Senate Majority Leader, Senator Ali Ndume on Monday met with President Muhammadu Buhari to seek ways to save the Acting Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, Ibrahim Magu’s job.
It was learnt that Ndume; the National Security Adviser, Major Gen. Babagana Monguno; and a former Chairman of the EFCC, Mallam Nuhu Ribadu, had been making moves to save Magu by reaching out to the President.
While speaking with the State House correspondents after the meeting with the president on Monday, said there was no truth in the reports that the Senate rejected the nomination of Magu as the EFCC chairman.
He said what the Senate had done was to step down Magu’s screening until issues surrounding the security report concerning him were cleared.
Ndume stated, “Let me say categorically that the Senate did not reject Ibrahim Magu as the chairman (of the EFCC).
“What happened was that we slated his confirmation for Thursday. Then, we had an issue of a letter from the Department of State Services that could not allow us to continue with the confirmation without further clarifications.
“So, we then concluded that since we have a letter that we cannot ignore, we cannot do the confirmation. So, it was not that we sat down to take a decision that we have rejected Ibrahim Magu. I want that to come out clearly.
When reminded that the Senate spokesperson said the Senate rejected Magu and would return the nomination to the President, Ndume said the position was not correct.
“I was part of the persons that wrote the short press statement which stated that the Senate cannot continue with the confirmation. It is different from saying that the Senate has rejected him. In fact, we have referred the other four nominees to the committee,” Ndume said.
The Senate Leader also said the Senate’s investigation into some allegations against the SGF, Lawal, had not been concluded.
The Senate had, last week Wednesday, passed a resolution that Buhari should sack and prosecute the SGF for awarding contracts to a company in which he had substantial interest in certain projects for the Internally Displaced Persons in the North-East.
But Ndume said Lawal’s investigation by the Senate was still in progress.
He said, “It’s not an order we are giving; the Senate resolution is a recommendation, it is not a law.
“What the Senate considered is work in progress because it was an interim report. It is the same public that is interested and worried to know what we have done as a Senate about those allegations.
“The committee issued an interim report and the interim report seemed to indict the SGF. The consequence of that indictment is it recommended; but we are not there yet because the report itself is an interim (report).
“I heard the SGF say that he has not been given a fair hearing. The hearing has not finished. We can give him an ample time to go before the committee and clear himself.”