President Bola Tinubu-appointed Special Investigator, Jim Obazee, has been
receiving fresh death threats from anonymous callers, it was learnt, as probe into the alleged illegal foreign exchange deals and money laundering running to a $3.4billion allegedly perpetrated by the Dangote Group in the past 10 years deepens.
The probe was launched shortly after the new administration of President Tinubu was inaugurated.
The Daily Crucible learnt that earlier investigations revealed that Obazee and members of his household have been getting death threats from some anonymous vested interests, including members of the powerful Aso Rock cabal since he was assigned the delicate task.
But the threat to his life, family and committee members heightened in the last few days that the investigation into latest petition against the Dangote Group began in earnest. The death threats, it was learnt, had been coming through direct calls to their phones and SMS messages.
The anonymous callers, sources say, have been demanding that Obazee and members of his team look away from the allegations against the private conglomerate and other high profile cases.
It was gathered that Obazee, members of his investigating committee and even family members have in the past few days continued to receive fresh death threats from these anonymous callers, asking them to immediately stop the ongoing probe by the Obazee-led panel or risk losing their lives and those of their loved ones.
They were also said to have boasted about plans to “handsomely” induce Presidency and other senior Federal Government officials with “irresistible bribes” to influence the stoppage of the ongoing investigations by Obazee and his team.
Presidency cabal, prominent Nigerians, business moguls and some top aides of the President, it was learnt, have since Obazee’s appointment been making efforts to either blackmail him or induce him financially to compromise his investigations of some high profile cases. But the Special Investigator, it was learnt, has continued to resist them by blocking all avenues through which they can reach him.
Obazee’s “obstinacy and stubbornness” have been creating fears in the minds of top officials of some Federal Government agencies and those of several other GBEs, as well as some highly placed Nigerians on the ongoing probe of the apex bank and the GBEs. They are said to have been reaching out to powerful politicians in the Presidency to save them and their organisations from being exposed by the Special Investigator.
But having failed in their bid to intimidate and blackmail Obazee to submission, it was gathered that some Presidency officials, who had allegedly collected huge sums of money from some of those being investigated by Obazee with the promise to ensure the Special Investigator is stopped from further probing them, have lately been cooking up a narrative to discredit Obazee before President Tinubu.
According to impeccable sources, the Aso Rock cabal recently deliberately started to spread a rumour that that Obazee had got N8billion largesse from the embattled ex-CBN Governor, Emefiele, through a serving Senator From one of the South-East states.
This rumour, it was learnt, is aimed at threatening the Special Investigator to back down on the high profile cases of corruption he’s currently handling or giving those they had collected bribes from a clean bill of health to eventually get them off the hook.
But since the Special Investigator is not yielding to their pressures and demands, while it has also become practically impossible for them to refund the money collected as bribes, the cabal and other powerful persons have resorted to bringing down Obazee and members of his team at all cost and influence the President to disband the committee in order to cover up their misdeeds.
They intend to put this together and package same as a report they’ll send to President Tinubu with the ultimate aim of getting him to disband the Obazee-led investigating team.
All these are being done to ensure that the Special Investigator does not eventually submit his full reports, which President Tinubu promised during his maiden Independence Day broadcast on October 1, 2023.
Interestingly, the Special Investigator team’s work has been applauded by even the international community.
Sources had told First News that the humongous frauds allegedly perpetrated under the immediate past CBN governor, Emefiele, in many of these GBEs, which are now already being unearthed by the Obazee-led Committee would shock Nigerians to their bone marrows.
The Special Investigator has recently traced about N8trillion of the funds looted from the vaults of the CBN and the Government Business Entities (GBEs) to various bank accounts operated by some individuals and private business organisations.
According to impeccable sources, this and other revelations are contained in the preliminary report already submitted by the Special Investigator to President Tinubu.
About N400trillion looted from the CBN is expected to be recovered by the Obazee-led team of investigators.
However, the alleged illegal forex deals by the Dangote Group, it was gathered, was allegedly perpetrated by the company with the active connivance of the Central Bank of Nigeria under sacked governor Godwin Emefiele and some major commercial banks in the country (names withheld).
CBN under Emefiele and the commercial banks, it was learnt, had been aiding the Dangote Group to repatriate proceeds from its illegal forex deals amounting to $3.4 billion out of the country to personal accounts abroad in the past 10 years.
The Special Investigator’s launch of the probe of the Dangote Group, on Sunday, followed a petition received by the panel from a concerned Nigerian and social justice advocate, Ahmed Fahad against the Dangote Group on how the Emefiele-led CBN and some commercial banks illegally transferred a whopping $3.4billion to the private company in the past 10 years.
Fahad, it was learnt, had actually petitioned President Tinubu in August 2023 against the Dangote Group over the illegal forex deals and money laundering, but the President was said to have direct his Special Investigator to look into the allegations against the private company.
The activist had in his petition to Tinubu, which he also copied the Special Investigator, accused the Dangote Group of “gross financial misconduct and illegality,” alleging that the flagrant abuse of the CBN forex guidelines by the private conglomerate had been going on in the past 10 years.
The petition partly reads, “This brazen illegality involves a shocking violation of CBN guidelines causing a USD3.4billion diversion from Nigeria’s national treasury at rates between 150 – 200 USD when the parallel exchange rate was more than double that. This insidious financial manoeuvering still threatens the very stability of our country’s economy even today.
“Astoundingly, this flagrant siphoning was carried out using Form A instead of the legal route through Form M, which is tantamount to a gross violation of the law as it offers no financial returns to our country. The barefaced audacity of these financial transgressors is further displayed by several implicated banks which have audaciously sanctioned millions of dollars at CBN rate to the Dangote Group in direct violation of CBN’s instructions to source funds from the parallel or interbank market.
“These unscrupulous actions facilitated the illegal transfer of funds for supposed foreign investments, including the supposed construction of factories in countries like Congo and Liberia. These funds were moved out of Nigeria with the alleged unlawful aim of industrial developments in other nations, while our own country was left bereft of these much-needed investments.
“More worryingly, there are several instances such as in Liberia, where promised factories were never built. The siphoned funds were, instead, reportedly transferred to Dangote’s accounts abroad, thereby exploiting Form A for illicit cash movements that cannot be reclaimed by our country.
“It must be highlighted that the approvals sought from the CBN clearly stated that money sought by Dangote must be bought from the interbank market – which means money outside the CBN. However, the funds were bought and transferred from the national treasury with the CBN, which was illegal. On a continued basis over the years and contrary to the approvals, Emefiele’s CBN continued illegally supplying money from Nigeria’s treasury at cheaper rates to Dangote Group (see some evidence attached). This is an illegality that must be righted.
“For instance, in 2015, Form A number AA2541751was used to transfer over 341million through telegraphic transfer (ECOBANK) in contravention of CBN directive to use interbank funds only for the Dangote project in Cameroon whilst on February 12,2016, Form A number AA2649626 was used to transfer over 420million for spare parts in Congo, also in contravention of the CBN directive.
“To further highlight the brazenness of these actions, it recently came to light that the suspended CBN governor, Godwin Emefiele had borrowed USD1billion from Afrexim Bank in the second quarter of 2023, USD750million of which was illegally funnelled to Dangote at a concessionary rate. These funds were subsequently transferred to Dangote’s accounts abroad just as previously done in the past.
“Your Excellency, as the beacon of hope for our nation’s financial integrity, your swift action is desperately needed to rectify these glaring injustices. We implore you to order a comprehensive and immediate investigation into these flagrant violations of our financial laws.
“We call upon you to ensure these stolen funds are returned and used for the betterment of our nation under your committed administration. This enforcement is essential not just to deter future violations but also to underscore the ethos of accountability and transparency that your administration represents. We enjoin you to direct the EFCC, ICPC, DSS and other relevant security agencies to investigate these illegal acts against our economy and ensure these funds are returned.
“The time for a new era has come – an era where the rule of law supercedes illicit privileges and economic justice becomes our national cornerstone. By addressing these issues decisively, you will send a powerful message that corruption in all its forms will no longer be tolerated in our country.”
Meanwhile, an anti-corruption group, Coalition for Transparency and Economic Reforms (COTER) has warned all those involved in the moves to blackmail and stop the Special Investigator from doing his job to desist immediately or face the wrath of Nigerians.
COTER also called on President Tinubu to fish out those bent on tarnishing his image and that of the Nigerian nation.
It also appealed to President Tinubu to give the Obazee-led team all the necessary support to enable it to succeed in its assigned task.
COTER President, Dr Peter Chima Chukwu, wondered why some corrupt Nigerians should be hell-bent on stopping the good job being done by the Special Investigator and members of his team in stopping this socio-economic vice and other financial malfeasance in the country.
He, therefore, urged the Special Investigator and his team not to cave in to blackmail from any quarter, no matter how highly placed.
Chukwu further urged the Special Investigator to forge ahead as his name and integrity are at stake.
“Nigerians and the entire world are watching as the Committee is being considered as one of the positive decisions the President has taken so far. And this has greatly improved the image of the country and government,” he said.
