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Reps panel grills Monguno over $44m NIA fund

Reps panel grills Monguno over $44m NIA fund

Reps panel grills Monguno over $44m NIA fund

 

The House of Representatives Ad-hoc Committee on utilisation of recovered loot and assets between 2002 and 2020, yesterday, grilled the National Security Adviser, Major General Babagana (retd), over the whereabouts of the $44 million recovered from the Nigeria Intelligence Agency (NIA) office in 2017.

The chairman of the panel, Adejoro Adeogun, at the resumed hearing of the committee, confronted the NSA with claims by the chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Abdulrasheed Bawa, that the fund, which was recovered by the anti-graft agency from the Osborne Towers Ikoyi office of the NIA, was in the custody of the office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA).

However, the Director of Finance and Administration, ONSA, Brig. General Ja’afaru Mohammed, who represented Monguno at the investigative hearing, explained that the office has nothing to do with recovered loot and assets.

He said: “The operation that was carried out at Osborne Towers Ikoyi, Lagos, was planned and executed by EFCC operatives. ONSA was neither part of the team that recovered the funds nor were the funds handed over to ONSA at any point of the recovery.

“However, for the avoidance of doubt, there were issues of funds belonging to an intelligence outfit that was taken out of the abode and was later returned to the outfit on the directive of Mr. President. Evidence of the deposit of the fund is, hereby, attached.”

He added that “the NIA was under investigation and the president directed that the ONSA should take charge of the place. I was sent there to take charge of the funds of the agency. I went there and counted the money in their vault and it was about $41 million.

“We kept that money and after the investigation, the president ordered that the money be returned to the agency. We have returned it to the owners as directed by the president.”

He explained that the federal government in 2015 inaugurated a Committee of Arms and Defence Equipment Procurement (CADEP) to audit all arms procurements and expenditures.

On his part, the Inspector General of Police (IGP), Usman Baba, who was represented by the Deputy Inspector General of Police (DIG) Force Criminal Investigation Department (FCID), Joseph Egbunike, told the panel that the police have recovered over $400 million, as well as some immovable assets.

However, the committee chairman berated the Nigeria Police Force for not keeping adequate records of recovered loot.

Adeogun observed that while other agencies have dedicated accounts for recovered loot, that was not the case with the police.

Consequently, the panel directed the police to reconcile its records and report back to it, on Friday, with all relevant information.

 

 

 

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