The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission has strongly denied recent allegations that its officials were involved in sharing funds forfeited by associates of former Central Bank of Nigeria Governor, Godwin Emefiele.
In a statement released on Wednesday, the EFCC’s Head of Media and Publicity, Dele Oyewale, dismissed the claims made by an online news platform.
The report had alleged that ₦54 billion, forfeited by Emefiele’s associates, was improperly distributed among certain ministers, aides of President Tinubu, and EFCC officials.
“The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission denounces as false the report by the online news platform, which alleges that ₦54 billion forfeited by some associates of a former governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Mr. Godwin Emefiele, was ‘shared’ among certain ministers and aides of President Tinubu, in collaboration with EFCC officials,” Oyewale stated.
He firmly refuted the idea that any EFCC officials were involved in the division of forfeited assets, calling the notion “alien to the Commission.”
Oyewale also criticized the author of the report for lacking an understanding of the legal framework governing asset recovery and management. He explained, “Both the EFCC Act 2004 and the Proceeds of Crime (Recovery and Management) Act 2022 are unambiguous regarding the accounts into which proceeds from forfeited assets are to be paid. There is no ‘platform’ for the ‘sharing of forfeited assets’; the notion itself being absurd.”
He further challenged the news platform to provide concrete details if their claims were true. “Otherwise, the news platform would have provided information about when and how the sharing took place and who received what. The truth is, it simply did not happen! Presenting fiction as news is the height of irresponsibility, and the EFCC will not tolerate any attempt to defame its hard-earned reputation.”
The EFCC urged the public to disregard the false report, reaffirming its commitment to transparency and accountability.
