By Ononye VC
In what appears to be a great headway in its investigation of Betta Edu, the suspended Minister of Humanitarian Affairs, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has revealed the recovery of N30 billion allegedly linked to financial malfeasance.
The revelation comes in the latest edition of the EFCC’s bulletin, “EFCC Alert,” which disclosed the commission’s recent activities.
According to the bulletin authorized by EFCC Chairman, Mr Ola Olukoyede, it has recovered N30 billion for the federal government and investigation is ongoing into 50 bank accounts related to the case.
Recall that President Bola Tinubu had suspended Betta Edu and the former CEO of NSIPA, Halima Shehu, around three months ago for alleged financial recklessness.
Following their suspension, Mr Tinubu directed the anti-graft agency to take over the issue and probe everyone fingered in the case
Meanwhile, Olukoyede stressed the magnitude of the case and the need for patience from Nigerians as investigations take time to conclude.
His said, “With respect to this particular case, we have recovered over N30 billion, which is already in the coffers of the Federal Government.
“It takes time to conclude investigations; we started this matter less than six weeks ago. There are cases that take years to investigate. There are so many angles to it. And we need to follow through with some of the discoveries that we have seen.
“Nigerians should give us time on this matter; we have professionals on this case and they need to do things right. There are so many leads here and there.
“As it is now, we are investigating over 50 bank accounts that we have traced money into. That is no child’s play. That’s a big deal. Then you ask about my staff strength. And again, we have thousands of other cases that we are working on.
“Nigerians have seen the impact of what we have done so far, by way of some people being placed on suspension and by way of the recoveries that we have made. You have seen that the programme itself has been suspended.
“We are exploring so many discoveries that we have stumbled upon in our investigation. If it is about seeing people in jail, well let them wait, everything has a process to follow. So Nigerians should wait and give us the benefit of the doubt.”
