Senate ‘scandalising’ Lamorde over Saraki’s wife

The efforts of the senate to investigate Ibrahim Lamorde, chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), for allegedly diverting N1 trillion recovered from corrupt politicians, are down to EFCC’s recent probe of Toyin Saraki, wife of the senate president, an official of the commission has said.

After George Uboh petitioned the senate accusing the EFCC of diverting the loot recovered from‎ Diepreye Alamieyeseigha, former governor of Bayelsa state and Taf‎a Balogun, former inspector-general of police, the senate committee on ethics, privileges and public petitions announced that it will begin a probe of the matter on Wednesday.

It invited Uboh to appear before it by 10am on Wednesday.‎

Lamorde was said to have committed the alleged offence while he was director of operations of the EFCC between 2003 and 2007, and as acting chairman of the commission between June 2007 and May 2008‎.

However, an EFCC official told TheCable on Monday that the senate was “trying to scandalise” the commission because of its investigation of Toyin Saraki, wife of Bukola Saraki, senate president. He also said Lamorde had not received an official invitation from the senate.

“There is nothing like summon or invitation to the commission from the senate,” he said.

“What is supposedly a petition to the senate is something engineered by the leadership of the senate because we are investigating the wife of the senate president.

“Everything the senate is doing is to scandalise the commission because we are investigating the wife of the senate president.”

The EFCC is investigating Mrs Saraki over an offence of money laundering she allegedly committed while her husband was the governor of Kwara state.

In July, when she was invited for questioning, a hive of lawmakers led by Dino Melaye accompanied her to the headquarters of the EFCC in Abuja, in what was described as an attempt to stampede the commission.

She promised to cooperate with the commission on whatever information it needed, the ‘Like Mind’ senators who are loyalists of the senate president, questioned the entire process, saying it was part of a larger plan to pull down Saraki, who became president of the upper chamber against the wish of his party.