EFCC involved in unjustified attempt to bring down former governor Bello—Kogi Govt.
The government of Kogi State has once again demanded that the EFCC explain why it has been relentlessly persecuting and mediating the former governor, Yahaya Bello.
As far as the government is concerned, everyone is wondering why the Commission is making such an effort to uncover information that is already known to be absent.
The government of Kogi State has demanded that the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) stop single-mentioning the state in its continuous persecution and has maintained that its money are not missing.
The administration claimed that the former governor’s reputation was being tarnished by a group of politically connected individuals surrounding the president.
Kingsley Fanwo, the state’s commissioner for information, issued a statement outlining the Kogi government’s stance.
“We believe that this ignoble agenda is unknown to President Bola Tinubu, who trusted those people with power with the hope that they would use it judiciously for the greatness of our nation.
Regrettably, they have chosen to exploit the privileges bestowed upon them for personal political gain.
The modified claims that brought up the name of the former governor, Bello, are completely unfounded, baseless, imaginary, and untrue. In their haste to smear a dog’s reputation in order to hang it, they have concocted these false accusations.
It was all planned to make the situation more dramatic and spark a media backlash against the ex-governor and other government officials.
“We have seen how low EFCC and its paymasters can go to pander to the political agenda of those afraid of the rising profile of Alhaji Yahaya Bello,” it added.
“What is occurring in Kogi State before the EFCC is pushed into being used as a hired gun by political hawks who are acting a selfish and overambitious script,” the state administration pleaded with President Tinubu.
The statement made it clear that people might air their issues privately, without tarnishing the reputation of Kogi State.
In keeping with the trend since 2016, the commissioner emphasised that the Kogi administration “believes in transparency, accountability, and probity.”
Furthermore, the statement read in part, “As a subnational in the Nigerian nationhood, we wish to express our utmost respect for agencies set up to perform specific functions towards the greatness of Nigeria.
“The Kogi State government is also conscientiously committed to the determination of the present administration to stop corruption and fight corruption.
“As an administration, we inherited the zero tolerance for corruption policy from the immediate past administration of Alhaji Yahaya Bello.
“Since 2016, the government of Kogi State has continually strengthened its anti-corruption brakes and bumps to ensure the commonwealth of the people works for the common good of Kogites.
“This has won the state government a lot of credible awards from national and international organisations, including the World Bank.
“The desperation of the EFCC to hastily and for glaring political reasons hound the immediate past governor on their corruption list is unfortunate and speaks volumes on how we reward altruistic leadership in our nation.
“For the records, we wish to make it clear that Kogi’s funds are not missing and that the EFCC is trying so hard to find what is not missing.
“Therefore, call on the EFCC to desist from mentioning the name of Kogi State in its ongoing persecution, orchestrated by some political actors in and around the Presidency bent on destroying the image of Alhaji Yahaya Bello and Kogi State.
“As a government, we will continue to support the anti-corruption crusade of the Federal Government. However, such a crusade should be based on the rule of law, the purity of conscience, and devoid of political scheming.
“We cannot afford to politicise our fight against corruption. We will continue to have faith in the judiciary to protect our name and integrity.
“Those who have personal grievances can vent their grievances without dragging the name of Kogi State in the mud. Our government believes in transparency, accountability, and probity, in line with the trend from 2016.
“We also wish to assure the good people of our state that nothing will be spared to protect the integrity of our government.
“Our administration will continue to act in such a way that Kogites will be respected wherever they go and for us to retain the respect of our international development partners who have persistently commended our anti-corruption credentials.”