Magu: 'I did not steal Nigeria's money'

Magu: 'I did not steal Nigeria's money'

Magu insists that he's innocent of the charges for which he is being tried.
   
   
   
       
       
           
               
                   

Magu insists that he's innocent of the charges for which he is being tried.

               
           
               
                   

Suspended Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Ibrahim Magu, has maintained that the allegations tendered against him are a tissue of lies.

               
           
               
                   

Magu was let out of jail on the evening of Wednesday, July 15, 2020 after being picked up a little over a week ago and interrogated by a presidential panel probing allegations of corruption and insubordination tendered against him by Attorney General of the Federation Abubakar Malami.

               
           
               
                   

He has been specifically accused of re-looting recovered loot and assets.

               
           
               
                   

He was immediately suspended, with Mohammed Umar named to replace him in an acting capacity.

               
           
               
                   

After he was released from police custody, Magu said he was shocked to read the allegations levelled against him, branding them as a tissue of lies.

               
           
               
                   

“The allegations are nonsense. There are mere trumped up allegations to tarnish my image and that of the EFCC. I did not steal or divert or convert funds to private use. I read the allegations and I was shocked,” The Nation quotes Magu as saying as he stepped out of police custody.

               
           
               
                   

                                   

Ibrahim Magu was released from prison custody on Wednesday evening (Premium Times)

               

               
           
               
                   

“What I have gone through is a case of dog eats dog but I see it as one of those risks of the job… we must not give up in any way.”

               
           
               
                   

Magu also vowed to fight corruption till the very end, and appreciated everyone who stood by him during his detention.

               
           
               
                   

“Corruption kills a nation faster than any other thing.

               
           
               
                   

“I thank Nigerians for their support, they should not be discouraged. I am happy to be back, I believe the war against corruption is winnable.

               
           
               
                   

“Whether I am EFCC Chairman or not, the anti-corruption war must continue,” he vowed.

               
           
               
                   

Magu has also bemoaned why he has been treated like a "common criminal" for serving his nation.

               
           
               
                   

                                   

Ayo Salami heads the panel probing Magu (Premium Times)

               

               
           
               
                   

Magu is being grilled by a panel led by Justice Ayo Salami, a former president of the Court of Appeal.

               
           
               
                   

He was appointed acting EFCC Chairman by President Buhari in 2015 and is yet to be named as substantive boss of the anti-graft agency, after the legislature twice turned down the executive's request to confirm him for the role.

Source: Magu: 'I did not steal Nigeria's money'

- gist culled from pulseng