The discovery of a substantial amount of money, specifically $43 million, in a Lagos apartment has brought attention to the ongoing issues of corruption and the efforts to combat it in Nigeria. The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) raided the apartment after receiving a tip, leading to the discovery of the large sum of money.
The apartment was located in the upmarket Ikoyi suburb of Lagos, Nigeria's biggest city, which has an estimated population of more than 20 million. Anti-corruption officials questioned guards at the building, who said that no one lived at the apartment. The apartment was locked and EFCC agents had to force entry.
The EFCC said one of its sources had reported a "haggard" woman had appeared at the apartment on several occasions, carrying bags. The anti-graft agency said it raided the Lagos apartment after a tip about a “haggard” woman in “dirty clothes” taking bags in and out of the unit. "She comes looking haggard, with dirty clothes, but her skin didn't quite match her appearance, perhaps a disguise," said the EFCC statement, quoting an anonymous source.
The Discovery and Initial Investigation
On April 12, EFCC agents raided the apartment and stumbled onto the mother lode. Some $43m was found in the apartment. dollars, sealed and hidden in various wardrobes and cabinets. dollars, $75,000 worth of Nigerian currency and $35,000 in British pound sterling were also found "neatly arranged" inside fireproof cabinets hidden behind wooden panels.
At the time, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission said the funds were suspected to be linked to unlawful activity.
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Nigeria’s anti-corruption body, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, said it suspected the funds were linked to unlawful activities. Investigations are ongoing, said Nigerian officials.
The EFCC, however, told the court last month that wife of the country’s intelligence chief owned the flat according to documents in their possession.
Justice Hassan held that “I am in complete agreement with the submission of the learned counsel for the applicant (EFCC) that the property sought to be attached are reasonably suspected to be proceeds of unlawful activities and that by every standard this huge sum of money is not expected to be kept without going through a designated financial institution; more so, nobody has shown cause why the said sum should not be forfeited to the Federal Government of Nigeria.
“For the avoidance of any doubt, I hereby make the following orders: 1. A final order is made forfeiting the sums of $43,449,947 found by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission at Flat 7B of No.
An investigation has been launched into how the National Intelligence Agency got the money, including who authorized the funds’ release to the agency, Adesina said.
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Fight Against Corruption: Analysing Cost Of Menace In Nigeria
Government Response and Whistleblower Policy
Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari isn’t buying it, and has suspended Oke pending an investigation. Vice President Yemi Osinbajo will head the investigation and report back to Buhari with findings in two weeks. Buhari campaigned on rooting out corruption but has struggled to make good on those promises since taking office in 2015.
The Muhammadu Buhari-led government announced a whistleblower policy to help recover looted state funds. Those seizures were widely credited to a new policy in which whistleblowers can anonymously provide information through a secure portal.
Whistleblowers can now anonymously provide information through a secure portal, if the information leads to the recovery of stolen public funds, the whistleblower is entitled to between 2.5%-5% of the total money recovered.
In February, the minister of information, Lai Muhammad, said the policy has led to the recovery of over $180 billion.
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Nigeria's History with Corruption
Nigeria has a history of corruption and President Muhammadu Buhari has pledged to reclaim stolen assets in the West African country. Nigeria has struggled with corruption and looted funds for decades.
Several high-profile officials are facing trial for corruption, but no major convictions have been achieved since Buhari came to power in May 2015. Earlier last week, the EFCC uncovered some $817,000 in cash from a market in Lagos, and some $1.5 million at a shopping mall.
In a separate development, Mr Buhari, who took office in May 2015 promising to crack down on corruption, also suspended a senior civil servant over the use of funds intended for handling a humanitarian crisis in the northeast of the country.
An investigation has been launched into contracts awarded under the presidential initiative on the north east, where 4.7 million people, many of them refugees from the Boko Haram Islamist insurgency, are in dire need of food. President Buhari has promised to crack down on corruption.
Nigeria is ranked 136 out of 176 countries on Transparency International's Corruption Perception Index in 2016.
| Country | Rank (out of 176) |
|---|---|
| Nigeria | 136 |
