The
chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, Ibrahim Magu, has
distanced himself from a newspaper report linking him to arms fraud.
In
a statement issued by Wilson Uwujaren, EFCC’s head of Media and Publicity, Mr.
Magu urged the Presidency to set up a “high-powered inquiry” to verify the
claims of the report “in view of the gravity of the issues.”
The
committee should also investigate those who had made it their sole business to
impugn the integrity of others and cast doubt on the credibility of the
anti-corruption war, the EFCC boss said.
Thisday
newspaper reported on Monday that the State Security Service (SSS) had arrested
a member of the Presidential Investigative Committee on Arms Procurement, Umar
Muhammed, a retired Air Commodore, for alleged fraudulent deals involving top
government officials.
The
newspaper, quoting a “reliable source,” alleged that Mr. Muhammed was fronting
for some high ranking officials within the EFCC and security agencies to carry
out unwholesome activities.
At
the end of their five-hour search on Mr. Muhammed’s Maitama residence in Abuja,
the SSS seized $1.5 million in cash and various high-end cars, according to the
Thisday report.
Mr.
Magu is the only non-military member of the 13-man Presidential Arms
Procurement Investigative Panel set up by President Muhammadu Buhari in August
last year under the supervision of the Office of the National Security Adviser.
Mr.
Magu said the report stopped short of mentioning him as the official of the
anti-graft agency whom Mr. Muhammed was allegedly fronting for.
“The EFCC views with grave concern this spirited attempt to
create doubts in the minds of less discerning Nigerians and member of the
international community regarding the integrity of its acting Chairman,” the
EFCC statement said.
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