acting EFCC chairman, Mr Ibrahim Magu.
“The suspended acting Chairman of the Economic and
Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Ibrahim Magu, will be
vindicated at the end of the day,” his lawyer, Wahab Shittu has
said.
Shittu made the remark in a statement on Friday, following the
submission of the report of the Justice Ayo Salami led Judicial
Commission of Enquiry to President Muhammadu Buhari.
He believes his client is not guilty of the corruption
allegations against him and urged the President to make an informed
decision on the matter and do the needful.
According to the legal practitioner, Magu did not collect any
bribe from anybody and all the allegations of diversion of
recovered assets against him are baseless and unfounded.
He stressed that the suspended EFCC boss was innocent, alleging
that the forfeited assets and the proposed sale were the main
reasons his removal from the agency was being pushed.
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The lawyer also claimed that some powerful government officials
were not comfortable with Magu’s “incorruptible style of
leadership”, saying they preferred someone they could
manipulate.
He questioned why the Salami-led panel sat for about six months
when it was mandated to sit for 45 days.
Shittu also faulted the recommendation of the panel that the
headship of the anti-graft commission should come outside the
police force.
Read the full statement below:
Salami Probe: Magu Will Be Vindicated- Wahab
ShittuWe wish to state that in view of today’s submission of the
much-awaited report of Justice Isa Salami – led Judicial Commission
of Enquiry to President Muhammadu Buhari, we wish to state with a
high sense of responsibility that the suspended Acting Chairman of
the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Mr Ibrahim
Magu, will be vindicated at the end of the day.We observed that Hon Justice Isa Salami, in a televised speech
at the Presidential Villa, Abuja, made certain
recommendations outside the mandate of the panel and proceeded to
make case for the headship of the commission outside the Police
Force.We wish to state that all over the world, the police is central
to law enforcement. The EFCC is a law enforcement agency,
separating the police from the EFCC is anti- law enforcement.How come the Salami Panel did not say anything on alleged
mismanagement of recovered assets, insubordination and abuse of
office against Mr Magu?We are further alarmed that Salami could in the public glare at
the seat of power, attack the police as an institution and
recommended the exit of police officers from the EFCC within two
years.We wish to ask at this juncture – what happened to the huge
amount of money expended by the Federal Government on these police
officers in terms of investigations, money laundering, and
specialised economic crimes.Without preempting President Muhammadu Buhari on his decision
over the report, we urge the President to make an informed decision
and do the needful on the matter.We also wish to state with a high sense of responsibility that
Magu remains incorruptible and his stellar achievements in EFCC is
unprecedented in the history of the commission.We are further urging the general public to take note of these
salient points:*Mr Magu did not collect any bribe from anybody as we insist
that all allegations of diversion of recovered assets leveled
against our client were baseless and unfounded.*Please note that Magu is innocent of all the allegations
leveled against him.*The forfeited assets and the proposed sale are the main reason
they are pushing for his removal from EFCC.*Powerful government officials are not comfortable with Mr
Magu’s incorruptible style of leadership. They prefer somebody they
can manipulate.* There is no doubt that Mr Magu must have stepped on powerful
toes in the course of doing his job.*Salami Panel was mandated to sit for 45 days but ended up
sitting for about 6 months.We also anchor our position in view of the following
incontrovertible facts:In the past, many false stories against Magu had featured in the
public space only for such unfounded allegations to collapse like
pack of cards during the proceedings of the Salami panel. These
false allegations include:NFIU Alleged N573million Property in
Dubai
- The reported inflow of N573million into the account of Pastor
Emmanuel Omale’s church allegedly used to purchase property in
Dubai for Magu was shown to be false during the proceedings. For
the avoidance of doubt, the FCMB publicly confirmed through press
statements and advertorials that there was an error entry and
apologized during the proceedings.No Link of Laundered Funds by Pastor Omale on Behalf of Magu
- It was not established that Pastor Emmanuel Omale laundered any
funds for Magu.No Evidence of Diversion or Illegal Sale of Forfeited
Assets.
- It was not established that Magu sold, converted or diverted
any of the forfeited assets to anyone.No Link of Laundered Funds by BDC Operators traced to Magu
- All the BDC operators including the Shanono brothers denied any
business or financial links with Magu during the proceedings and no
such evidence was found. In the proceedings, Magu’s alleged links
to the BDC operators and money laundering as contained in the NFIU
report and PCARA reports collapsed like a pack of cards.No Link of Laundered Funds by Vice President Yemi Osinbajo (SAN)
and Femi Falana SAN traced to Magu
- There is no proof that Vice President Yemi Osinbajo (SAN) Femi
Falana SAN or any other person laundered funds on behalf of
MaguNo Allegation of Bribery Established Against Magu
- There is no proof of allegation of bribery established against
Magu throughout the proceedingsNo Proof that Funds in the TSA account with CBN missing
- The CBN confirmed that all recovered funds were lodged in the
TSA account with CBN and details of such funds were furnished to
the Judicial Commission of Inquiry by the CBN.No Interest on Funds lodged in TSA Account with CBN
- The Accountant-General of the Federation confirmed that funds
kept in TSA account with CBN do not generate interest and as such
no interest on funds lodged in TSA account was capable of being
diverted.Security Votes
- Although the Judicial Commission of Inquiry took up issues with
Magu on security votes, this was adequately explained by Magu that
such funds were utilized for operational and intelligence purposes
with receipts of expenditure provided in the appropriate
cases.- Details of Recovered Assets across the EFCC Zones furnished to
the Judicial Commission of Inquiry- Details of Forfeited Vessels furnished to the Judicial
Commission of Inquiry by the Nigerian Navy- Details of Assets forfeited to the Federal Government by Mrs
Diezani Allison- Maduekwe and associates intact and furnished to
the Judicial Commission of Inquiry- Allegation of N75million alleged traced to Magu boys proven to
be false before the Judicial Commission of Inquiry- No allegation of purchase of N750million property belonging to
Late Ojo Maduekwe’s Estate traced to Magu. Saleh Ahmadu who bought
the property confirmed he has no links to Magu.Biased Constitution Of The Judicial Commission Of
InquiryAs admitted by the Honourable Attorney General of the Federation
Mr. Abubakar Malami (SAN) the allegations leading to the
establishment of the judicial commission of inquiry, was as a
result of reports from law enforcement and security an agency.
Notwithstanding the above, membership of the judicial commission of
inquiry was constituted mainly by our client’s accusers including
membership of the office of the AGF , thereby raising significant
issues of fair hearing against our client.The membership of the judicial commission of inquiry are as
follows:
- Justice Ayo Isa Salami (rtd), former PCA, North-Central,
Chairman- DIG Anthony Ogbizi Michael (NPF)- South-South, Deputy
Chairman- Muhammad Abubakar Babadoko- Federal Ministry of Justice (North
Central)- Hassan Yahaya Abdulahi (DSS) (North Central)
- Muhammad Shamsudeen (OAGF) (North West)
- Douglas Egweme (NFIU), (South East)
- Kazeem Attitebi (South-West), Secretary.
Professor Itse Sagay’s Position on the panel’s
composition.The Chairman, Presidential Advisory Committee Against Corruption
(PACAC), Prof Itse Sagay SAN, has also faulted the
composition of the judicial commission of inquiry on the ground of
bias as follows;“I criticize the Salami Panel for taking evidence from the
accusers behind Magu’s back and for not giving him the petitions
against him in advance of his defence.Also from the report we read, the panel is packed with
representatives of DSS, Ministry of Justice and others from
security agencies, these are also his accusers”The HAGF Mr. Abubakar Malami SAN is aware that this composition
breaches fair hearing as decided by settled authorities, including
LPDC V FAWEHINMI (1985) NWLR Pt.7 300.It is instructive to state that the memo of AGF Malami SAN to Mr
President including the letter addressed to the President from NFIU
triggered the establishment of the judicial commission of inquiry,
thereby making AGF Malami SAN the main accuser of our client
for alleged corrupt enrichment amongst several other
allegations.Regrettably and shockingly in spite of public assurances by Mr
Abubakar Malami SAN to appear before the judicial commission of
inquiry to testify and notwithstanding the issuance of a subpoena
on the HAGF by the commission of inquiry to testify, the HAGF Mr.
Abubakar Malami SAN refused to appear to justify the serious
allegations of corrupt enrichment leveled against our client.The HAGF failed to justify the allegations against our client
contrary to the principle that “He who asserts must prove” The
Chief Law Officer of the Federation defied the law by failing to
appear to valid summons issued by the judicial commission of
inquiry.In specific terms, there was no evidence linking our client with
the following allegations:
- Absence Of Proof Of Allegations Of Corrupt Enrichment Against
Magu- Lack of evidence of corrupt enrichment against Magu
- NFIU Alleged N573million Property in Dubai
- No Evidence of Diversion or Illegal Sale of Forfeited
Assets.- No Link of Laundered Funds by Pastor Omale on Behalf of our
Client- No Link of Laundered Funds by BDC Operators traced to our
client- No Link of Laundered Funds by Femi Falana SAN traced to our
client- No Allegation of Bribery Established Against our Client
- No Proof that Funds in the TSA account with CBN missing
- No Interest on Funds lodged in TSA Account with CBN
The following details were obliged to the Judicial Commission of
Inquiry directly from the relevant quarters during the
proceedings.
- Details of recovered funds in TSA Accounts furnished to the
commission by the CBN- Details of Recovered Assets across the EFCC Zones furnished to
the Judicial Commission of Inquiry- Details of Forfeited Vessels furnished to the Judicial
Commission of Inquiry.Signed
Wahab Shittu Esq