I Am Not Under Investigation By EFCC…..Okonjo-Iweala Debunk Media Reports

Former Minister for Finance and Coordinator of the Economy, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala has dismissed reports that she is under investigation by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC. Iweala in a Press Statement signed by her media Aide, Mr. Paul Nwabuikwu said headlines in some sections of the media suggesting she is under investigation by the anti-graft agency are misleading. The former Minister said from eye witness accounts at the Budget 2016

presentation of the EFCC, the Chairman of the anti-graft agency never said her activities as Minister under former President Goodluck Jonathan’sadministration are under scrutiny. But Hon. Razak Atunwa, a member of the House of Representatives Committee who inquired about the probe into the petroleum sector, said: “I said EFCC has recovered a lot of money for Nigeria and he (Magu) mentioned that, in that regard, more sectors of the economy is likely to come under Investigative activity. “I said it includes petroleum sector? He said yes. And I said would it include investigating the following people: Diezani Allison-Madueke,

Okonjo-Iweala and Kola Aluko, and he said yes. Those people are already under their investigative radar.”

However, Iweala’s press statement reads:

ALLEGED EFCC INVESTIGATION OF OKONJO-IWEALA: MEDIA HEADLINES ARE MISLEADING AND UNTRUE

We want to clarify that some of the media reports alleging that the EFCC is investigating former Minister of Finance, Dr Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, are

misleading and untrue. This is clear from eye witness accounts of the Budget 2016 presentation by the EFCC at the House of Representatives and gaps in the reported stories. The headlines are a misrepresentation of what the EFCC Chairman actually said during the event.

While the headlines claimed that the EFCC Chairman, in response to a question by an APC, member Hon Razak Atunwa, stated that Dr Okonjo-Iweala is under investigation, the actual words quoted in the same reports told a very different story.

His words:

“Very soon we will go into the petroleum industry. Such investigation requires that we have to build capacity, we have to bring in experts to

enable us tackle what we are doing properly and the investigation must be conducted properly. We have internal lawyers and external lawyers. We have to pay insurance…”

The words said to have been spoken by the EFCC Chairman cannot support the lurid headlines that Dr Okonjo-Iweala is under investigation by the EFCC. The Nigerian media plays an important role in our democracy and we urge them to be fair, balanced and factual in their reports.

Paul C Nwabuikwu

Media Adviser to Dr Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala