Gowon denies fraud claim by UK lawmaker

Former Head of State, General Yakubu Gowon (rtd), has denied the fraud allegation levelled against by a member of the United Kingdom parliament, Tom Tugend.

The Briton, during a debate on a petition relating to the #EndSARS crisis, had accused the elder statesman of looting half of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and depositing the proceeds abroad during his reign.

He alleged: “We know that today, even now, in this great city of ours, there are, sadly, some people who have taken from the Nigerian people and hid their ill-gotten gains here.

“Some people will remember when General Gowon left Nigeria with half of the Central Bank.”

But, in an interview with the Btritish Broadcasting Corporation (BBC), Gowon described the claim as “rubbish.”

His words: “What the MP said is rubbish. I don’t know where he got that rubbish from. I served Nigeria diligently, and my records are there for all to see.”

He added: “I did not want to speak on this issue because people that know me, know that what the MP said is not true.”

Gowon was Nigeria’s military ruler from 1966 to 1975.