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After the expiration of the 48-hour ultimatum it gave the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, to tender a public apology on the controversial N19.3billion, the Kogi State Government was yet to carry out the legal threat when the State Commissioner for Finance, Budget and Economic Planning, Asiru Idris visited the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, to tender documents.
ebirareporters.com gathered that the Finance Commissioner on Tuesday tendered to the CBN, documents which he had presented to the media during a press conference when the reports of a Sterling Bank account the EFCC claimed to belong to the government was frozen by a court order.
However, in his visit to the apex bank, the Commissioner demanded the CBN to conduct an investigation into the matter, stating that EFCC may have acted on false information.
Asiru said: “It’s often said that he who upholds and speak the truth is like a lion; fearless, bold and daring, knowing fully well that the truth will prevail regardless the travel time of falsehood.”
“As at today, considering the procedure involved in opening any account, neither the EFCC, nor the said bank has been able to present to court of public opinion, at least, the mandate from Kogi State Government to open such bailout fixed deposit account in the name of Kogi state, BVN of those that opened it, their phone numbers and the names of personnel that opened the said account. We all know that a fixed account can’t be opened without a mandate from the intended customer, agreement of terms such as tenor to fix, inetrest rate and many more.
“Until Justice is done and truth unclad for the public to see, no retreat no surrender.”
Meanwhile, the EFCC has maintained its stand on the matter which it said would no longer be a controversial issue after confirming that the CBN acknowledged receipt of the fund from Sterling Bank.
Responding to the 48-hour ultimatum given by the Kogi State Government to tender a public apology, the Spokesperson of the Commission, Wilson Uwajaren in an interview with BBC Pidgin, insisted that the Commission did not do any wrong in actions and publications.
In a related development, the Northern Youth Council of Nigeria (NYCN) has expressed concern that nobody is being prosecuted for fixing N19.33 billion in an interest-yielding account at the detriment of Kogi State workers.
Isah Abubakar, President of the group, in a statement noted that the group has received the news of the payment of the sum into the account of the Central Bank of Nigeria with mixed feelings.
“On one side, we are happy that the conscienceless leaders who fixed the money in an interest yielding account didn’t succeed in their evil against the people of Kogi; while on the other hand, we are particularly sad that nobody is facing the law for the wickedness meted on the long-suffering Kogi workers,” it said in a statement.
