DIEZANI BRIBE: EFCC detains, quizzes 2 ex-governors

Two former governors were on Monday guests of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) over their alleged roles in distribution of funds to influence the the outcome of the 2015 general election.

The money is said to be part of the $115 million (N23bn) disbursed by a former Minister of Petroleum Resources, Diezani Alison- Madueke, during the countdown to the 2015 presidential election.

The EFCC said it had traced N860m to the immediate past governor of Kogi State, Idris Wada, and a former acting governor of Taraba State, Sani Danladi.

Wada who was said to have received about N500 million was grilled for about seven and a half hours on Monday at the commission’s headquarters in Abuja, while Danladi was said to have collected N450 million on behalf of his state.

Reports say Wada who arrived the EFCC office around 12pm was with the anti-graft agency’s investigators answering questions until about 9pm.

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The commission in a statement in the early hours of Tuesday, stated that Danladi was quizzed at its Gombe zonal office for allegedly receiving N450 million of the Diezani polls bribe money through Senators Joel Dallami Ikenya and Hon. Mark Bako Useni during the 2015 Presidential Election.

The agency said, “The amount in question was part of the N23b allegedly doled out by former Minister of Petroleum Resources, Diezani Alison Madueke to influence the out come of the 2015 presidential election.

“Dalladi told interrogators that he chaired the eight-man committee that disbursed the money for Taraba state. He further stated that, he and the other members of the committee shared N36m among themselves while the balance of N414m was distributed to other stakeholders across the 16 local government areas of the state and one Development Area Council.

“Dalladi was arrested and detained in Abuja last week,and later released on bail to reliable sureties, but asked to report to EFCC Gombe Zonal for further investigation”.

So far, the EFCC has quizzed a number of former governors and ministers over the Diezani bribe money. Only last week, it detained former Governor Gabriel Suswam of Benue State, for the same reason.

A number of INEC staff have also been implicated in the bribe scandal, and are currently facing trial in the courts.

 

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