The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), has begun investigation on allegedly mismanaged N21 billion Paris Club Refund drew by Abdulfattah Ahmed-led Kwara government between 2016 and 2017, saying the suspicions trailing the fund prompted EFCC to beam its searchlight on the fund.
The Anti-graft Commission also said that 26 convictions had been recorded in the last six months, leading to recovery and forfeiture of some cash and property such as hotels, residential apartments, fleet of cars, among others, to Federal Government and Kwara state government.
Isyaku Sharu, the Ilorin zonal Head of the Agency, made disclosure in Ilorin on Thursday while delivering his speech at the 26th edition of the ‘Media Parliament’ organized by Kwara State council of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), adding that the Agency had recovered over N100 million for Kwara state government.
Sharu, who spoke on the topic, “Anti-corruption Fight in Nigeria, Progress and Challenges: The Kwara State Experience”, admitted that corruption had become endemic in the country, saying, the Commission was domesticated in the state as a result of the several complaints of the people, to look into the longstanding and persistent economic and financial crimes in the state and as well to clean-up two decades of bare faced fraud.
He said, “The continuous complaints of the people of Kwara state became much louder in the periods ending the year 2018 wherein the Acting Executive Chairman of EFCC; Ibrahim Magu had to create the Ilorin zonal office of the commission to look into the longstanding, persistent economic and financial crime issues in the state.
“It is noteworthy that Kwara state is one of the first created states as far back as 27th May 1967 and has had several leaders, but the state has over the years not maximized its potentials largely due to the alleged cases of mismanagement and embezzlement of state resources.”
The zonal head however, lamented that “in the course of carrying out our assignment, we have noticed with great disappointment that the people of Kwara State are sometimes scared of exposing the corrupt and bad eggs among them.”
Sharu added that the Commission had also checked cyber crimes known as “Yahoo Yahoo” in Kwara, Kogi and Ekiti states which were the areas of operation of the zone.
Also, Attahiru Madami, Kwara State Resident Electoral Commisioner of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) urged journalists to do everything they could to eradicate corruption from the society.
He lamented that “we no longer practice our family value system which abhors bad behavior and bad name” and asked Nigerians to eradicate corruption from the country, saying that ” if we don’t kill corruption, it will kill us.”
SIKIRAT SHEHU, Ilorin
