AN officer of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, Kazeem Yusuf, yesterday, told a Federal Capital Territory, FCT, High Court that N4.6 billion was allegedly diverted to organise prayer for Nigeria.
Yusuf spoke while testifying as the second prosecution witness (PW2) in the trial of a former Minister of State for Finance, Bashir Yuguda.
Yuguda is standing trial alongside former National Security Adviser, NSA; Col Sambo Dasuki (retd); former Sokoto State governor, Attahiru Bafarawa; his son, Sagir, and Dalhatu Investment Limited, a company owned by Bafarawa.
The defendants are facing 25 counts of misappropriation, criminal breach of trust and receiving stolen property.
Led in evidence by EFCC counsel, Rotimi Jacobs, the witness said an investigation was carried out after the commission received a petition from the Office of the National Security Adviser, ONSA.
He said the investigation revealed that “Dalhatu Investment Limited was one of the 78 companies alleged to have received money from ONSA without any documents to show that they bided for contracts.”
Yusuf said an analysis of the statement of account of Dalhatu Investment Limited by EFCC from UBA revealed that the company got N4.6 billion from ONSA.
He added that the amount was paid in instalments between 2014 and 2015, noting that N783 million, being part of the money, came from the SAS account.
Yusuf said in a written statement, that Sagir, who represented the company, told the EFCC that “the money was meant for prayers for the country because of the insecurity prevalent at that time.”
He said Sagir later gave a breakdown of how the N4.6 billion was spent, including a list of beneficiaries.
The witness said Senator Abdallah Wali, who received N580 million from the company, told EFCC that the money was meant for his governorship election campaign in Sokoto in 2015.
He also told the EFCC team that former secretary of the Pilgrims and Welfare Agency, PWA, in Sokoto State, Muazu Madawaki, received N322 million, which he claimed was for payment of hajj seats for some Sokoto indigenes.
The witness said other beneficiaries listed include former Sokoto chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Ibrahim Maigoma, who received N111 million; Yahaya Dada (N327,549,000); Sani Kabir (N159 million); INEC (N293,500,000), among others.
The witness added that the money received by Wali was sent through a company, Development Strategies International Limited, owned by Islam Wali and Mohammed Wali, who are cousins to the former senator.
The witness told the court that parts of the money meant for supplies of security equipment, including hand-held devices, were used to procure a Lexus car, a Hilux van and 16 Peugeot 206 cars which were distributed to PDP local government chairmen in Sokoto.
However, he stated that 14 of the Peugeot 206 vehicles were recovered in the course of the investigation.
The witness said one Amanze Obi received N15.3 million for political publicity for Bafawara’s 2015 presidential campaign.(Vanguard)
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