Some politicians and members of former
President Goodluck Jonathan’s campaign organisation who were given money
to campaign for the ex-president have threatened to implicate the
ex-President if they are arrested by the Economic and Financial Crimes
Commission.
The EFCC had last week alleged that some
directors of the Peoples Democratic Party Campaign Organisation and
some ex-ministers received N3.145bn during the campaign. The money,
according to the anti-graft agency, emanated from the account of the
Central Bank of Nigeria.
The commission said the Director of
Publicity of the organisation, Mr. Femi Fani-Kayode, received N840m; a
former Secretary to the Government of the Federation and National
Chairman of the Social Democratic Party, Chief Olu Falae, received
N100m; while N320m was also paid into the bank account of the Goodluck
Support Group, an association which played a major role in Jonathan’s
campaign.
The EFCC had also said that a former
Governor of Imo State, Achike Udenwa, and a former Minister of State for
Foreign Affairs, Viola Onwuliri, got N350m in two tranches while the
Director of Finance of the campaign organisation, Nenadi Usman, got
N36.9m.
The commission, it was reported, was
extending its probe to all PDP governorship candidates who also received
money from the same account.
The EFCC explained that monies were
transferred from the account of the CBN to a Federal Government account
from which the money was transferred to the account of Joint Trust
Dimension Nigeria Limited.
It was from the Joint Dimension’s
account with Zenith Bank that the money was shared to various
individuals and campaign organisations inaugurated by Jonathan.
The two people who were in charge of
funds were the Director of Finance, Nenadi Usman, and a former Chairman
of the PDP Board of Trustees, Chief Tony Anenih, who played an advisory
role. It was also Anenih who insisted that Falae be given N100m.
Some of the groups that received money
from the account were the Transformation Ambassadors of Nigeria, the
Goodluck Support Group and the zonal chapters of the Goodluck Jonathan
Campaign Organisation.
Some political parties that also
collected money from Jonathan are the SDP and Accord Party through Chief
Falae and former Governor Rashidi Ladoja respectively.
However, some of those indicted by the EFCC have vowed not to go down without a fight.
They told our correspondent that they received the monies based on the assumption that they were not public funds.
A former minister under Jonathan, who
was part of the campaign team, said, “Jonathan is beginning to annoy all
of us because we are being dragged through the mud and he is keeping
quiet. When we were given the monies, we were told that they were
sourced from private individuals.
“Now, the EFCC has stated that the money
came from the account of the CBN and the EFCC has also provided
evidence that the monies came from the CBN and the agency has told us to
refund the monies. We have spent everything on campaigns.
“We are being disgraced on the pages of
newspapers and yet Jonathan is keeping quiet. I am not a military man
like Sambo Dasuki. I cannot spend weeks in custody. If I am arrested, I
will let the whole of Nigeria know that Jonathan was the one that gave
me the funds. Let Jonathan return the money. I cannot pay for another
person’s sins.”
Another PDP chieftain told our
correspondent that apart from the CBN, other government agencies such as
Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency, the Office of the
National Security Adviser and the Nigerian National Petroleum
Corporation all provided funds for the Jonathan campaign.
He said, “Dasuki never acted alone. The
Department of State Services knows that he got Jonathan’s approval. His
trial is being stalled because of what he knows. The CBN also had
approvals from Jonathan. The CBN transferred these funds based on a memo
signed by the former Permanent Secretary at the Villa.
“Let the EFCC go after Jonathan if they want the monies back. We cannot refund what we did not steal.”
A former presidential aide who is also
being investigated by the EFCC told our correspondent that if the
anti-graft agency arrested every person connected with the monies and
Jonathan was left alone, then it would be a selective anti-corruption
war.
He said, ““Maybe it is time for some of
us to testify against Jonathan and expose everything. He and his
Presidency officials did all these things without us knowing and now
instead of owning up and taking full responsibility for his actions he
wants to leave the innocent hanging.
“He doesn’t care whose life is
destroyed. He only cares about himself and whatever deal he has with
Buhari. The former NSA is suffering because of him. Olisa Metuh is
suffering because if him. The DG NIMASA is suffering because of him.
Diezani is suffering because of him and so many others.
“Everything they did was with his
approval and permission yet he has now left them to hang all alone. How
can he sleep well at night? Now he wants to sacrifice his entire
campaign organisation and the strongest directors that he has even
though they did nothing wrong and they were not part of his scam.
“We warned Anenih, Fani-Kayode, Ahmadu
Alli, Nenadi Usman and all the others not to stick their necks out for
Jonathan and not to help him but they wouldn’t listen. Even Obasanjo
called some of them and warned them that he is concealing a lot from
them about his actions and funding and that he would betray them but
they didn’t listen or believe him. Now look at the mess they are all
in.”
No comments:
Post a Comment