The new Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, Ola Olukoyede, will inherit no fewer than 25 high-profile corruption cases involving former governors, ministers, and senators.
Some cases, especially those against ex-governors, have lasted several years. While some are still under investigation, some have spent years in court with no conclusive end to the trials.
Olukoyede was confirmed by the Senate on Wednesday, months after the former commission chairman, Abdulrasheed Bawa, was suspended.
Based on findings according to Punch, the amount at stake in the high-profile cases is not less than N772.2bn and another $2.2bn, is alleged to have gone missing through money laundering, fund diversion, and misappropriation.
Some of the former governors whom the commission has invited for probe include the immediate past governor of Ekiti State, Dr Kayode Fayemi; his predecessor, Ayo Fayose; former governor of Zamfara State and incumbent Minister of State for Defence, Bello Matawalle; and a former governor of Enugu State, Chimaroke Nnamani, among others.
Other lingering cases involving the commission include the former National Security Adviser under ex-President Goodluck Jonathan, Col Sambo Dasuki (retd.), and former Minister of Petroleum Resources, Diezani Alison-Madueke, among others.