Diezani’s ‘loot’ more notorious than Abacha’s, Says EFCC boss

*Discloses only 15% so far recovered from her

*EFCC doing well but should stop revealing its workings – Respondent

“Let EFCC, as prosecuting agency, henceforth stop making his workings available to the public until the investigated looter or financial criminal suspect is already in court.  Many of its activities are frustrated because the looters already know the working of the anti-graft agency and are therefore mapping their strategies to scuttle their prosecution.  Stopping revelation of its workings to the press will also safe many innocent from public stigma as proper and adequate investigation must have been carried to know who is actually indictable and who is free of allegation against him or her.  It will therefore strengthen and embolden the confidence of the public in both the government and the EFCC,” he said.

The Acting Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crime Commission (EFCC), Mallam Ibrahim Mustapha Magu, has reportedly said the funds allegedly looted by a former Minister of Petroleum and National Resources, Mrs Diezani Alison-Madueke, surpasses that of late Head of State, General Sani Abacha.

Mallam Ibrahim Magu said the anti-graft agency has only been able to recover “not more than 15 per cent”, saying it will take some time to get back most of the alleged loot from her.

The anti-graft czar, according to a report, was already making moves to facilitate the extradition of the former minister.

“We are working on the process of Diezani’s extradition. But we have to allow them (the UK government) because we are collaborating,” the report said.

“There is the National Crime Agency and the Crown Prosecution Service in London, and our colleagues, the Department of Justice and the Federal Bureau of Investigation in America. We had cause to meet in London. I was there myself for about a week. We are working not only on the Diezani case; but the Diezani case has become a test case.

“It is even more notorious than the so-called Abacha loot because we have not seen anything yet. I’m sure what we have seen is not more than may be 15 per cent. I think it is going to be a long time. That is why sometimes I think we should appeal to the looters to return the loot. Come and tell the government, ‘This is what I have stolen.’ Since you have voluntarily complied with the instruction to bring back the loot, then the government will take a decision. I think it is the best way to go about it, otherwise, the monies would be wasted.

“Diezani has a lot of people who are well connected, like (Jide) Omokore who are international businessmen. They have private aircraft and you can’t see any of them in Nigeria. They went and kept them in Ghana, some of them.”

Magu added that the EFCC is in collaboration with “almost all law enforcement agencies in the world” to recover loot stashed abroad by Nigerians.

A list of high-profile persons being probed by the EFCC recently made its way to the public sphere.

Some of those on the list include former ministers, ex-governors, justices and high-ranking officials of the Goodluck Jonathan administration.

A respondent, thanking the EFCC for doing a great job to make Nigeria corruption free in line with the aspirations of Presdent Muhammadu Buhari’s government, however advised that the agency should end releasing its information to the press “no matter the pressure by any civil society”.

Speaking under condition of anonymity, the respondent said the EFCC will make more progress if the only time it will bring anything to the public is when the investigated looter is already in court.

“Let EFCC, as prosecuting agency, henceforth stop making his workings available to the public until the investigated looter or financial criminal suspect is already in court.  Many of its activities are frustrated because the looters already know the working of the anti-graft agency and are therefore mapping their strategies to scuttle their prosecution.  Stopping revelation of its workings to the press will also safe many innocent from public stigma as proper and adequate investigation must have been carried to know who is actually indictable and who is free of allegation against him or her.  It will therefore strengthen and embolden the confidence of the public in both the government and the EFCC,” he said.

The DEFENDER’s investigations revealed that the aspect of revealing its workings to the public before getting the suspected looters to court first was more likely one of the reasons there seems to be issue between the EFCC’s boss, Ibrahim Magu and the Director-General of the Department of State Service (DSS), Mallam Lawal Daura.

It was gathered through a source, who spoke under strict condition of anonymity, that, “the DG DSS, Daura, has nothing personal against Magu.  All Daura is saying is that, not only the EFCC but, also even the police and other security agencies should do things properly.”

Recall also the widely reported face-off between Magu and the Mallam Abubakar Malami (SAN), the Minister of Justice and Attorney-General of the Federation.  It has also been cited as one of the offshoots of disagreement with what Magu does with the way he revealed his workings to the press before having made a looter court-ready.

To continue to reveal his workings therefore is for EFCC to continue to make the Buhari’s administration play into the hands of the critics including the opposition People’s Democratic Party (PDP), party most pointed in the looting of the entire wealth of the nation under its government that was sacked with the March 28, 2015 presidential elections.