Embattled Jonathan’s godson to sue EFCC N10bn for defamation

A political godson of former President Goodluck Jonathan, Mr. George Turnah, has vowed to institute a N10billion defamation suit against the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).

The embattled Turnah, who is presently being detained at the Port Harcourt Prison in Rivers State is under investigation by the EFCC for alleged act of obtaining money by false pretence, money laundering and abuse of office.

The anti-graft agency accused him of being in possession of funds running into N2billion which it claimed Turnah siphoned from the Niger Delta Development Commission while serving there as an adviser on youths between 2012 and 2015.

A Federal High Court sitting in Port Harcourt recently ordered interim forfeiture of buildings and other property belonging to Turnah.

However, Turner in a letter to the EFCC had claimed that he was innocent of the offences he is being accused of and gave the commission seven days to pay him N100million compensation and tender public apology for media trial against him that is already tarnishing his image.

After the EFCC at the expiration of the ultimatum did nothing in respect to his earlier letter, Turnah in a letter dated May 30, 2017, threatened to slam a N10billion defamation suit against the commission.

In the letter by Amuda Kannike (SAN) & Co and signed by O.N. Anugbum, Turnah denied the allegation that he got multiple contracts from the NDDC.

He therefore asked the managing director NDDC, to make details of the contracts public and also make explanations on the alleged jobs he secured.

Read also: AL-MUSTAPHA: I was jailed over a video I have on Abiola’s death, Kudirat was just an excuse

While he asked the NDDC to make public details of the projects base on the Freedom of Information Act, Turner also demanded that names of the companies that got the projects, the scope of the job, monetary valuations of the said contracts, and amount of money released so far to the contractors be made public.

He said that the Zonal Head of EFCC, South-South, Mr. Ishaq Salihu, made defamatory statements and publication against him.

According to him, Salihu had on May 23, 2017, at the zonal headquarters of EFCC in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, told a group of protesters that he (Turnah) contributed to the underdevelopment of the Niger Delta by receiving and refusing to execute a number of projects from the NDDC.

 

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