EFCC reacts to reported probe of Osinbajo

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) Wednesday denied probing Vice President Yemi Osinbajo and the National Social Investment Programme (N-SIP).

Media reports earlier on Wednesday had quoted EFCC chairman, Ibrahim Magu, to have said that there was corruption in the N-SIP.

But in a statement by its spokesman, Wilson Uwujaren, the anti-graft agency said that it did not at any time make any reference to N-SIP as a programme or accuse those who superintended it of corruption.

Uwujaren cautioned against the reports and said that it could project a false indictment and incite Osinbajo against Magu.

“The attention of the EFCC has been drawn to a report captioned, ‘There is corruption in N-SIP programme- Magu’, which appeared in a newspaper on Wednesday, September 25, 2019, and a few other newspapers, in which the acting Chairman of the Commission, Ibrahim Magu was quoted as saying that there is corruption in the National Social Investment Programme and the Anchor Borrower’s Programme.

“The papers claim that Magu, who spoke through the Spokesperson of the agency, Wilson Uwujaren at the 15th Anti- Corruption Situation Room organised by the Human and Environmental Development Agenda in Kaduna on Tuesday, September 24, 2019, asked the civil society organizations “to investigate the N-SIP”.

“The commission wishes to disclaim the reports as false and a mischievous twist of the goodwill message presented by Mr Uwujaren, on corruption and peacebuilding in conflict communities.

“In the presentation, the EFCC spokesperson observed that the agency had received complaints in some zones regarding the social investment programmes, citing an example in Gombe where the Commission investigated a case in the Anchor Borrower’s Scheme in which sand was bagged and passed off as fertilizer.

“He, therefore, warned that for the crises in these conflict zones not to degenerate, civil society organisations should play more active roles in monitoring the programmes to ensure that their benefits get to the people for which they are intended.

READ ALSO: ALLEGED N15BN FRAUD: I’m ready for legitimate scrutiny, not media trial —Sen Wamakko

“At no time in the presentation did Mr Uwujaren mention the N-SIP as a programme nor did he accuse those who superintend it of corruption. The specific case mentioned, the Anchor Borrower’s scheme, is not part of the N-SIP being supervised by the office of the Vice President.

“This clarification becomes necessary to correct the wrong impression of a verdict of corruption on N-SIP by the EFCC which the purveyors of the false reports obviously want to create,” the statement read in part.

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