N189bn fraud allegation: EFCC releases ex-Sokoto governor Tambuwal, withholds passport

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has released former Sokoto State governor and serving senator, Aminu Waziri Tambuwal, hours after he was grilled in Abuja over an alleged ₦189billion fraud.

Tambuwal, who governed Sokoto State from 2015 to 2023, was invited to the EFCC headquarters in Abuja on Monday, arriving around 11:30 a.m.

He was interrogated by investigators and subsequently detained at the commission’s corporate headquarters.

According to EFCC sources, the withdrawals are suspected to contravene the Money Laundering (Prevention and Prohibition) Act, 2022.

“Former Sokoto State Governor, Aminu Tambuwal, is being held over alleged fraudulent cash withdrawals to the tune of N189bn. The withdrawals are in flagrant violation of the Money Laundering (Prevention and Prohibition) Act, 2022,” one source had said on Monday.

Another EFCC official, who asked not to be named, confirmed that Tambuwal was in custody while the investigation continued.

On Tuesday, sources said the former governor had been released after meeting his bail conditions, which were described as “not stringent.”

Viral videos showed Tambuwal at his residence in Abuja recieving visitors, including former Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) chairman, Uche Secondus.

Meanwhile, former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar had accused the EFCC of detaining Tambuwal because he is a member of the opposition coalition.

In a post on X on Monday, Abubakar alleged that the President Bola Tinubu administration is using a politicised anti-graft agency to coerce opposition figures into defecting to the ruling party.

Peter Obi, 2023 presidential candidate of the Labour Party (LP), said the detention of the senator has opened up an existing contradiction apparent in the fight against corruption in the country.

The African Democratic Congress (ADC) also alleged that EFCC is now a political tool for the current administration.

However, the EFCC in a statement on Tuesday evening, reiterated its commitment to a reinvigorated anti-graft without sparing any sacred cow.

The chairman, Ola Olukoyede, explained that the agency runs a non-partisan mandate, adding that it has been circumspect and dispassionate in the exercise of the mandate.

He insisted that the law would take its course, whether suspects belonged to the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) or the opposition.

“If I am not condemned for investigating both former and serving strong ruling party governors and ministers, I should not be condemned for also investigating opposition figures,” Olukoyede said via a statement by the EFCC Head of Media and Publicity, Dele Oyewale.

The EFCC boss said the investigation and trial of suspects are not time-bound.