The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has officially declared former Minister of Power and Steel, Olu Agunloye, as wanted due to alleged involvement in a $6 billion fraud.
The EFCC stated, “Dr. Olu Agunloye is wanted by the EFCC. If You know his whereabouts? Please don’t hesitate to inform the EFCC or the nearest Police Station.”
In a statement on its verified Facebook page, the anti-graft agency called on Nigerians to provide information on Agunloye’s whereabouts to either the EFCC or the nearest police station.
Recall that former President Olusegun Obasanjo had accused Agunloye of mismanaging a power project during his tenure from 1999 to 2003, alleging fraudulent awarding of contracts without Federal Executive Council approval.
Obasanjo challenged Agunloye to tell Nigerians where he derived the authority to award a $6 billion contract to Sunrise Power and Transmission Ltd in respect of the project in 2003.
Agunloye defended the nature of the initial contract for the Mambilla Power Project, stating it was a Build, Operate, and Transfer contract awarded in 2003, and that the government wasn’t obligated to pay a kobo for it under the agreement as it was to be fully funded by the newly registered company, whose declared assets were worth less than $2,000 at the time.
However, Agunloye refrained from addressing the authorization for a $6 billion project, as claimed by Obasanjo, given that ministers were not empowered to approve amounts exceeding N25 million during his presidency.
Ada Peter
