BREAKING: EFCC Arrests Senator Akpabio Over Fraud

The Akwa Ibom state former governor who is currently the
Senate minority leader in the 8th Senate, Godswill Akpabio,
was at about 5pm on Friday, October 16, arrested by the
Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Premium
Times reports.
Akpabio
He was said to have been accompanied by a few aides and
a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Ricky Tarfa.
However, the former governor’s aide who is on the basis of
anonymity that the senator is currently being interrogated
by top officials of the EFCC.
A source at the EFCC confirmed the development of Senator
Akpabio’s arrest.
He said: “He was brought in at about 5.20 pm accompanied
by a few aides and Mr. Rickey Tarfa.
“It is not yet known whether he will be allowed to go this
night. It depends on how the interrogation goes.”
There had been a petition forwarded to the ant-graft
commission and President Muhammadu buhari in June by
an Abuja-based lawyer and activist, Leo Ekpenyong, over an
alleged theft of N108.1billion of Akwa Ibom funds where the
senator was a governor.
As a result of the petition, the crimes commission had
swung into action to investigate the matter.
According to Premium Times report, several other indigenes
of the state who have been demanding the investigation of
the former governor, were invited by the EFCC to adopt their
petitions.
The invitation did not exclude Ekpenyong, the key petitioner
as he too was summoned to adopt his claim.
The lawyer disclosed that between January and December
2014, the ex-governor colluded with the former government
house permanent secretary, Etekamba Umoren, and the
former accountant general of the state to steal a whopping
N108.1 billion from the state’s treasury.
He said in the petition: “Between January – December 2014,
it is on record that the trio of Godswill Akpabio, Mr
Etekamba Umoren and Mr Udo Isobara, made illegal but
substantial withdrawals of cash from a designated state
government-owned account with Zenith Bank with account
number: 1010375881 amounting to N22.1 billion.
“It is worthy of note that reasons for such ungodly cash
withdrawals against financial regulations and due process
laws range between sundry use and unjustifiable
expenditures by Godswill Akpabio and his numerous
surrogates and proxies.
“For example, a whopping N18 billion was withdrawn
fraudulently from the state FAAC account with the United
Bank for Africa in trenches of N10 million and above by Mr
Isobara in a surreptitious manner to conceal their dishonest
intention.”
Ekpenyong accused Umoren of having been rewarded with
an appointment as government house chief of staff and
now secretary to the state government under Udom
Emmanuel’s administration owing to his assistance in the
alleged stealing.
The legal luminary also accused the former governor of
several other fraudulent practices ranging from another
withdrawal of N18 billion to the acquisition of a multi-billion
naira mansion at Plot 5 Okogosi Spring Close, off Katsina-
Ala Crescent, Maitama-Abuja, a multi-billion naira
mansionette at Plot 28 Colorado Close, Maitama, Abuja and
another multi-billion naira mansion at 22 Probyn Road,
Ikoyi, Lagos.
However, the commissioner of information during the
Akpabio’s administration, Aniekan Umana, described the
contents of the petition by Mr. Ekpenyong as falsehood
taken too far.
Noting that the petition betrayed a lack of understanding of
the workings of government, the former commissioner said:
“Every sum withdrawn from a government account is tied to
a subhead and there must be a budgetary provision. To
attribute fraud to withdrawals which had the full sanction of
government and was accommodated in the budget is
strange, mischievous and untenable. More so, when one
understands that there are checks and balances which
guide all aspects of government financial administration.”
Naij.com