House of Representatives order Magu’s Arrest over Patience Jonathan’s accounts

The case between the former First Lady, Patience Jonathan and the Acting Chairman of the Economic and Financial Commission (EFCC), Mr. Ibrahim Magu, has taken another dimension, as the House of Representatives on Wednesday issued a warrant arrest against the anti-graft boss.

The House of Representatives Committee on Public Petitions, which issued the warrant, said that it was prompted by the repeated failure of Magu to appear and explain why some bank accounts belonging to Mrs. Jonathan were still frozen on the orders of the commission.

The committee is investigating a petition by Mrs. Jonathan over alleged harassment by EFCC and some other federal agencies, during which it was informed by the affected banks that “precautionary restrictions” were put on accounts belonging to Mrs. Jonathan, her siblings, parents and companies, based on the directive of the EFCC, a development that prompted the committee to summon Magu.

The committee, which explained that it is not questioning the powers of the EFCC to direct restrictions where it is investigating, but is concerned that such investigations have lasted for close to two years, a period for which access to the accounts had been denied the owners.

Counsel to Mrs. Jonathan told the committee that the banks acted based on a mere letter from the EFCC.

He said: “Let me say that a mere letter from EFCC, asking them to freeze an account without any court order is illegal. Let the banks understand the law clearly.

“As we speak, there’s no court order restricting the accounts. It’s unjust for the EFCC and the banks to restrict the accounts of her relatives just like that for two years. For how long will this continue?”

The EFCC’s repeated failure to appear and present its own side of the story prompted a member of the Panel, Hon. Kingsley Chinda, to move a motion that a warrant of arrest be issued against the Commission’s Chairman, Magu, adding, “last time I applied that a bench warrant be issued against the Chairman of EFCC. We asked them to come on several occasions but there’s not even a response from them.

“This country is ruled by law, and they must operate within the law. Mr. Chairman, I’ll apply again that we issue a bench warrant against the EFCC chairman. If the EFCC feels that they’re above the law, they’re not. If they had appeared, the House would have been done with this matter.”

The House has, however, fixed November to determine the case and Magu is therefore, expected to appear before the committee on that day.

The affected banks have further been directed to however filter off all bank accounts that had no caveat from the courts, and release them.