The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has arraigned the former Head of Service of the Federation, Winifred Oyo-Ita, along with her special assistants, Ugbong Effiok and Garba Umar for trial.
Hamma Bello, the eighth prosecution witness, explained before Justice James Omotosho of the Federal High Court in Maitama, Abuja, how N3 billion was diverted to private companies. Bello accused Oyo-Ita and her subordinates of diverting public funds into their private ventures.
Bello, led by prosecution counsel Faruk Abdullahi and H.M. Mohammed, disclosed that Oyo-Ita employed tactics involving Slopes International Limited and Good Deal Investments Limited, companies associated with her, to fraudulently secure government contracts. He emphasized that Umar, the fourth defendant, was complicit in these maneuvers, having incorporated the companies with Oyo-Ita’s knowledge.
“We called for the account statements of these two companies, and upon analyzing them, we realized he (Umar) was paid several sums of money from the Ministry of Power, Works and Housing, where he is an employee,” Bello stated, highlighting Umar’s involvement in the scheme. “He admitted that he was also a contractor and paid the first defendant on several occasions from the proceeds of the transaction.”
Related Stories
- El-Rufai Denies Corruption Allegations, Vows to Swear on Quran
- Protesters Stole Ganduje’s Corruption Trial Documents from Court During Protests
Bello revealed that on April 27, 2019, a significant transfer of N20,2027,142 was made to the Zenith Bank account of Asanaya Projects Limited in the name of Ibrahim Madu, with the seventh defendant, Effiok’s signature and photo on the mandate card. Investigations uncovered that Effiok had incorporated Asanaya Projects Limited in his name with Oyo-Ita’s knowledge, enabling him to receive payments either directly or through his company’s account.
“The seventh defendant confirmed he had never traveled for most of the funds he received and that the first defendant was aware of and benefitted on several occasions from the funds,” Bello revealed, shedding light on Effiok’s admission and implicating Oyo-Ita in benefiting from the illicit transactions. He further noted that the account of U and U Global Services Limited, opened by Effiok, received substantial payments, including N40,313,453.58 from the federal government in 2016.
Bello also presented evidence regarding the Fidelity Bank account of Prince Mega Logistics Ltd, revealing multiple entries and outward payments to individuals including Oyo-Ita. “The seventh defendant is the sole signatory of this account,” he added, underlining Effiok’s vital role in the financial activities under scrutiny.
“We invited the first, second, and seventh defendants at different times to our office and interviewed them,” Bello stated. “In the case of the first defendant, we printed chats from her phone and saw conversations she had with contractors, subordinates, and permanent secretaries. She also voluntarily made a statement to the EFCC.” This statement reinforces the EFCC’s efforts to gather evidence and build a case against the accused parties.