EFCC detains 16 LG chairmen for fraud

Nigeria’s anti-fraud office on Friday said it is questioning 16 chairmen of different local governments in Kwara State for alleged misappropriation of N4 billion loan and the state’s internally generated revenue.

EFCC’s spokesman Wilson Uwujaren said the agency gathered that the chairmen after securing the controversial loans, held a meeting and decided that N100m will be shared among themselves from the loan.

The chairmen listed are Risikat Opakunle, Saidu Yaru Musa, Umar Belle, Ayeni Dallas, Fatai Adeniyi Garba, Lah Abdulmumeen, Raliat Funmi Salau, Aminat Omodara, Muyiwa Oladipo.

Others are, Oladipo Omole, Abdullahi Abubakar Bata, Saka Eleyele, Lateef Gbadamosi, Oni Adebayo Joseph, Omokanye Joshua Olatunji and Jibril Salihu.

“The chairmen on the 7th of February 2018 wrote to the Ilorin branch manager of Sterling Bank requesting a N4bn loan in order to pay the salary arrears of the State Universal Basic Education Board teachers, local government staff and the local government pensioners, while the provisions for N100m for council chairmen were not appropriated in the request,” EFCC claimed.

EFCC alleged that the council chiefs were also accused of diverting monthly 10 per cent of the internally generated revenue for their personal use, which was paid directly into their personal accounts.

The EFCC said that all the suspects had confessed that N100m was shared from the loan and that they also received 10 per cent of the internally generated revenue.

The EFCC said the politicians were still being held in custody and might spend the weekend there.

It said they would be charged to court after the investigations had been concluded.