The Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit, (NFIU) has dismissed a letter making the rounds on social media that insinuated that it is investigating some political actors in the country.
The letter claimed that NFIU was going to probe the National Assembly and its leaders including Senate President Ahmad Lawan and Speaker Femi Gbajabiamila.
Also listed was Chief Justice of Nigeria, Ibrahim Tanko Muhammad. The letter had demanded that banks provide the NFIU with their bank accounts.
But in a response to the said letter, NFIU, Chief Media Analyst, Ahmed Dikko, said the agency is not required to write a letter to banks if it needed those information.
“The attention of the Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit (NFIU), has been drawn to media reports stating that the unit has requested banks to furnish it with the account details of principal officers of the National Assembly and the Judiciary. Such reports are not true.
“In line with its powers as enacted in the NFIU Act, the Unit already has access to details of all bank accounts in the country and does not therefore, need to write to commercial banks asking for the same information.
“As a matter of fact, relevant reporting entities such as investigative and other Law Enforcement Agencies always rely on the NFIU for information on bank details of individuals and body corporate under investigation as they go about carrying out their functions. Such is a mandatory reporting process.
“The Unit does not also make blanket requests to all banks as is being speculated in the reports.”
The media and indeed the general public are therefore, requested to disregard such reports.
