Bamidele Aturu said that by leaving James Ibori out of its watchlist, the EFCC is “making a mockery of the anti-graft war.”
Despite evading arrest in Nigeria and being wanted for corruption by authorities in Nigeria and England, the former governor of Delta State, James Ibori, is not on the list of the ‘Most Wanted People by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission’. The EFCC publishes a list of EFCC’s most wanted people on its website, which contains the names and pictures of suspected financial criminals who are topmost on the anti-graft agency’s wanted list and have evaded arrest. A review of the list however shows that the name and picture of the former governor is missing.
‘EFCC Most Wanted’, last updated on October 5, 2010, has two foreigners and eight Nigerians who are wanted for offences ranging from money laundering to diversion of public funds. A human rights activist and lawyer, Bamidele Aturu, stated that by leaving Mr. Ibori out of its watchlist, the EFCC is “making a mockery of the anti-graft war.”
“If there is any man that should be on top of that list it should be Ibori,” Mr. Aturu said.
Mr. Ibori resisted arrest by the EFCC in his Ogharra hometown in Delta State before he absconded to the United Arab Emirates where he is currently seeking refuge. Femi Babafemi, the EFCC spokesman, however downplayed the commission’s failure to include Mr. Ibori’s profile in his agency’s list.
“He was publicly declared wanted even though he is not on the list,” Mr. Babafemi said. Mr. Shehu Sani, a human rights activist and president of the Kaduna-based Civil Rights Congress stated that “whether he is on the list or not, the EFCC has repeatedly failed to apprehend him.”
Mr. Ibori is also wanted by the London Metropolitan Police for money laundering offences. Already, his wife, his mistress, his sister, and his lawyer have all been convicted in the UK for helping Mr. Ibori to launder money belonging to the Delta State. Although he was recently granted bail by UAE authorities on health grounds, the London Met told NEXT exclusively that the former governor’s travel documents had been seized and that they were still working on extraditing him to the UK.
No comments:
Post a Comment