Patience Jonathan: There’s less than $10m in my account, missing $175m not mine

Patience Jonathan, former first lady, has said she has nothing to do with the $175m purportedly “missing without a trace” from Skye Bank.

The wife of ex-President Goodluck Jonathan strongly denied that the said amount was missing from her bank accounts, and noted that the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) had not linked her to any investigation to the effect.

Jonathan, in a statement released Wednesday, said she had less than $10m in her account when it was frozen by the EFCC.

In a statement signed by Sam Dokubo, her spokesperson, the ex-first lady, said the claims made against her were false, “otherwise it should be officially substantiated”.

“For the avoidance of doubt, while indeed it is true that Dame Patience is in court for the protection of her fundamental rights infringed upon by a ‘No debit order’ placed on her funds by the EFCC, it is not for $15m but for funds less than $10m as has been clarified several times.

“The purported story in a newspaper on November 19, 2016, about a missing $175m allegedly belonging to the former first lady is not just fictitious but plain falsehood.

“The EFCC has not made any statement to the existence of an investigation of any missing $175m linked to the former first lady.

“If any such funds as claimed, which was deposited by certain verifiable persons has gone missing without a trace from a known bank, Skye Bank, as was reported, then, the bank, its officials and those mentioned must be held to account for the funds and not the former first lady, Dame Patience Jonathan, who was in no way a part of the transaction.

“The claim that the money was credited to a company linked to Dame Patience Jonathan is also false; otherwise it should be officially substantiated with credible evidence by Skye Bank and the EFCC that are jointly mentioned in the report.”