Due to reporting and supervisory failures, we were in error to report in the two versions of this story, on the web and in the print edition of Friday Aug. 28, on the amount of money the EFCC has collected from bad debtors to our weakened banks. The correct amount is N25.5 billion.
Eager to redeem its image which had been muddied since its leadership changed hands last year, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, announced in Lagos on Thursday, that it had arrested 68 debtors of Nigerian banks and recovered the sum of ₦25,570,832,724.36k (₦25.5billion) from the debtors The EFCC also, granted leave for some of the bank chiefs in its custody to be released on bail.
Watch Mrs. Waziri's press conference
The bank chiefs were fired from their jobs by the Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Sanusi Lamido Sanusi, on charges of fraud, stock manipulation and money laundering.
Farida Waziri, the EFCC chairman, told journalists in Lagos that the Commission's efforts at recovering the debts were not targeted at genuine business people who had existing credit obligations to banks and had dutifully complied with the terms of the facility but at fraudulent business persons.
Borrowing is legitimate
"We are not out to criminalize legitimate borrowing from banks. We are mindful of the fact that banking thrives on robust credit administration system and we will respect the right of customers to access funds from their banks in so far as the rules are followed," Mrs Waziri said.
According to her, borrowers were grouped into two: those who had legitimate business intentions and had continued to service their loans and those whose loans did not follow due process and were non-performing.
The latter group fall into the commission's pursuit list. "It is unfortunate that some of the bank chiefs in trouble at present abused their offices by granting unsecured loans in total disregard of banking regulations to the second category," Mrs Waziri said.
"The huge amount owed by the latter category has enormous effect on our national economy and every nation must guard that very seriously." However, the search for the accused debtors was still ongoing as some operatives of the Commission were seen leaving its Lagos office to pursue those yet to surrender.
Out on bail
The commission's chairperson said the decision to release the bankers was in respect of the orders received from a Lagos High Court in respect of Sebastian Adigwe and Okey Nwosu, who had approached the court with a request that EFCC grant them leave to exercise their fundamental rights to personal liberty and human dignity.
Bail terms
The bail terms for their release are as follows: "Deposit of Bank Guarantee in the sum of ₦1 billion, in favour of the EFCC to secure the attendance of the accused person; such Bank Guarantee to be procured from banks not involved in the current CBN/NDIC/EFCC investigation; the procurer of the said Bank Guarantee to provide tax clearance certificate of the preceding three years, payable as at when due and in tandem with the amount of the guarantee; A surety in respect of each suspect/accused person.
Such surety must be serving/current Minister of the Federal Republic of Nigeria who will provide a landed property in Victoria Island, Lagos or Ikoyi or Maitama in Abuja or Asokoro in Abuja, whose title and value will be verified and found acceptable to the commission." The Commission said the same treatment shall be extended to all other suspects who are in custody in line with appropriate constitutional provisions.
No state involvement
Mrs. Waziri, however, debunked the belief that some state governors or governments are owing the banks. She said she was only aware of corporate institutions and that the Commission had so far found it difficult to know who exactly to apprehend. "I am not aware of state governors or governments on the list of these debtors but there are a lot of our companies but we are not so sure of the chief executives," she said.
"We have sent to corporate affairs and we are expecting from them who exactly to approach."
Corrupt auditors
The Commission also alleged that the banks and some of their auditors collaborated to perpetrate the frauds and unjust processes. "It has been in collaboration with some auditors, external and internal auditors, that is why we are also beaming our searchlight on these people," she said.
"So they give you what they want you to know, until forensic examiners go there you wouldn't have known. If you just work on values of what you have been given, talking of a lot of dividends and others, you won't know. So I agree with you about the auditors. There is a section in CBN, the inspection unit, they inspect all these." Mrs. Waziri said.
The commission's chairman said that the accused will soon be charged to court, but did not give details of when or where. The recovered monies due to the banks include: Intercontinental Bank, ₦7, 736,571, 744.19; Finbank, ₦1, 590, 417, 332, 05; Afribank, ₦7,551,121,378.69; Oceanic Bank, ₦8,033,481,868.65 and Union Bank, ₦659,240,400.78.
Reader Comments (73)
post a comment
* = Required information