On EFCC's Allegation
Governor Ayodele Fayose of Ekiti State has reacted to reports that he was a beneficiary of funds from the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA) under former NSA Sambo Dasuki.
Our correspondent had earlier reported that investigations by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, revealed that Fayose and ex-Minister of State for Defence, Senator Musiliu Obanikoro received the sum of N4.745 billion from the $2.1billion arms procurement fund in the ONSA for the prosecution of the June 21, 2014 governorship election in Ekiti State.
Reacting to the claim, the governor revealed that his election was majorly funded by Zenith Bank Plc, donations from friends and political associates, sales of campaign souvenirs and other fund raising initiatives.
“I have no financial transaction whatsoever with the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA) under Col Sambo Dasuki (rtd) and former Minister of State for Defence, Senator Musiliu Obanikoro either by cash, cheque or electronic transfer”, Mr. Fayose said in a statement signed by his Chief Press Secretary, Idowu Adelusi and issued to journalists in Ado-Ekiti, the state capital on Wednesday.
Gov. Fayose, therefore, dared the EFCC to publish statements made by Senator Obanikoro, his sons or any other person associated with money from the ONSA where they claimed he received money from them for the election.
“EFCC is only acting a movie scripted, produced and directed by the All Progressives Congress (APC) government of President Muhammadu Buhari just to silence me being a major opposition voice in the country”, he claimed.
On Aisha Buhari
On his allegation that the wife of the president, Aisha Buhari, was the one mentioned in the Halliburton scam for which a U.S Congressman, William Jefferson was indicted, the Ekiti governor challenged Mrs. Buhari to travel to America to convince Nigerians that she is innocent.
According to him, “it is on record that the President has visited USA three times and his wife did not travel with him. Equally, she ought to have visited USA last year September to chair a United Nation programme but she sent wife of the Senate President, Mrs Toyin Saraki to represent her”.
Shedding more light on the source of his election funding two years ago, Fayose said the management of Zenith Bank called him to a meeting where he was assured that funds will be provided for his election.
Governor Fayose claimed that it was at the meeting he was asked to nominate a trusted ally to be related with and that was how one his associates, who is now on the run, Mr. Abiodun Agbele, came into the picture.
“All the payments into Abiodun Agbele’s account domiciled in Zenith Bank were directly from Zenith Bank. In actual fact, the account was opened by Zenith Bank hurriedly at that time and Abiodun Agbele’s identity card which ought to have been collected before the account was opened was only collected last week in the bank’s desperation to perfect the account obviously after submitting to the intimidation and harassment of the EFCC.
“Most of the funds posted into Agbele’s account were through the Ibadan, Akure and Lagos branches of the Zenith Bank and sometimes; they brought cash”, he explained.
“Assuming but not conceding that cash moved from Lagos to Akure as being claimed by the EFCC in its usual manner of media trial, was meant for my election in Ekiti, why was the cash not moved to Ado Ekiti branch of Zenith Bank or the cash handed to me directly? Why was it deposited into Zenith Bank, Akure and did the bank make any report on the transaction to the appropriate authorities? Why did the bank send its bullion van to move the money from Akure Airport to their Akure branch if it was illegal money?
“I must say it categorically that I don’t have any link financially with Obanikoro and I know as a fact that he (Obanikoro) has not; and cannot mention my name, as beneficiary of whatever money any company in which he has interest could have gotten from the ONSA if truly Obanikoro collected money from the ONSA as being claimed by the EFCC”.
The Ekiti governor, who faulted the attempt by the EFCC to bring the former minister and his sons into the narrative, stressed that Zenith Bank may be giving a different account of how his election was funded having been in his words, “blackmailed and coerced into submission by the EFCC”.
He, however, insisted that the attempt to link him with the arms fund is a joke that will not fly, adding: “I wish to state further that if it becomes evidently clear that those who willingly provided money for my election can no longer stand by what they did, may be because of threat from the EFCC, I will not hesitate to name names”.
The governor, who challenged the anti-graft agency to also beam its searchlight on the source of funding of APC campaign, especially that of President Buhari, said; “Since we are now in the era in which financial assistance from Nigerians to fund elections is being criminalised, the international community, especially those funding EFCC must insist that the commission probes the funding of APC elections before further funds are released to the commission”.
“Most importantly, Nigerians are interested in the $60 million allegedly donated to the APC campaign by Sahara Energy, on which EFCC has been forced to suspend investigation”.
Mr. Fayose said it was obvious that he has become the main target of President Buhari’s government, adding that; “what they are doing now is part of their grand plots to intimidate and harass me into submission but I am not someone that can be cowed by threats of incarceration and death.
“I advise that they should keep their gun pounder dry and wait till the end of my tenure in 2018 and I want to assure them that I will be available to answer any of their questions, no matter how unreasonable.
“Furthermore, Nigerians should know that I have been persecuted by the EFCC before, using phantom N1.2 billion poultry scam and I came out victorious. I was not only acquitted, I got N10 million judgment against the EFCC and my impeachment that was orchestrated by the EFCC was quashed by the Supreme Court.
“Nigerians should recall that it was part of this plot to get back at me because of my critical stance on Buhari’s government that the Ekiti State House of Assembly was invaded by men of the Department of State Service (DSS), placement of travel ban on me and lately, illegal frozen of my account by the EFCC.
“I, therefore, make bold to state that in the overall interest of democracy and well-being of Nigerians, I will continue to speak my mind on issues bordering on governance in Nigeria. I will not be intimidated!”
