PDP campaign asks law enforcement agencies to arrest, prosecute Tinubu for ‘corruption’

The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) presidential campaign council has asked law enforcement agencies to arrest and prosecute Bola Tinubu, standard-bearer of the All Progressives Congress (APC) over alleged corruption. 

Daniel Bwala, spokesperson of the PDP campaign, made the demand at a press conference on Sunday in Abuja.

Bwala said the demand was based on drug proceeds allegedly forfeited by Tinubu in the US and other corruption allegations against him.

“On the eve of the presidential elections in Lagos, two cash-laden bullion vans were seen on his premises located at 26 Bourdillon Street, Ikoyi which was ostensibly for vote buying,” he said

“When journalists asked him about the bullion vans, Tinubu again responded by saying that it was his money and he was free to spend it whichever way he liked. Tinubu said: ‘Even if I have money to spend in my premises, what is your headache?’

“A group of forthright activists including Ariyo Dare-Atoye and Deji Adeyanju wrote a petition to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) on October 25, 2019, calling for the investigation and prosecution of Tinubu for breaching the Money Laundering Act after publicly admitting to sharing millions of naira on the eve of elections.

“In fairness to the EFCC, its current chairman, Abdulrasheed Bawa, while he was the head of the Lagos office of the EFCC, wrote a letter to the Code of Conduct Bureau (CCB). In the letter marked CR/3000/EFCC/LS/Vol4/322, dated November 6, 2020, Bawa requested Tinubu’s asset declaration forms.

“Since Tinubu emerged as the presidential candidate of the APC, the EFCC has kept mum on the issue while Ariyo who wrote the petition has unfortunately died. We, hereby, call on the EFCC to provide an update on this matter.

“Besides, Tinubu had in 2011 been charged before the same Code of Conduct Tribunal (CCT) over allegations that he illegally operated 10 foreign accounts during his term in office as Lagos state governor between 1999 and 2007 but was discharged based on a technicality.

“Danladi Umar, the chairman of the Code of Conduct Tribunal admitted on March 24, 2016, in the case of FRN vs Bukola Saraki that he discharged Tinubu in error. ‘On the discharge of the former Lagos state governor by the tribunal some years ago simply because the CCB failed to fulfill the condition precedent, we have since realised that we acted in error in discharging Mr Tinubu on that ground and we have since departed from that error,’ Umar said.

“It is therefore important for both the CCB and the EFCC to revisit the case since Tinubu was never acquitted.”

Bwala added that Tinubu does not enjoy immunity while calling on the EFCC, NDLEA, police, attorney-general and Department of State Services (DSS) to arrest and prosecute him.