By Ken Afor
The Kogi state government has reacted to the amended charges filed by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) against the immediate past governor of the state, Yahaya Bello, and two others over an alleged diversion of N100 billion belonging to the state government in September 2015.
The state government described the charges as false, frivolous, fictitious, and far from the truth.
The New Diplomat reports that the anti-graft agency, in its amended charges filed before Justice James Omotosho, had alleged that the former governor conspired with the current Chief of Staff to the Kogi Governor, Alli Bello, and one Daudu Suleiman, to divert the funds months before he assumed office as the governor of the state.
However, in a statement released on Friday by the state Commissioner for Information, Kingsley Fanwo, the state government attributed the amended charges to the work of some “political actors around the presidency” aiming to tarnish the former governor’s image.
According to the Commissioner, the aim was to sensationalize the situation and ignite a media campaign against the immediate past governor and other government officials.
He called on President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to set up a special investigation into the anti-graft agency’s operations within the state, emphasizing the state’s commitment to transparency, accountability, and integrity, consistent with practices since 2016.
He said: “We believe that this ignoble agenda is unknown to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu who trusted those people with power with the hope that they will use it judiciously for the greatness of our nation. Unfortunately, they have decided to use the privileges given to them as tools for political vendetta
“The amended charges in which the name of the former governor was mentioned are false, frivolous, fictitious and far from the truth. They are cooked-up charges that signpost their desperation to call a dog a bad name in order to hang it. The intention was to sensationalise the whole scenario and promote a media war against the former governor and other officials of government.
“We have seen how low EFCC and its paymasters can go in order to pander to the political agenda of those afraid of the rising profile of Alh. Yahaya Bello,” the statement read in part.
