A Lagos -based civil society organisation (CSO), Centre for Anti-Corruption and Open Leadership, (CACOL), has called on the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) to tell Nigerians the outcome of their investigations into the case of former Minister of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Alleviation, Betta Edu.
Edu,who was suspended in January following an alleged bid to divert N585m through a private account, recently got tongues wagging after she reportedly sent condolences to the victims of the recent Jos building collapse with the letterhead of the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Alleviation.
This has left many people thinking if she has been reinstated.
Reacting to this, Chairman of CACOL, Debo Adeniran, wondered if Edu is back, adding that Nigerians have the right to know whether she has been reinstated or not.
“What is she insinuating with her action? Is she back to her desk as the Minister of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Alleviation? If she is back, don’t we have the right to know? In as much as she has every right to condole with the families of those that lost their lives in the tragic incident, she ought to have done it in her personal capacity without involving the ministry since she is no more at the helms of affairs. The condolences, which ought to be met with sympathy, caused a stir on social media as the minister was still expected to be grilled by the anti-graft agency,” he said.
“We at CACOL, therefore, call on the EFCC and ICPC to tell Nigerians the outcome of their investigations into her case. Already, most people are of the notion that the case will be swept under the carpet especially as she is a very strong and prominent member of the ruling party.”
In April, EFCC announced that it is probing 50 bank accounts, and has recovered N30bn in the case of the suspended minister.
According to the anti-graft agency, the recovered N30bn has been put into the Federal Government’s coffers.
“Update on Betta Edu investigation. We have laws and regulations guiding our investigations. Nigerians will also know that they are already on suspension, and this is based on the investigations we have done, and President Bola Tinubu has proved to Nigerians that he is ready to fight corruption.
“Moreover, concerning this particular case, we have recovered over N30 billion, which is already in the coffers of the Federal Government.
“It takes time to conclude investigations; we started this matter less than six weeks ago. Some cases take years to investigate. There are so many angles to it, and we need to follow through with some of the discoveries that we have seen. Nigerians should give us time on this matter; we have professionals on this case, and they need to do things right. There are so many leads here and there.
“As it is now, we are investigating over 50 bank accounts that we have traced money into. That is no child’s play. That’s a big deal. Then you ask about my staff strength,” EFCC said in a document.