Facts have emerged that the 40 vehicles allegedly recovered from a former permanent secretary do not belong to the Nigerian government, a source close to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has confirmed.
Our correspondent’s investigations revealed that the said vehicles, which were mainly Hilux and buses were vehicles that remained from one of the candidates in the 2016 presidential campaign.
The EFCC source said following an unsigned petition by inquisitive Nigerian to the Commission, the anti-graft agency swung into action and discovered 45 not 40 vehicles, seven of which were SUVs kept in a location in Abuja.
One of the investigators who preferred to remain anonymous said the vehicles were donated by different organisations, individuals and some bought through bank loans.
The investigator further revealed that some of the people who brought in the vehicles came though the former PS who is close to a former presidential candidate henceforth his invitation.
The EFCC investigator further revealed that the Commission got involved in the vehicle investigation because one of the companies under investigations by the anti-corruption agency was found to have donated some of the vehicles put at a cost of N300 million to the presidential campaign.
“The Commission thereafter invited the said PS who presented documents and receipts for the purchase of the vehicles but the EFCC insisted that the N300 million contributed by the company under investigations must be recovered,” the EFCC source said adding that “the PS agreed to release some of the vehicles to the tune of the N300 million but later accepted that for national interests all the vehicles should be released to the EFCC.”
“Non of those vehicles belongs to the government. They are all bought by individuals and companies as contributions to the presidential campaign. Contrary to reports that the 40 vehicles were government vehicles, not even one belong to the government. Those who believe in truth should investigate it to know the truth,” the source said.
As at the time of filing this report, efforts to contact the concerned PS and the minister of information Lai Mohammed proved abortive.
