Following the reopening of the investigation into the stalled N772bn fraud cases against some former state governors by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Nigerians are urging the anti-graft agency to ensure the prosecution of individuals involved in the alleged looting of public funds.
Civil society groups, lawyers, and concerned citizens have expressed their expectations for the EFCC to recover the N772bn from the ex-governors and former ministers. The anti-graft agency has reopened money laundering cases against 13 former governors and some former ministers, with an estimated amount of N772.2bn at stake.
The investigation also includes the probing of N81.6bn allegedly looted in the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Alleviation, as well as $2.2bn implicated in money laundering, fund diversion, and misappropriation. The $2.2bn was allegedly diverted by individuals such as former National Security Adviser Sambo Dasuki, late media mogul Raymond Dokpesi, former governor of Sokoto State Attahiru Bafarawa, and former Minister of State for Finance Bashir Yuguda, among others.
Persons under investigation by the EFCC include former Ekiti State Governor Kayode Fayemi, former Zamfara State Governor Bello Matawalle, former Enugu State governors Chimaroke Nnamani and Sullivan Chime, former Nasarawa State Governor Abdullahi Adamu, former Kano State Governor Rabiu Kwankwaso, former Jigawa State Governor Sule Lamido, and ex-Akwa Ibom Governor and current Senate President Godswill Akpabio.
The Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) and the Civil Society Legislative Advocacy Centre (CISLAC) have commended the EFCC for reviving the fraud cases. They emphasized the importance of the court determining the culpability of the individuals following investigations by the EFCC, with the expectation that the recovered funds would be accounted for.
The EFCC’s actions have been lauded for contributing to the fight against corruption in Nigeria, though concerns persist about the government’s commitment to pursuing corrupt officials.
