On Wednesday, Musiliu Obanikoro, a former minister of state for defence, informed Justice Nnamdi Dimgba of the Federal High Court in Abuja that N1.219 billion in cash had been airlifted to Ayodele Fayose, the former governor of Ekiti State, in preparation for the state’s 2014 governorship election.
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) is putting Fayose and his company, Spotless Investment Limited, on trial for their alleged roles in the N6.9 billion money laundering scheme.
When Wahab Shittu (SAN), the prosecution’s attorney, asked Obanikoro to clarify the source of the aforementioned sum of money, the former minister claimed he had no idea where the money came from and that Col. Sambo Dasuki (retd.), the former National Security Adviser (NSA), was the only source of information for him.
The former minister clarified in a statement released by the anti-graft agency on Wednesday that he was informed by the former NSA that the aforementioned funds had been deposited into Sylvan Mcnamara Ltd.’s account.
During his court appearance, Obanikoro stated, “In 2014, I served as a minister under Jonathan’s administration.” We were going to have elections in Ekiti State at some point in 2014. I was put in charge of organising all of the election-related activities.
“I remember that before the election, we had some activities, one of which was fundraising for that election,” said Governor Fayose, who called me a few days before the polls to inquire if I had received any messages for him from ONSA.
“I told Mr. Fayose I will call him later when he called. I spoke with the NSA over the phone and he promised to get back to me. He then informed me that N2.2 billion had been deposited into Sylvan Mcnamara Ltd.’s account.
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“The NSA provided the funding. I am unable to confirm where the money came from. The origin of the fund can only be explained by the NSA.
“I gave Agbele the N1.219 million cash so that he could deliver it to Fayose.” Contrary to a report by an internet newspaper located in Lagos, I did not accept payment or N19 million.
In response to a question concerning his affiliation with Sylvan Mcnamara Ltd., the former minister said, “Taiwo Kareem opened the account, which was used to disburse funds for elections and addressed the issue of Boko Haram in Lagos.
“I called Fayose to inform her that the money had been received. Since Diamond Bank had stated that it was unable to make the monies available, we decided to airlift the money. Two large airlifts of the money were transported from Lagos.
In response to Shittu’s questions concerning the source and purpose of the monies, Obanikoro said, “It was meant for our election in Ekiti.” The source was Diamond Bank. N1.219 billion of the N2.2 billion was taken out of Diamond Bank.
Obanikoro also told the court that the Ado Ekiti Diamond Bank claimed it lacked the necessary resources. “The aircraft could not hold the monies, so we flew them from Lagos in two tranches. I flew one of the two aircraft that we utilised.
Following that, Justice Dimgba postponed the case until February 27, 2024 in order to continue the trial.
