Acting Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crime Commission (EFCC) Mr Ibrahim Magu, has expressed confidence that the judgement stopping the commission from investigating Rivers State governors on money laundering crime will not stand.
He made the declaration on Tuesday in a briefing with Newsmen at the Commissions Zonal office in Port Harcourt saying that the Commission would leave no stone unturned to track and expose every form of criminal activities in the country.
Magu disclosed this Magu described Rivers State as the state next to Lagos State in money laundering crime saying that the reason for the rate of money laundering crime in the State was because of the nature of its oil business terrain.
“I think Rivers State is the next to Lagos in terms of crime, this is the headquarter of money laundering because there is a lot of oil money, bunkers money here.
“I think you can rate Port Harcourt the second to maybe Lagos when you talk of people playing with sinking, diving, hiding, maybe because of the large space of oil deals,” he said.
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Speaking on the judgement restraining the Commission from investigating and prosecuting Rivers Governors on financial crimes, he said “Nothing is going to stop us, even the issue of the court order allegedly obtained by Dr Peter Odili and others to stop the EFCC from investigation and prosecution has been overtaken by event even though the matter is still at the supreme court, we are on it.
“I am telling you that, that judgement cannot stand, it will only take some time it cannot hold and we are going to conclude the investigation.
“There are so many investigations we are doing, we will take it before the court, let the court refuse to prosecute their case, I am sure the matter has suffered for about 13 years now, but we are going to test it, the matter is in the Supreme Court, we will follow it up.
“That decision that is pending in the Supreme Court cannot hold water again, there is a subsequent judgement that has discarded it.
Clearly, there are other judgements that came up and said nobody, not even the judge, not even the Judiciary, not even the court can stop us from investigating and prosecuting them, “EFCC Boss said.
Declaring achievements of the commission from 2019 till date,
Magu disclosed that EFCC has “gotten about three (3) conviction of Governors who are presently cooling off in the prison”, adding that 1245 conviction was recorded last year.
He called for the corporation of all Nigerians in the fight against corruption in the country.
NAN
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