President Muhamadu Buhari, yesterday ordered investigations into allegations of corruption and improper conduct levelled against EFCC acting Chairman, Ibrahim Magu and Secretary to the Federation, Babachir Lawal.
The presidency announced the investigation through a statement released last night through the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Publicity, Mallam Garba Shehu.
Shehu stated that the President had directed the Attorney-General of the Federation, AGF to commence investigation into the matter, saying that they would be prosecuted if found culpable.
“The attention of the presidency has been drawn to a number of reports in the media, in which various accusations of corruption have been levelled against some top officials in the administration. In that regard, President Buhari has instructed the Attorney General of the Federation to investigate the involvement of any top government officials accused of any wrong-doing. If any of them are liable they will not escape prosecution”, Shehu said in a tacit statement.
Both Magu and Lawal are recently facing serious accusations that have affected their public image and blocked opportunities.
Ibrahim Magu’s screening session at the Senate was stalled because of a report submitted on him by the DSS, indicting him of corruption. There are also media reports that the acting EFCC chairman has not been allowed to see the president.
For Babachir, who is touted as a member of the cabal controlling the government of the day, his woes came loud on Wednesday last week when the Senate unraveled his alleged complicity in the diversion of billions of Naira for the welfare of the Internally Displaced Persons, IDPs in the North East through a report of an Adhoc Committee.
The Senate subsequently demanded for his summary dismissal from office as SGF. But in a swift response, Babachir said that the Senate was talking nonsense.
The two cases are said to have placed the president in a difficult situation. The two senior Government officials are his close allies, but the president is careful not to appear to be compromising the anti-corruption drive of his government which Magu’s EFCC is central to.
Vanguard gathered that since the day of his rejection, Magu had made several attempts to meet with President Buhari but was blocked.
