Reports from the whistle blower, WikiLeaks have alleged pending case of money laundering against the wife of the Nigerian President, Patience Jonathan.
The chairperson of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Farida Waziri, on Wednedsay in Abuja debunked a claim by WikiLeaks of an alleged pending case of money laundering against the wife of the Nigerian President, Patience Jonathan.
Speaking when a non-governmental organisation, the Women Empowering and Enriching Lives (WEEL), led by an American-based Nigerian, Jennifer Gbeshi Ehimika, visited the EFCC headquarters, Mrs Waziri said there was no record of the commission launching any investigation of either Mrs Jonathan or her husband over their actions when Mr Jonathan was governor of Bayelsa State.
"I have checked our records and cannot find any case of money laundering against Mrs Jonathan or the president himself," the EFCC chairperson said. "So, each time I get an enquiry or read about this, I wonder where this is coming from.
"The commission does not in any way have account or records of where $13.5 million was recovered from Mrs Jonathan in 2006 and will not allow the commission's name to be used to drag innocent people's names into crimes, cases or allegations they know nothing about. I think that is criminal and a big sin.
"People work hard to build their names and image and then to overnight come and cast this damage or scandalise to hunt someone, I think, is a great sin and I don't allow it. I have read my predecessor say in the media interviews in September 2010 that Mrs Jonathan was not in any way involved in any money laundering investigated by him." She said she had been a victim of people wanting to destroy what she had built over the years and advised Nigerians to separate truth from blackmail because society can only thrive on justice and fair play.
"Each time the commission receives a petition, we look for the writer to come and adopt it and if it is unanimous, we don't throw it inside the dustbin. We carry out covert enquiries to see whether there is substance in it. But we do not, for sake of politics or sensationalism, drop people's names," she said.
Prepared for mudslinging
She also said that when she took up the job, the late President Yar'Adua called her and asked if she knew what it entailed to handle the job.
"He told me that my name will be rubbished, I will be scandalised, people will write all sort of rubbish against me, tissues of lies will be conjured against me. He asked if I realised that and I said yes, I have been through it before and I know," Mrs Waziri recalled.
"This is why in the EFCC today, only the mischievous will say the EFCC under my leadership witch-hunts or drags people's names in the mud or violates rule of law in our operations. I am proud to say that, in the last three years, we have done much more and achieved great feats without operating outside the ambit of the law.
"For us in EFCC, we will continue to promote the right values, focus on our mandate and abstain from tendencies that will not help the cause of a better society.
This we cannot do alone, and that is why we continue to enlist as many patriotic citizens and groups like yours to join in our crusade for good governance through a vigorous and masses-driven fight against economic crimes including corruption." Ms Ehimika, the group's coordinator, said the visit was to seek partnership with the EFCC.
No comments:
Post a Comment