Chris Ngige, the former Minister of Labour, is currently in the custody of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC). This update was confirmed by Fred Chukwuelobe, the ex-Minister’s media aide, on Thursday morning.
Chukwuelobe addressed circulating reports suggesting that Ngige, who previously served as governor of Anambra, had been abducted. He stated, “I have been receiving calls in the past hour from friends and journalists seeking the veracity of the news making the rounds that His Excellency, Dr. Chris Ngige, former governor of Anambra state and immediate past minister of labour and employment, ‘has been kidnapped. Ngige is with the EFCC. He was not ‘abducted’ or ‘kidnapped’,” he posted on Facebook.
As of the time of this report, it remains unclear why the agency has detained Ngige, as the EFCC has yet to respond to the situation.
Ngige is the second ex-minister from former President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration to be detained by the EFCC recently. Abubakar Malami, the former Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, is also in custody.
Malami disclosed that he is being investigated regarding the recovery of the “Abacha loot.” He stated, “The EFCC informed me that its inquiry relates to an alleged duplication in the recovery of the $310 million Abacha loot, which by accrual of interest rose to about $322.5 million at the time I eventually succeeded in recovering the funds for the federal government. Two allegations were majorly raised, namely; abuse of office and money laundering.”
However, he described the allegations as baseless, illogical, and wholly devoid of substance, asserting that they would collapse when subjected to facts and elementary logic.
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