The Ekiti State governor, Mr Ayodele Fayose of Ekiti State, has revealed how his election was funded two years ago.
According to Fayose, in a statement made available to newsmen on Wednesday, his election was “funded two years ago by the Zenith Bank Plc, fundraising, donations from friends and associates, as well as sales of campaign souvenirs.”
In the statement by his Chief Press Secretary, Mr Idowu Adelusi, Fayose also denied that he received any funds from the office of the national security adviser to fund his election.
Fayose said: “I have no financial transaction whatsoever with the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA) under Colonel Sambo Dasuki (retd) and former Minister of State for Defence, Senator Musiliu Obanikoro, either by cash, cheque or electronic transfer.”
Fayose challenged the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to “publish statements made by Senator Musiliu Obanikoro, his son or any other person associated with money from the NSA office where they claimed they gave him money for the election,” saying “EFCC is only acting a movie scripted, produced and directed by the All Progressives Congress (APC) government of President Muhammadu Buhari just to silence me being a major opposition voice in the country.”
The governor said, “The management of Zenith Bank, which majorly funded my election, called me to a meeting, where I was assured that funds would be provided for my election. I was asked to nominate a trusted ally to be related to, and I nominated Mr Abiodun Agbele.
“All the payments into Abiodun Agbele’s account domiciled in Zenith Bank were directly from Zenith Bank. In actual fact, the account was opened by Zenith Bank hurriedly at that time, and Abiodun Agbele’s identity card which ought to have been collected before the account was opened was only collected last week in the bank’s desperation to perfect the account obviously after submitting to the intimidation and harassment of the EFCC.
“Most of the funds posted into Agbele’s account were through the Ibadan, Akure and Lagos branches of the Zenith Bank and sometimes they brought cash.
“Assuming but not conceding that cash moved from Lagos to Akure as being claimed by the EFCC in its usual manner of media trial was meant for my election in Ekiti, why was the cash not moved to Ado Ekiti branch of Zenith Bank or the cash handed to me directly? Why was it deposited into Zenith Bank, Akure and did the bank make any report on the transaction to the appropriate authorities? Why did the bank send its bullion van to move the money from Akure Airport to their Akure branch if it was illegal money?
“I must say it categorically that I don’t have any link financially with Obanikoro and I know as a fact that he (Obanikoro) has not and cannot mention my name, as beneficiary of whatever money any company in which he has an interest could have gotten from the ONSA if truly Obanikoro collected money from the ONSA as being claimed by the EFCC.
“Therefore, bringing Obanikoro and his son’s narrative or that the Zenith Bank is telling different stories, having been blackmailed and coerced into submission by the EFCC, is a joke that will not fly.
“I wish to state further that if it becomes evidently clear that those who willingly provided money for my election can no longer stand by what they did, maybe because of a threat from the EFCC, I will not hesitate to name names.”
The governor, who challenged the EFCC to also beam its searchlights on the funding of APC elections, especially that of President Buhari, said: “Since we are now in the era in which financial assistance from Nigerians to fund elections is being criminalised, the international community, especially those funding the EFCC, must insist that the commission probes the funding of APC elections before further funds are released to the commission.”
“Most importantly, Nigerians are interested in the $60 million allegedly donated to the APC campaign by Sahara Energy, on which EFCC has been forced to suspend investigation.
He said it was obvious that he has become the main headache of President Buhari’s government, adding that “what they are doing now is part of their grand plots to intimidate and harass me into submission, but I am not someone that can be cowed by threats of incarceration and death.
“I advise that they should keep their gunpowder dry and wait till the end of my tenure in 2018 and I want to assure them that I will be available to answer any of their questions, no matter how unreasonable.
“Furthermore, Nigerians should know that I have been persecuted by the EFCC before, using a phantom N1.2 billion poultry scam, and I came out victorious. I was not only acquitted, I also got N10 million judgment against the EFCC and my impeachment that was orchestrated by the EFCC was quashed by the Supreme Court.
“Nigerians should recall that it was part of this plot to get back at me because of my critical stance on Buhari’s government that the Ekiti State House of Assembly was invaded by men of the Department of State Service (DSS), placement of travel ban on me and lately, the illegal freezing of my account by the EFCC.
“I therefore make bold to state that in the overall interest of democracy and the well-being of Nigerians, I will continue to speak my mind on issues bordering on governance in Nigeria. I will not be intimidated!”
Meanwhile, Ahmed Makarfi-led national leadership of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has observed that the freezing of the Ekiti State governor, Ayo Fayose’s personal account by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) was a politically-motivated witch-hunt.
In a statement issued on Wednesday by Prince Dayo Adeyeye, member of the PDP National Caretaker Committee in charge of publicity, the party had observed with dismay, “the dangerous trend of politically motivated trials and tyrannical administration” of President Buhari and the APC.
PDP demanded that the ruling party must stop the witch hunt in the interest of peace and stability of our nation.
