Corruption allegation: group asks EFCC to investigate Akpabio

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The Network Against Corruption and Trafficking (NACAT) has asked the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to investigate former Governor of Akwa Ibom State, Senator Godswill Akpabio on allegations of corruption during his tenure as state governor.

This comes days before the inauguration of the 10th National Assembly with the former Minister of Niger Delta Affairs as one of the leading candidates for the Senate presidency.

Akpabio, who is the All Progressives Congress (APC) National Working Committee’s preferred choice for Senate Speaker, has been under investigation by the EFCC since leaving office. governor in 2015.

Speaking to reporters on Tuesday in Abuja, Justice Ojefia, legal executive director of NACAT, alleged that the fortune of the Akwa-Ibom people had been mortgaged for personal aggrandizement under Senator Akpobio as governor.

He said that just months after he left office, the EFCC invited him over allegations of embezzlement from the Akwa-Ibom state treasury.

“While investigations and prosecutions are still ongoing, civil society has not rested on its oars in its attempt to ensure that corruption is nipped in the bud and that every penny of public money taxpayers of Akwa-Ibom is correctly accounted for.

“It is on this note that the civil society coalition led by the Network Against Corruption and Trafficking, NACAT, embarked on a thorough investigation on behalf of the Akwa-Ibom State Government between 2011 and 2015.

“NACAT through these uncovered financial breaches and irregularities ranging from circumvention of procurement processes, suspicious payments of money, possible money laundering, to awarding contracts to non-existent Shell companies,” he said. he alleged.

He said the question that demanded answers was “how will the All Progressives Congress (APC) accuse the PDP government of wasting 16 years of our nationality and reward yet another PDP man by Mr. Godswill Akpabio who is part of the destruction of Nigeria and only joined APC 6 years ago?

“This is tantamount to giving a PDP member the number three position in the country and saying that APC lied against the PDP’s destruction of Nigeria.

“Making Akpabio a President of the Senate is a reward for the monumental corruption orchestrated in AkwaIbom and the Niger Delta Ministry/NDDC,” he noted.

He wondered how Akpabio will be allowed to preside over the same Senate when he accused the entire senators of being behind the corruption in the NDDC during the investigation of the NDDC.

“To mandate Akpabio Senate President is to reduce the fight against corruption because he will enact laws that will weaken the EFCC and ICPC since he has business with them.

“The nation is dominated by three tribes, namely the Hausa, Yoruba and Igbo. It is nationally irresponsible to deprive the Igbos of the number three position in the country, whether they bring votes or not, when they have high-ranking senators of APC descent who have not been tainted of corruption,” he added.

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