The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has begun investigations into 50 bank accounts even as it recovered N30 billion in the case of the suspended Minister of Humanitarian Affairs, Betta Edu, and the ongoing probe of the ministry over alleged money laundering.
The latest development was revealed in a bulletin titled, “EFCC Alert,” detailing some major arrests, prosecutions, and recoveries made by the commission within the last month.
The document authorised by the EFCC Chairman, Ola Olukoyede, which was obtained by Africa Today News, New York on Tuesday revealed that the recovered N30bn is now in the Federal Government’s coffers
The document read in part; “Update on Betta Edu investigation. We have laws and regulations guiding our investigations. Nigerians will also know that they are already on suspension, and this is based on the investigations we have done, and President Bola Tinubu has proved to Nigerians that he is ready to fight corruption.
“Moreover, concerning this particular case, we have recovered over N30 billion, which is already in the coffers of the Federal Government.
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“It takes time to conclude investigations; we started this matter less than six weeks ago. Some cases take years to investigate. There are so many angles to it, and we need to follow through with some of the discoveries that we have seen. Nigerians should give us time on this matter; we have professionals on this case, and they need to do things right. There are so many leads here and there.
“As it is now, we are investigating over 50 bank accounts that we have traced money into. That is no child’s play. That’s a big deal. Then you ask about my staff strength.
“And again, we have thousands of other cases that we are working on. Nigerians have seen the impact of what we have done so far, by way of some people being placed on suspension and by way of the recoveries that we have made. You have seen that the programme itself has been suspended. We are exploring so many discoveries that we have stumbled upon in our investigation.
“If it is about seeing people in jail, well let them wait. Everything has a process to follow. So Nigerians should wait and give us the benefit of the doubt.”
The EFCC further called for a united front in the fight against corruption while urging the judiciary and legislative arms to assist the commission in its anti-corruption fight.