Federal High Court In Lagos To Hear Case Filed Against Magu Today

By Adenike Lucas

A Federal High Court in Lagos will today hear a case filed against Ibrahim Mustafa Magu, the Acting Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC.

Mr Magu’s nomination was rejected by senior lawmakers, last year. A leading human right lawyer and activist in Lagos explained that by remaining in office, the rejected anti-graft boss, was violating section 2 (3) of the EFCC Act which made the condition of his position subject to his confirmation by the Senate.

On January, 16, 2017, Ebun-Olu Adegboruwa, had urged the Court to forthwith, restrain Mr Magu, from parading himself as acting chairman of the commission following the decision of the Senate to reject his nomination.

The trial judge, Mojisola Olatoregun, will hear the case today.

Amongst The Case Against The EFCC’s Rejected Chairman

Staff of the anti-corruption agency have constantly complained about how their boss was driving the agency down through his corrupt activities.

1 Dodgy Dealing

To validate some of its allegation against Mr Magu, DENISAURUS NEWS leaked an audio conversation of Mr Magu cutting a dodgy deal with Ibanga Akpabio, the younger brother of former Governor Akwa Ibom State.

WATCH VIDEO BELOW

2. Bullying and Victimisation Of Staff

Mr Magu is currently “shipping” more policemen to the anti-graft agency, but he has failed to promote core staff who have served the Commission diligently. Thereby, placing the newly seconded lower rank policemen above the EFCC core staff. His recent victimisation has taken a new dimension, where he sends out his police colleagues to frame-up EFCC Core Staff, then he acts on “hearsay” to bully, victimize and maltreat most Core Staff with impunity. Mr Magu has continued with all of these unabated, because he believes no one can or has questioned his untamed audacity.

A senior EFCC core staff has just been ruthlessly victimised by Mr Magu, simply because he had always stood his ground not to allow the errand boys of Mr Magu to carry out their extortion antics.

Instead of being commended, Mr Magu who happened to be a beneficiary, as could be seen in the case of Air Commodore Umar Muhammed, decided to uphold heresy rather than investigate to ascertain the veracity of the set-up.

Mr Magu is indeed fooling most gullible Nigerians, with his deceptive and cunning “arrest and recovery” gimmicks.

Operatives of the agency voiced out their complaint in the past. this led to the arrest of the popular blogger, Abubakar Sidiqu Usman.

3. Links With Arrested Air Commodore

In June 2016, Mr Magu was accused of using the arrested DSS Suspect Air Commodore Umar Mohammed (Rtd) as a front.

Documents from EFCC were recovered from the Maitama, Abuja home of the Air Chief. Now and it was alleged that Mr Mohammed alongside Mr Magu were running a blackmailing cartel.

4. Death In Custody

Desmond Nunugwo, a Chief Protocol Officer to the Minister of State for Defence, died under the watch of Mr Magu. The wife of the deceased, Susanne, recalled that she called her husband’s phone repeatedly but it was switched off as she did not know he was in EFCC’s custody in Wuse 2, Abuja.

“Around 3pm on June 9, my husband had gone to pick up our son from school and they both returned home. He later went out. Around 6pm, I called his line and it rang once. I tried his number several times later, but it was off,” Susanne told Punch.

“The next morning, I got apprehensive when he didn’t come home. However, around 3.48pm, someone called me with his phone and said my husband was in the EFCC’s custody and I should come to bail him.”

Mrs Nunugwo was forced to write a petition addressed to the Attorney-General and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami, SAN, to demand an investigation into the “cover up” of her husband’s death.

Mrs Nunuguwo who wants an apology from the EFCC for wrongly characterising her husband as a fraudster, added that “the whole world need to know the true situation of what happened,” in the death of her husband.

The chief law officer of the land is said to have assured the family “that expedient and transparent investigation would be carried out into the circumstances surrounding Mr Nunugwo’s death.

5. Further Abuse Of Power

Mr Magu ordered for the arrest of an innocent man, last year.

Senate Rejects Magu

EFCC workers say they were exonerated when their boss was rejected by the Senate. On Thursday, 15 December, 2016, representatives from the upper legislative chamber, after an executive session, voted against the nomination of Mr Magu based on an intelligence report it received from the Department of State Security.

Unfortunately, the “double-faced” acting EFCC Chair failed an integrity test, which the DSS had subjected him to during a security-check.

Even after the Senate’s rejection, this blog was reliably informed that a Top Politician who sent Mr Magu’s name to the Senate last year, took the advantage of the fact that the President was not around to re-present the name to the National Assembly.

Critics of the ‘rejected’ acting boss have questioned the rationale to send Mr Magu’s name to the Senate for confirmation without first getting vetted first.

Around July 2016, President Buhari had proceeded to the United Kingdom UK, for a medical check-up.

While away, a certain top government official who is very close to the powerful Party Chieftain, whom Mr Magu had paid homage, hurriedly insisted that a Senior Official in PMB’s office sends Mr Magu’s name for NASS Senate confirmation.

Despite being rejected based on a security report, this year, the same Top Politician went ahead to send Mr Magu’s name to lawmakers at the upper chamber, while the President was away on vacation.

Based on inside opinion, “PMB is on his own when it comes to this fight against corruption.”

The DSS Report Was Enough Evidence To Prosecute EFCC Rejected Boss

It is worth noting that since Mr Magu has been running the Commission, he has not secured any conviction of any politically exposed person.

And despite the media trials by Mr Magu, Nigeria still ranks high among the corrupt countries in the world.

This goes to show that Mr Magu is really not the right man for this crucial role. Not only has he been indicted by the DSS report, many staff have also complained that he ‘lacks the decorum and competence to lead it.’

No PEP Conviction for EFCC

Despite all the media propaganda and gimmick, there has been no conviction of any politically exposed person since Mr Magu became the acting chair person of the anti-graft commission.

The EFCC which has prosecutorial and investigative powers has been unable to convince any court hence, not a single corruption case has been concluded by any of the courts. Why is that? ” Sources say, Mr Magu does such a shoddy work, he has by himself bungled the cases.

For instance, there is about Air Commodore Salisu Yashau, property’s were seized from him but were quickly settled backhanded so the property in Kaduna is not used an exhibit. In leading cases, Mr Magu failed to get adequate training for EFCC core lawyers, he’d rather hire certain Senior Advocate who will share the money with him through the back door.

100 Questions

Mr Magu of seems jittery Over this #100 Questions he must Answer to get confirmed by the National Assembly.

The Borno state indigene is feeling jittery over the fact that, Senate President Bukola Saraki, may preside over his confirmation session.

However, let it be known that Sen. Saraki must not always be the one to preside over the NASS Senate, as he has a second in command. Thus, Nigerians must take into cognisance, that if persons like Deputy Senate President, Sen Ike Ekweremadu, and Senator Dino Melaye could be allowed to preside over the confirmation session of Magu, would he (anti-graft boss) still assumed not being given fair hearing?

Well, as far as DENISAURUS NEWS can recall, no Nigerian has ever raised any corruption allegations against Senators Ekweremadu and Dino Melaye.

Therefore, Magu of EFCC should be rest assured that he will be allowed to go through whatever he wished to be subjected, for confirmation. Yet, he must realize that three (3) conditions had been set, which must be fulfilled.

Trying To Mend Fences

A source has revealed to DENISAURUS NEWS, that the Commandant of the EFCC, Assistant Commissioner of Police, ACP, Kaigama Bunu, who Mr Magu used “uncourteous” word at, has been reported to be back to the anti-graft agency.

This follows a revelation that the said commandant is actually a relative of Mr Magu and there had been a family intervention, which made the Senior Police Officer to return back to the Commission.

Last year, this blog published an altercation that ensued between ACP Bunu and Mr Magu. The brawl which was as a result of the former trying to make the latter realised that he cannot breach the Human Resource Rules, Extravagant Waste of Resources and subjecting New Cadets to training in Military Formation, which Mr Magu had wanted him to indulge and collaborate.

As a result, the anti-graft agency’s boss began to get irate, and used harsh word on the Commandant. As we speak, ACP Bunu who left the Commission back to the Nigeria Police Force, his mother organisation has returned to the EFCC Academy Karu- FCT, though without any portfolio.

NSA Chief Doctored Second DSS Report

The DG of the Tripple S is standing by the allegation made against Mr Magu, this blog has learnt. Our reporters reliably gathered that Lawal Musa Duara has added over 10 more charges to the count against Mr Magu.

This information was expressed following the decision of the Senate to summon Alhaji Duara in order for him to shed more light over the indicting intelligence report the security agency had written

Sources within the Office of the National Security Adviser, ONSA have revealed that it was the NSA chief, Mohammed Babagana Monguno (rtd) who doctored another report to favour Mr Magu, who is known to be his godson.

The DSS falls under the Office of the National Security Adviser. For several months, this blog has reported the unholy deal struck by Mr Magu and Major-General Monguno (rtd).

Media War – Chain Of Operation

Mr Magu continues to use his media ally, mainly the Sahara Reporters, Premium Times, The Nation to blackmail perceived enemies who are against his confirmation.

EFCC operatives complained in the past that their boss was “selling out lies about senior members of the cabinet,” in his ongoing blackmail for confirmation.

It is no longer sacred news that Mr Magu has the ears of the senior Top Official who is bent on making him the Chairman of the EFCC. The Top Official whose relative is the Chief of Staff to Mr Magu is able to use his connection with Premium Times to disseminate information about the government.

Likewise the link between a party Chieftain and the Nation Newspaper was an easy one to figure.

Well, as for DENISAURUS NEWS, we have always said “To be forewarned, is to be forearmed”. The anti-graft agency’s boss is a “fake Anti-graft Czar” and nothing else. Hence, those who have ears, should heed.

Otherwise, more disaster would soon be unravelled, and by then the government of President Buhari would have been messed up and fully embarrassed by Mr Magu.