The Rivers State Government yesterday denied an alleged withdrawal of N11bn from its account between October 2015 and February 2016.
Reacting to a report that the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) was to investigate the withdrawal of over N11bn by the Wike’s administration, Commissioner for Information and Communication Dr. Austin Tam-George said there was nothing like that.
The “suspicious withdrawals,” according to the report, were made in cash by the Director of Finance and Administration of the state’s Government House, Kingsely Fubara, from the Rivers State Government’s account with the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).
But the commissioner said that Rivers State Government never conducted such transactions.
According to him: “The Rivers State Government has no record of any staff known as KingselyFubara.
“The report also indicated that the Attorney-General of the Federation (AGF) has directed the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to probe these so-called withdrawals.
“Such a directive, if true, would be a manifestly illegal and ridiculous proposition,” he said.
Tam-George also said that “by law, Rivers State Government was accountable to the Rivers State House of Assembly and the people of Rivers State not to the Attorney General of the Federation.”
He further stated: “There is universal concern that the EFCC is playing an extremely corrosive role in the current political dispensation.”