Multi-Billion-Naira Fraud: Akpabio Pressures Senators-Elect To Endorse Him As Sole Candidate For Senate President In Desperate Move To Evade EFCC Invitation, Grilling

Akpabio is with out doubt one of many many nine contenders for the Senate presidency of the Tenth Assembly, which is anticipated to be inaugurated in June.

A worn Governor of Akwa Ibom Explain, Senator Godswill Akpabio has been inserting stress on assorted senators-elect to endorse him because the sole candidate for the Senate Presidency, SaharaReporters has learnt.

High sources in the ruling All Progressives Congress also acknowledged Akpabio, a senator-elect, has been throwing around the name of the ‘President-elect’, Bola Tinubu, announcing he has his give a enhance to and the utilization of that to extra pressurise the senators-elect.

Akpabio is with out doubt one of many many nine contenders for the Senate presidency of the Tenth Assembly, which is anticipated to be inaugurated in June.

Tinubu, who returned to the nation final Monday, April 24, after spending weeks on a clinical rush back and forth to Paris, France, has met with some leaders of the All Progressives Congress, governors besides to individuals-elect of the Senate and the Dwelling of Representatives.

Amongst folks who met with the ‘President-elect’ had been Akpabio (APC/Akwa Ibom) and Barau Jibrin (APC/Kano).

However sources acknowledged Akpabio’s desperation to clinch the Senate Presidency has been evident in the manner he’s going about seeking the endorsement of change senators-elect.

SaharaReporters right this moment completely printed a story about how Senator Akpabio refused to honour an invite by the Financial and Monetary Crimes Payment on the excuse of sick successfully being.

Final Friday, SaharaReporters also reported that the EFCC had re-invited Akpabio, worn Minister of Niger Delta Affairs, over allegations of abuse of divulge of work and misappropriation of billions of Naira.

The EFCC earlier invited Akpabio to look for questioning on March 29 but the criminal educated representing the Senator-elect, Umeh Kalu (SAN), in a letter to the anti-graft agency acknowledged his consumer may presumably presumably be unable to honour the invitation attributable to his sick successfully being.

The criminal educated acknowledged Akpabio modified into undergoing treatment for pneumonia and cardiac arrhythmia and therefore requested the antigraft agency to make a decision one other date.

Per the criminal educated, Akpabio had already arranged clinical appointments in a distant places nation.

However, SaharaReporters final Friday bought a up to date letter from the EFCC asking Akpabio to with regards to its headquarters in Abuja on Can also 9, 2023.

The letter dated April 13, 2023, modified into acquired by Akpabio’s legal professionals, Seasons Law Agency the following day.

The letter titled, ‘Investigation Activities Re: Senator Godswill Akpabio’s Appointment Letter Of Invitation’ modified into signed by ACE II SM Ala, Head, CMU-1.

The letter reads, “I talk over with your letter number dated March 27, 2023 on the above discipline. In survey of the above, you are kindly requested to uncover your consumer Senator Godswill Akpabio to personally document for an interview with the undersigned through the Head, CMU-1 crew on Ninth Can also, 2023 at fifth Ground, EFCC Headquarters Quandary 301/302 Establishments and Analysis District. Jabi, Abuja at 10:00am.”

Per sources, Akpabio is looking out to make employ of the endorsements by his colleagues as a ploy to blackmail the EFCC into backtracking on its switch to investigate him.

One among the sources who spoke to SaharaReporters acknowledged, “If Senator Akpabio does no longer have a hidden agenda and likewise skeleton in his cupboard, why is he looking out to make employ of the name of the President-elect, Bola Tinubu to hoodwink the Senators-elect to ticket his phantom and sick-timed endorsement to change into the sole candidate for the election for the divulge of work of the Senate President.

“Senator Godswill Akpabio and his cohorts are busy collecting, mounting stress on Senators-elect to ticket an endorsement give a enhance to letter for his determined ambition of becoming the Senate President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. This orchestration of collecting signatures is his mammoth ploy to evade EFCC’s Can also 9, 2023 invitation.”

There are also indications that Akpabio had vowed no longer to honour the EFCC invitation and protect faraway from being interrogated over the corruption allegations in opposition to him.

One among the sources acknowledged, “Identical Senator Godswill Akpabio had vowed that he’ll by no diagram discipline himself to EFCC invitation and interrogation to acknowledge to the allegations of embezzlement and siphoning of over N100 billion for the length of his tenure as Honourable Minister of Niger Delta Affairs.

“It is most disheartening and tragic for the same Senator Akpabio to be hoodwinking Senators-elect to ticket endorsement letter for him for his Senate President’s ambition for onward transmission of the same endorsement to the President-elect, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu and outgoing President Muhammadu Buhari.

“This purported phantom endorsement of Senator Akpabio by Senators-elect will among assorted functions, support as a decoy and ploy by Senator Akpabio to blackmail and hoodwink EFCC, therefore he’ll fail and evade to honour the 2nd invitation of EFCC scheduled for Can also 9, 2023.”

“It is a funny myth taken too a long way that Senator Akpabio desires to desecrate the sanctity and integrity of the Senate by collecting signatures of Senators-elect while the inauguration of the Tenth Senate or election of the presiding officers of Senate is nearly five weeks away as this may presumably doubtlessly be held on June 10 or 13,2023.

“If Senator Akpabio does no longer have a hidden agenda and likewise a skeleton in his cupboard, why is he looking out to make employ of the name of the President-elect, Bola Tinubu to hoodwink the Senators-elect to ticket his phantom and sick-timed endorsement to change into the sole candidate for the election for the divulge of work of the Senate President.

“He ought to honour EFCC’s invitation and summon in converse for him to clear his name on the allegations of hundreds of billions of naira he allegedly siphoned from NDDC’s coffers when he modified into the Minister of Niger Delta Affairs.

“EFCC Chairman is usually recommended to enact his constitutional responsibility if Senator Akpabio fails to look earlier than the Payment on Can also 9, 2023, to acknowledge to well-known allegations of financial malfeasance in opposition to him. EFCC is usually recommended to arrest him without prolong if he fails to honour the invitation for the umpteenth time.

“Senators-elect are suggested no longer to permit Senator Akpabio to make employ of them and dump them. They ought to permit him to switch to EFCC and clear his name, as one more of signing a phantom and sick-timed endorsement for him,” one among the sources acknowledged.

Corruption Allegations In opposition to Akpabio

SaharaReporters in 2021 reported how the senator-elect modified into detained after he attempted to bribe the Chairman of the anti-graft agency, Abdulrasheed Bawa with $350,000 (about N135 million).

Per sources, Akpabio modified into looking out to bribe the EFCC Chairman attributable to the many corruption allegations in opposition to him, dating reduction to when he modified into governor of Akwa Ibom Explain.

It modified into learnt that the assembly between Akpabio and Bawa modified into arranged by the Licensed educated Total of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami (SAN).

SaharaReporters gathered that it took a call from the Presidential Villa to the EFCC Chairman to ranking Akpabio and his aides launched.

A top source in the EFCC had acknowledged, “He arrived at the EFCC divulge of work with five others and headed to meet the newly appointed Chairman, Bawa.

“The Licensed educated Total of the Federation right this moment arranged the assembly for the minister. You luxuriate in in thoughts his bribery distress with Malami himself inspiring $5 million.

“He modified into ushered in at 1 pm to glimpse the EFCC chairman while carrying the money personally. He modified into arrested and detained, along with his aides, all six of them. It modified into a call from the Villa that got him launched after two hours.”

There had been allegations of N40 billion fraud perpetrated in the NDDC, a ministry which modified into headed by Akpabio for three years.

The Senate and the Dwelling of Representatives in 2020 resolved to probe the alleged N40 billion financial recklessness of the Interim Management Committee (IMC) of the NDDC in the old three months.

Also, there had been allegations of over N86 billion contract scam inspiring the senator-elect and the worn Performing Managing Director of Niger Delta Trend Payment (NDDC), Prof. Kemebradikumo Pondei, which the EFCC has been having a glimpse into.

The anti-graft agency had previously arrested Akpabio over the alleged theft of N108.1 billion of Akwa Ibom funds.