Offshore Assets Worth $200m: Buhari Gov’t Knocked for Shielding Ex-Gov, Video Emerges
- Former President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration has been accused of shielding a former governor and senator from prosecution of over $200 million in offshore assets
- Okoi Obono-Obla, the former chairman of the SPIP, made the allegation in an interview on Saturday, June 29
- Obono-Obla lamented the several high-profile corruption cases he came across while investigating, but there was no prosecution
The former chairman of the Special Presidential Investigation Panel for the Recovery of Public Property (SPIP), Okoi Obono-Obla, has alleged that the administration of former President Muhammadu Buhari shielded an ex-governor from prosecution of over $200 million in offshore assets.
Obono-Obla made this known in a podcast interview by Seun Okin’s Mic On on Saturday, June 30.
Buhari shields ex-governor from prosecution, Obono-Obla
Photo Credit: @MBuhariSource: Twitter
The former chair of the investigative panel cited several high-profile corruption cases, expressing concern about the government’s lack of decisive action.
Obono-Obla speaks on high corruption cases
He then mentioned a specific case which involved the recovery of extravagant assets while noting the magnitude of corruption he encountered.
His statement reads:
“For instance, there was this case where somebody had 80 brand new armoured S-Class Mercedes Benz cars, along with houses, farms, motorcycles, and more, all discovered in a single location in Jabi.
“We intervened and questioned whether customs duties were paid on these vehicles. It turned out they hadn’t.”
Obono-Obla explains how he wrote to FIRS
He said he wrote to the Federal Inland Revenue Service to inquire about taxes paid on the assets, but it was confirmed that the former governor did not pay taxes on the assets.
The former chairman said his panel was proactive and secured a court order to take into custody the assets until further legal proceedings.
He added that the Buhari administration frustrated efforts to investigate offshore assets linked to a former governor and senators.
See the video of the podcast here:
Atiku visited Buhari, others in one week
Former presidents Atiku visited in one week
TheTalk.NG earlier reported that the former vice president never hid his intention to unseat President Bola Tinubu in the 2027 presidential election. Unlike before, Atiku has been a major critic of President Tinubu’s administration and has enhanced his visibility as he appears in public often.
In 2023, Atiku tried his seventh chance to become Nigerian president when he contested against President Tinubu in the February 25 presidential election but lost the poll to the Lagos-born politician.
Source: TheTalk.NG
