According to Daily Sun, the chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Ibrahim Magu, yesterday told the House of Representatives that former Finance minister and coordinating minister of the economy in former President Goodluck Jonathan’s administration, Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala is being investigated by the anti- graft agency.
Magu, who spoke before the Kayode Oladele- led Committee on Financial Crimes during the agency’s budget defence also said former minister of Petroleum Resources, Mrs. Diezani Allison-Madueke and a businessman believed to be her close associate, Kola Aluko, are persons of interest to the EFCC.
The EFCC boss said this when he responded to questions asked by a member of the committee, Razak Atunwa who had earlier asked whether the two ministers and Aluko were included in the investigative list of the anti-graft agency. “Very soon, we will go into the petroleum industry,” was Magu’s reply.
He said such an investigation requires that “we have to build capacity, we have to bring in experts to enable us tackle what we are doing properly and the investigation must be conducted properly. We have internal lawyers and external lawyers; we have to pay insurance.” (Daily Sun)
A distinction between ‘becoming’ and ‘being’. On a balance of probability, one would have expected the investigative processes in response to these individuals to have been ‘almost’ verified and near-to-conclusive determination by now. The whole protracted process can only lead to one thing: Case swept under the carpet as a result of power influence or lack of cogent evidence or a lack of resources to track the financial audit trails. In an age of forensic auditing and systemic information link with the handling and disposal of funds whether in Nigeria or abroad. Expediency will be the watchword for all investigative agencies so that the government also can move on with more productive assignations rather than a ‘marking-time’ episode as usual – a train that leads nowhere. This can no longer be satisfactory to Nigerians and our international sympathisers. A quick, decisive and timely action is all that is required.