Nigeria’s anti-corruption watchdog has seized $9.8 million in cash from the former head of the state oil company, a spokesman said on Friday, as the government continues to battle endemic corruption.
Graft, particularly in the oil sector on which Nigeria relies, has taken large sums from the country’s coffers.
President Muhammadu Buhari rode to victory in 2015 on an anti-corruption platform after widespread anger at the plundering of the state under his predecessor Goodluck Jonathan. But some have criticised the current administration’s efforts as ineffective.
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) raided a building belonging to the former head of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), Andrew Yakubu, in Kaduna on February 3, Friday’s statement said.
Yakubu was group managing director of NNPC from 2012 to 2014, under Jonathan.
In the house, officials found the cash in US dollars in a fireproof safe, said the statement, adding that Yakubu had reported to the EFCC office in Kano on February 8 and claimed ownership of the money.
Yakubu said the money was a gift, but did not say from whom, and is now assisting the investigation, the statement said.
Yakubu was not immediately available for comment.
According Wikipedia, Andrew Laah Yakubu was born September 10, 1955.
He was dismissed by President Jonathan for insubordination and refusal to cooperate with the minister of petroleum in looting the corporation’s funds.
He was later found by the anti-graft agency as very corrupt himself with their recent discovery of stolen money in his kitty, one of several discoveries of stolen wealth perpetrated by officials in the last administration of Goodluck Jonathan.
He was succeeded by Joseph Dawha in 2014.
His honors include the Presidential Merit Award by the Nigerian Society of Chemical Engineers (1997) and the GMD of NNPC Award (1987).
He was given the chieftaincy title “Iyan Atyap” by the Atyap Kingdom of Kaduna State in 2004, and he is a full member of the Iyan Council of Chiefs.
He is a fellow of the Nigerian Association of Technologist in Engineering and an associate fellow of the Chemical Society of Nigeria.
In the month of February 2017, huge amounts of cash (USD 9.7 Million and GBP 72,000) was found in a store in the city of Kaduna, Nigeria by operatives of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) team.
Andrew Yakubu reported to the commission’s Zonal office in Kano and made statement wherein he admitted ownership of the recovered money, claiming it was “gifts” from unnamed persons.
He is currently assisting the investigation.
