EFCC ‘shielding’ Yahaya Bello over corruption allegations

Kogi in Action, a socio-political group, has accused the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) of refusing to investigate Yahaya Bello, governor of Kogi state, despite series of petition against him.

In June, Egalitarian Mission for Africa (EMA), also a socio-political group, sent some information to the EFCC on the alleged “fictitious withdrawals and evidence of contracts inflation” by the current administration in Kogi.

Majeed Abdullahi, spokesman of Kogi in Action, said the alleged inaction of the anti-graft agency is a source of concern.

“EMA furnished the EFCC with details of executive recklessness on the part of the governor and his agents,” Abdullahi said in a statement.

“The group alleged that Bello hurriedly awarded needless contracts of renovation and services to fleece the unsuspecting tax payers.

“The money running into billions of naira ended up in private pockets.”

Abdullahi, who also released some documents on the alleged excesses of Bello’s administration, said his group would not allow the “daylight robbery” to be swept under the carpet.

He vowed that the case would be pursued to a logical conclusion in order to recover the state’s funds.

“The courage muzzled and exuded by EFCC in the early part of the investigation has fizzled out ‎glaringly on possible connivance to kill the case,” the statement read.

“The anti-graft agency has been foot dragging in investigating serving governors, who no known law of the land protects from probe, especially when it borders on pillage of the common wealth of impoverished Nigerians.

“While a lot of executive atrocities are going on daily in Kogi state and the people are being impoverished further on daily basis, the anti-graft agency looks the other way round.

“Today, Kogi is one of the states where the civil servants are having hellish experiences.”

Abdullahi alleged that despite the bailout from the federal government, a good number of the state workers are yet to be paid, and the governor had laid off some of them.

He said in Benue, the EFCC invited some officials who allegedly mismanaged bailout fund, wondering why the same approach has not used in the case of Kogi.

Efforts to get the reaction of Bello did not yield any result, as Kingsley Fanwo, his spokesman, did not respond to the text message sent to his phone.

Also Wilson Uwujaren, spokesman of the EFCC, did not also respond to inquiries by TheCable.