Anenih to EFCC: Forget refund, Jonathan owes me N180m

Former Chairman, Board of Trustees of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Chief Tony Anenih, has seemingly told the EFCC to forget the option of refunding the N260million, which he allegedly collected from the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA) during the bid to get former President Goodluck Jonathan re-elected into office.

The PDP chieftain in a letter to the anti-graft agency said that the former president left him with “a balance of over N180 million as bad debt”, which he (Anenih) incurred to have him returned to office last year.

Anenih claimed he spent over N440 million of his personal money on the re-election bid of Jonathan and cannot be expected to refund any money to government.

He stated that “On the instruction of the former president, the BoT embarked on a nationwide tour to reconcile aggrieved and feuding members”.

And that “some out-of-pocket disbursements made on the instructions of the former president” to include N25 million to former Deputy Governor of Sokoto State, Alhaji Muktari Shagari, and N35 million to a delegation of Local Government leaders from Katsina State.

Read also: Review… Dasukigate: The drama, the twists

He also spoke about the money he “spent on hiring small jets during the tour” which was not refunded to him.

Most of the expenditures, according to him, were on the instructions of Jonathan for special political assignments.
Anenih said only N260 million was refunded to him by the former president, “leaving a balance of over N180 million as bad debt.

He explained in his letter to the EFCC that he “only provided his account details to the former president on request for a refund of the money spent.

“I was not in a position to ask the former president how he was going to source the fund or through which office the refund was going to be made.

“I was not a direct beneficiary of the sum of N260 million that was a part refund of the money I spent on the president’s instructions.

RipplesNigeria …without borders, without fears

Join the conversation

Opinions

Support Ripples Nigeria, hold up solutions journalism

Balanced, fearless journalism driven by data comes at huge financial costs.

As a media platform, we hold leadership accountable and will not trade the right to press freedom and free speech for a piece of cake.

If you like what we do, and are ready to uphold solutions journalism, kindly donate to the Ripples Nigeria cause.

Your support would help to ensure that citizens and institutions continue to have free access to credible and reliable information for societal development.

Donate Now