One of the campaign managers of Jonathan’s re-election campaign said the National Intelligence Agency was aware of the alleged diversion of funds from the CBN.
This revelation came in just as the Director of Finance of the Goodluck Jonathan Campaign Organisation, Senator Nenadi Usman, returned N23m to the Federal Government.
It was reported that N4bn was transferred from the account of the CBN into a mysterious account known as the Ministry of External Affairs Library before it was moved to an account known as Joint Trust Dimensions Nigeria Limited which is controlled by Usman.
However, the source said the account was set up by the NIA, which is under the Office of the National Security Adviser.
It was learnt that some officials of the NIA had been quizzed by the EFCC to explain why the account was set up.
A reliable source said, “During the build-up to the last elections, when monies were going to be diverted from the account of the CBN, the Ministry of External Affairs Library was set up with the connivance of officials of the NIA. It was done so that the transaction would seem as if the money was being transferred to a Federal Government account and it would not raise any red flags. The Permanent Secretary at the Villa then drew up a memo on the instructions of the President and the CBN deposited the funds into the account of the Ministry of External Affairs.
“From there, the money was paid into Joint Trust Dimensions Nigeria Limited, from where monies were sent to all stakeholders during the electioneering. Preliminary investigations however suggest that the Ministry of External Affairs Library does not even exist.”
From the Ministry of External Affairs Library, N2.5bn was transferred to Joint Trust Dimensions Nigeria Limited while N140m cash was allegedly paid into her Zenith Bank Account with number, 1000158311, domiciled on 7, Kachia Road, Kaduna.
In a related development, security experts have called for investigation into the alleged diversion of N4bn through the NIA.
A former Lagos State Commissioner of Police, Alhaji Abubakar Tsav, said if it was true that the agency was used for money laundering, this means it had lost credibility.
“If they are using NIA for money laundering, it means it has lost credibility. If it was being used for money laundering, a crime against the nation, this means that NIA has totally lost credibility.”
Another security analyst, Max Gbanite, said it was unlawful for politicians to use an intelligence agency to divert public funds, adding that officers involved in the alleged crime should be interrogated and made to explain what transpired. “Politicians have been embezzling money before now, but if politicians used the NIA to divert money, it is criminal and the officers in the agency need to be interrogated,” Gbanite said.
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