Embattled former chairman of the Presidential Task Force on Pension Reforms, Mr Abdulrasheed Maina, has appealed to President Muhammadu Buhari to give him an opportunity to prove his innocence, claiming that the President was being deceived by the people who surround him.
In an interview with Channels Television which aired during News At 10 on Monday, Mr Maina insisted that he was innocent of the allegations preferred against him.
“Thank God our President stands for the truth, the unfortunate thing is that some people around him whom he has given trust are lying to him; this one I can attest to and I can give you instances, I can give you documentary evidence,” Maina said.
“I’m appealing to you Mr President, there are so many things people are not telling you; when I get to that public hearing I will tell you some things that nobody ever told you Mr President because I never had the opportunity to sit down with you.”
The reinstatement of the former pension boss had sparked criticism and controversy from Nigerians after he was declared wanted by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) in 2015.
While the anti-graft agency said it was working tirelessly to arrest Maina, President Buhari had ordered his immediate dismissal from the Federal Civil Service.
Meanwhile, more reactions and revelation have continued to trail the controversy, with the Presidency saying at least 66 accounts were used in pension fraud associated transactions.
Maina who denied any involvement in pension fraud, however, said his team recovered about N282billion cash for the government and that his life was in danger.
He said he was ready to prove to the President that he was innocent of the allegations against him by recovering N1trillion in three months if given the opportunity.
“I recovered money for the last administration and I recovered money for this administration. Most people may not understand this but let me explain this to Nigerians because I want the truth to be told and I want Nigerians to understand the truth and know what is going on in Nigeria.
“Listen, I am not afraid of anybody, I am saying the truth. People portray themselves as if they are saints around the President; it’s a lie, they are not. We recovered as a team, N282billion cash. Aside from the N282bn, we were able to bring information and caught 43 pension suspects.
“They have threatened me, they have threatened my lawyer, they have threatened my brother, sister; they have threatened us all that I will be killed.
“Mr President, I will give you information and documents that will fetch you over N3trillion now in Nigeria, give me nine months. Within the first three months, I will show you N1trillion just like I showed you N1trillion in this 2017,” he said.