Human rights lawyer and public affairs analyst, Maxwell Okpara, has called for the arrest of the Chief of Staff to President Bola Tinubu, Femi Gbajabiamila, the Accountant-General of the Federation, Shamseldeen Ogunjimi, and the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation, Esther Walson-Jack, over the alleged fake agency scandal.
Speaking on Arise Television on Tuesday, Okpara argued that no public official is above the law and insisted that all individuals linked to the ongoing investigation should be treated equally by law enforcement agencies.
His comments come after the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) on Monday questioned Gbajabiamila in connection with the alleged scandal.
According to Okpara, the investigation has raised serious concerns over how a non-existent agency allegedly operated within the system.
“An office was given to the fake agency. An account was opened for the fake agency. Somebody acted as a director in the fake agency, and the person claimed that money was paid to some individuals. There are many issues surrounding this investigation,” he said.
He identified the alleged fake director, Adeyemi Adeniyi, who is currently in police custody, as the principal suspect, but maintained that other officials mentioned in the investigation should also be subjected to the same legal process.
“There are other suspects, including Gbajabiamila, the Accountant-General of the Federation, and the Head of Service. All these people should be arrested. You say you invited the Chief of Staff to make a statement, but have they been arrested like the principal suspect?” Okpara queried.
He stressed that none of the officials enjoys constitutional immunity and urged anti-graft agencies to enforce the law without fear or favour.
“Nobody is above the law. None of these persons enjoys immunity. The proper thing to do is to arrest all of them and allow the law to take its course,” he added.
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