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EFCC arraigns three INEC officials for allegedly laundering N180 million

By Muyiwa Adeyemi (Ibadan) and Joseph Onyekwere (Lagos)
31 July 2018   |   3:24 am
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has arraigned three officials of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) before a Federal High Court, Lagos for allegedly laundering N179.8 million Consequently, the trial judge, Justice Muslim Hassan, ordered that they should be remanded in Ikoyi Prison. The defendants, who are attached to the Ogun State office…

EFCC

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has arraigned three officials of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) before a Federal High Court, Lagos for allegedly laundering N179.8 million

Consequently, the trial judge, Justice Muslim Hassan, ordered that they should be remanded in Ikoyi Prison.

The defendants, who are attached to the Ogun State office of the electoral umpire, are Yemi Akinwonmi, Dickson Atiba and Ogunmodede Oladayo.

The anti-graft agency is accusing them of conspiring to take possession of the said sum in March 2015, few days before the general elections.

The EFCC claimed that the accused received the money from one Adeyinka Ayo-Aina when they “reasonably ought to have known that the money formed part of proceeds of fraud.”

The agency further alleged that they “handled the cash without going through any financial institution, contrary to the provisions of the Money Laundering (Prohibition) Act, 2011.”

According to the counsel to the EFCC, first and second defendants, Nneameka Omenwa, on or about April 7, 2015, the accused made and accepted a cash payment of N69 million, an amount exceeding constitutional benchmark, without going through a financial institution and thereby committing an offence contrary to Section 18(a) of the Money Laundering (Prohibition) Act, 2011, as amended, and punishable under Section 16(2) of the same Act.

The defendants, however, pleaded not guilty to the eight charges pressed against them.

The matter was subsequently adjourned to August 6, 2018 for hearing of their bail applications.

Meanwhile, the National Chairman of the National Action Council (NAC), Dr. Olapade Agoro, has sued INEC at the Federal Hight Court, Abuja, asking that the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and the Social Democratic Party (SDP) should be de-registered for alleged corruption.

In a copy of the suit made available yesterday at a news conference in Ibadan, the politician urged the court to compel INEC to deregister all political parties whose members have been ‘indicted of corruption.’

The former presidential candidate in the action he filed in his personal capacity, joined INEC, PDP, APC and SDP as respondents.

On why the legal step became expedient, Agoro said the country was already “drifting towards the precipice because of the sleaze being perpetrated by some members of the affected political parties.”

He hinged his decision on the “provision of Section 15 subsection (5) of the 1999 Constitution (as amended).”

The aforementioned reads: “That state shall abolish all corrupt practices and abuse of power.”

Agoro maintained that that unless his prayers were sanctioned, the nation’s democratic experiment would not be free from graft.

He said: “Unless my prayers brought before this honourable court are answered positively, the democratic processes of Nigeria shall never be free from the evils of corruption.”

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