Seven Governors Under EFCC Investigation Over Paris Loan Refund

Seven Governors Under EFCC Investigation Over Paris Loan Refund

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) is said to be investigating 7 governors linked to the diversion of N388 billion from the sums received as Paris Club loan refund to their respective states.

The money was said to have been diverted using two accounts opened by the Nigeria Governors Forum (NGF).

The governors had at a recent meeting dared EFCC chairman, Ibrahim Magu, to proceed with efforts to probe payments from the Paris Club loan refund.

Chairman of the NGF, Governor Abdulaziz Yari of Zamfara state, was also reported to have made some threats against the EFCC boss should the agency continue with the probe.

It appears the EFCC is however undeterred as it is said to have uncovered N19billion in one of the accounts operated by the NGF while also looking into a domiciliary account which contains a yet unspecified amount of money.

The Nation reports that a member of staff at the NGF secretariat who was invited by the EFCC had told the agency that he handed over a huge sum of money to a principal officer of the National Assembly after changing it into dollars.

EFCC detectives are also said to have discovered that while about 2% of the funds was paid to consultants who allegedly assisted in computing what was due to each state, 3% was shared by some governors under “curious circumstances”.

The federal government recently released the sum of N388.304billion out of N522.74 billion funds to 35 states as refunds of over-deductions on London-Paris Club loans.

It was expected that the funds would be used to offset salary arrears and other demands but it appears some governors may have devised other plans.