ICPC to investigate payroll fraud against Buhari’s aide

The Independent Corrupt Practices Commission (ICPC) has commenced investigation into a payroll fraud allegedly committed by Bashir Ahmad, the new Special Assistant to the President on Digital Communication.

Ahmad, a former Personal Assistant on New Media to President Muhammadu Buhari, allegedly committed the fraud through the Federal Government’s payroll.

Spokesperson of the anti-corruption agency, Azuka Ogugua, who confirmed the development, said the Commission received a complaint from HEDA Resource Centre, a public-interest think-tank run by anti-corruption campaigner Lanre Suraju.

Ogugua said: “We received a complaint and we have commenced an investigation. Our investigation is preliminary at this stage in order to establish accuracy of the information we received and then we take it from there.”

Ahmad is alleged to have been earning salary after leaving office as a presidential media aide.

He had resigned from office in May in order to seek the ruling party’s House of Reps ticket in his home Kano State.

However, despite confirming his resignation, the President’s media aide still continued receiving salaries in May, June and July, until he was exposed by a report done by The Gazette.

He was said to have received at least N3,129,530.64 in fraudulent basic earnings, with his allowances and estacodes within the same period.

Ahmad, was earlier this month reappointed by Buhari after failing to win the primaries in the upcoming parliamentary elections.

He is also said to have refunded the illicit payments in full to the federal coffers for the months he was not in service.

But he allegedly failed to supply evidence of the reimbursement or clarify what actions he took after receiving the first, second and third salaries, as well as federal allowances and estacodes, despite being a private citizen.

Credit: The Will