House C’ttee Insists on Identity of Owners of Ikoyi Billions

• Invites Emefiele to give evidence

James Emejo in Abuja

The Chairman of the House of Representatives Committee on National Security and Intelligence, Hon. Sani Jaji, has said the committee has a mandate to establish the owners of the apartment and the $43 million recently found in an Osborne estate apartment in Ikoyi notwithstanding claims by the Nigerian Intelligence Agency (NIA) that it owned both.

He told journalists that the committee was making progress in its probe, adding that the Governor of Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Mr. Godwin Emefiele, would have to appear before the committee this week as his submissions would be crucial to the investigation.
He said some of the useful facts and progress achieved could not be disclosed at the moment.

Jaji said had been attempts on him and members of the committee on what direction the investigation should take and the possible outcome of the report.

He noted that the pressures had no monetary inducement but were in form of text messages and physical contacts “about what we should do, what we should not do, that we should dwell on this and not on that.”

The lawmaker said: “They say this or that agency has a reputation that should not be put on the line, and so we should not go beyond certain extent but we tell them that our determination is to safeguard the name and integrity of our institutions.

“But we tell them are aware that is it is not fair to castigate an entire agency for the wrongdoing of an agency and that is why we want to protect our institutions by getting to the roots of these infractions and expose the individuals responsible.

“It is a fact that there is no way one will embark on an assignment like this without sacrifice, and in this case, our dedication will determine our sacrifice. No amount of frustration will stop us as a committee or as individuals.”

He hinted that the suspended Director-General of NIA, Prof. Ayo Oke, would also be invited before coming up with a comprehensive report which would be available to all Nigerians after the House might have considered and adopted it.

“We must however have at the back of our minds that the essence of the exercise is the protection of our institutions and should not be allowed to public ridicule,” he said.

Jaji said a recent meeting with the acting Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) in relation to the Ikoyi billions had been fruitful.

He said: “We have been meeting with relevant stakeholders concerned in this matter before now, having met with Magu, it is our resolve to pursue this matter to a logical conclusion n because more revelations are coming out.”