N23.29bn: INEC officials, Fidelity Bank refund Diezani’s bribe

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has recovered N408.7 million from some of the beneficiaries of the N23.29 billion bribe money doled out last year March by former oil minister, Diezani Alison-Madueke to rig votes for ex-president Goodluck Jonathan.

Fidelity Bank, which has two of its chiefs in detention has refunded N49.7 million, its profit from the disbursement of the N23.29 billion, which was converted from $115million dollars paid by Diezani and four oil companies.

Some former and serving INEC officials in Oyo and Ogun states have also refunded N359 million, according to a report published by The Nation today.

EFCC investigators found that INEC officials in Oyo state got N802 million, Ogun state N629m and Cross River N681million.

The EFCC operatives were also said to be on the trail of a former INEC chairman who was consultant to Diezani on how the bribe money should be disbursed.

He was said to have been handsomely rewarded from the largesse.

According to an EFCC source, the former Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC) for Rivers state, Gesil Khan, who oversaw the election that brought Nyesom WIke to office and four others are undergoing interrogation over the N681million the allegedly got from the bribe.

Khan reportedly got N185, 842,000 from the deal. Fidelia Omoile (Electoral Officer in Isoko-South Local Government Area of Delta State) got N112,480,000.

Other INEC suspects are Uluochi Obi Brown (INEC’s Administrative Secretary in Delta State) who got N111,500,000; a former Deputy Director of INEC in Cross River State, Edem Okon Effanga who got N241,127,000 and the Head of Voter Education in INEC in Akwa Ibom, Immaculata Asuquo who got N214,127,000.