovered N300m, N82.5m and N60m
from chieftains of the party in Ebonyi, Abia and Enugu States
respectively.

“We have recovered N300m out of N400m in Ebonyi. In Abia, we
recovered N82.5m out of N450m while we got N60m in Enugu out of
N450m.

“However, we are facing some challenges in Anambra and Imo but
the commission is working on them,” he said.

Babalola said that the commission had resolved to prosecute all
staff of the Independent National Electoral Commission in Imo,
Anambra and Enugu found culpable as soon as the courts resumed from
vacation.

“Within the period, we received a total of 503 petitions from
Nigerians out of which 333 were approved for investigation while
others not under our the purview of the EFCC were referred to
sister agencies.

“We charged 88 of such cases to court and have so far obtained
five convictions,” he said.

Babalola said that the judiciary had been of immense help in
line with its constitutional mandate in spite of the antics of the
suspects.

“Some of them have sued us for fundamental rights violations and
enforcement but the judiciary has been cooperating with us.

“We have not been found to have impugned on the rights of
others,” he said.

He said that the then executive members of the PDP in Abia were
under investigation for their alleged complicity in the 2015
campaign fund fraud.

“Recovering stolen funds from politically exposed persons is not
easy. The people we are dealing with take painstaking efforts to
perfect the fraud.

“Some of the money had left the shores of this country and we
have written the foreign countries from here,” he said.

Babalola said that the stolen funds must be returned to the
Federal Government coffers.

“We have discovered some of the bogus projects used by the
corrupt politicians to corner the stolen funds and very soon we
shall come out with our findings,” Babalola said.

(NAN)