EFCC detains sacked ex-SGF Babachir Lawal

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has arrested the sacked former Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF) Babachir Lawal and he is currently being detained by the agency.

The arrest of Lawal might not be unconnected with the letter from former President Olusegun Obasanjo who accused President Muhammadu Buhari of shielding his corrupt allies.

A reliable source close to the agency told The Daily Times last night that Lawal arrived at the EFCC’s headquarters in Abuja at about 11am while he was quizzed by the operatives of the commission.

The source added that the sacked ex-SGF would definitely spend the night in the EFCC’s office as his interview with the operatives would continue at about 11am today.

Lawal’s issue took the centre stage on December 14, 2016, when the Senate ad-hoc committee on ‘mounting humanitarian crisis in the north-east’ indicted him of fraud in a contract awarded for the clearing of “invasive plant species” in Yobe state, through the Presidential Initiative on Northeast (PINE).

PINE, which was under ex- SGF was unable to account for N2.5 billion allocated to it for the alleviation of the IDPs’ suffering.

The Senate ad-hoc committee had accused him of alleged spending of N570m to cut grass.
A firm, Rholavision Engineering Ltd, said to be owned by him, was also said to have got suspicious payments of N200m from the contract.

Buhari had sacked Lawal in October while the Presidency stated that anti-graft agencies were expected go after him

Tunde Opalana, Abuja