THE Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) is investigating alleged fraudulent foreign exchange allocations linked to the former Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) governor Godwin Emefiele.
According to media reports, the investigation is expected to result in Emefiele facing amended charges, and over 85 entities, including corporate organisations like the Dangote Group and BUA Plc, and individuals, have been contacted by the EFCC.
The anti-graft Agency has also summoned senior officials of the affected entities and mandated them to provide detailed documents of their foreign exchange transactions covering the last nine years.
A top EFCC source revealed that the Commission’s investigation was comprehensive, deeper, encompassing, and independent of the report of the special investigator appointed by President Bola Tinubu to probe the CBN, Jim Obazee.
While officials of the Dangote Group confirmed the raid and stated that they were cooperating with the anti-graft Agency by supplying relevant documents, BUA insisted that its offices were not raided by EFCC operatives.
The official claimed, “The EFCC is investigating over 85 entities, which include companies and individuals. The probe has extended beyond 52 entities, and I can confirm that the Dangote Group and BUA Plc are part of the 85 entities under probe over the preferential foreign exchange allocations made by the former CBN Governor, Godwin Emefiele, in defiance of extant financial rules and regulations and disregard of the CBN Act.
“Some officials of those companies and individuals connected with the allocations have been invited by the Commission for questioning, and all the affected entities have been asked to provide their financial documents from 2014 to 2023. We discovered that those allocations were not approved by former President Muhammadu Buhari, so it was more of a means for the former CBN Governor and his cronies to launder money through forex transactions and Bureau De Change operators.”
“The discoveries in the recent probe into forex transactions involving many individuals and organisations show that the former Governor of the CBN will face amended charges soon. Lawyers of the Commission are working on that, and as soon as that is done, Emefiele will answer to the charges.
“We have found out how he used his position to help friends and acquaintances, business associates, relations and others.
“The charges against him are plenty. It is a pity that such a highly-placed man used his office the way he did it.
“He is also going to face other charges like money laundering, abuse of office, even abuse of office may involve the declaration of assets,” the statement added.
