Following allegation by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, justifying the freezing of Governor Ayodele Fayose’s Zenith bank account over alleged link of funds from the office of the National Security Adviser, Governor Fayose on Wednesday, denied the allegations.
The EFCC had alleged that the funds, amounting to about N4.7billion, was moved from accounts operated by two of Mr. Obanikoro’s sons where it was transferred to Mr. Fayose’s Zenith Bank Account in Ado-Ekiti.
But Fayose in a swift reaction said his 2014 election was funded by Zenith Bank Plc, fund raisers, donations from friends and associates, as well as sales of campaign souvenirs.
In a statement by his Chief Press Secretary, Idowu Adelusi, Governor Fayose said: “I have no financial transaction whatsoever with the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA) under Col Sambo Dasuki (rtd) and former Minister of State for Defence, Senator Musiliu Obanikoro either by cash, cheque or electronic transfer.”
Fayose challenged the anti-graft agency to publish statements made by Musiliu Obanikoro, his son or other persons associated with funds from the NSA’s supposedly used for his governorship election.
He said: “EFCC is only acting a movie scripted, produced and directed by the All Progressives Congress (APC) government of President Mohammadu Buhari just to silence me being a major opposition voice in the country.”
On the alleged involvement of President Buhari’s wife, Aisha, in the Williams Jefferson bribery scam, the governor challenged the president’s wife to visit the United States of America to convince Nigerians that she was not the Aisha Buhari mentioned in the judgment.
“It is on record that the President has visited USA three times and his wife did not travel with him. She ought to have visited USA last year September to chair a United Nation programme but she sent the wife of the Senate President, Mrs Toyin Saraki to represent her.
“I advise that they should keep their gun pounder dry and wait till the end of my tenure in 2018 and I want to assure them that I will be available to answer any of their questions, no matter how unreasonable.”
He added: “Furthermore, Nigerians should know that I have been persecuted by the EFCC before, using phantom N1.2 billion poultry scam and I came out victorious. I was not only acquitted, I got N10 million judgment against the EFCC and my impeachment that was orchestrated by the EFCC was quashed by the Supreme Court.
“Nigerians should recall that it was part of this plot to get back at me because of my critical stance on Buhari’s government that the Ekiti State House of Assembly was invaded by men of the Department of State Service (DSS), placement of travel ban on me and lately, illegal frozen of my account by the EFCC.
“I therefore make bold to state that in the overall interest of democracy and well-being of Nigerians, I will continue to speak my mind on issues bordering on governance in Nigeria. I will not be intimidated.”
Meanwhile, the EFCC is set to invite Mrs. Feyisetan Fayose, the wife of Ekiti State Governor, Ayodele Fayose, for receiving N100m through an account which is operated by her and her husband.
According to the EFCC, the money, which emanated from the account of the Office of the National Security Adviser, was paid into the Zenith Bank account of Spotless Investment Limited on June 17, 2014, less than a week to the June 21 governorship election in Ekiti State.
The money was paid into the company’s account with bank teller number 0540997 by Abiodun Agbele, an associate of the governor.
The two signatories to Spotless Investment Limited’s account are Fayose and his wife.
An EFCC detective told one of our correspondents, “N100m was paid into the Spotless Investment Limited account with number 1010170969 at Zenith Bank. The two signatories are Fayose, with Bank Verification Number 22338867502, and his wife, Helen Olayemi, with BVN 22298990256.”
The account has since been frozen by the anti-graft agency.
As a sitting governor, Fayose cannot be prosecuted or arrested because he enjoys immunity.
“His wife, however, has no immunity,” the source added.
The PUNCH had reported on Wednesday that N1,219,490,000 was flown to Akure Airport on June 12, 2014, by a former Minister of State for Defence, Musiliu Obanikoro, ahead of the June 21, 2014 governorship election in Ekiti State.
The money was said to have been part of the N4.7bn, which was paid into the Diamond Bank account of Sylvan McNamara by the Office of the National Security Adviser. Sylvan McNamara is a company in which Obanikoro’s sons are signatories.
A large chunk of the N1,219,490,000 was said to have been paid into Fayose’s private and company accounts, including the N100m, which was paid into the account of Spotless Investment Limited.
