By Mohammed Bello Doka
In a sweeping move, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has revived money laundering cases against 13 former governors and ministers, uncovering a staggering sum of over N853.8bn. Among the high-profile figures under scrutiny are two former Ekiti State governors, Kayode Fayemi and Ayo Fayose, former Zamfara State governor Bello Matawalle, and others such as Chimaroke Nnamani, Sullivan Chime, Abdullahi Adamu, Rabiu Kwankwaso, Peter Odili, Theodore Orji, Danjuma Goje, Aliyu Wamako, Timipre Sylva, and Sule Lamido.
Matawalle, now serving as the Minister of Defence in President Bola Tinubu's administration, faces a probe for alleged N70bn money laundering. Fayemi, former Minister of Solid Minerals Development, is under investigation for an alleged N4bn fraud, while Fayose, the two-term governor of Ekiti State, is being examined for an alleged N6.9bn fraud.
Nnamani is being probed for an alleged N5.3bn fraud; Chime is being investigated over an alleged N450m campaign fraud tied to the N23bn allegedly shared by former Minister of Petroleum Resources, Diezani Alison-Madueke. Adamu is under investigation for an alleged N15bn fraud, and Kwakwanso faces scrutiny for alleged non-remittance of N10bn pension fund.
Orji is being investigated over alleged N551bn money laundering, Odili for an alleged N100bn fraud, and Goje for an alleged N5bn fraud. Wammako is being investigated for allegedly diverting N15bn; Sylva, a former Minister of State for Petroleum, faces probe for alleged N19.2bn money laundering, and Lamido is being investigated over an alleged N1.35bn fraud.
Notably, Diezani Alison-Madueke, former Minister of Petroleum Resources, remains under investigation for several alleged money laundering cases involving billions of naira and millions of dollars. The unfolding investigations promise to shed light on a web of financial improprieties at the highest levels of governance.
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