Wife of former Nigerian president Goodluck Jonathan, Patience Jonathan has appealed to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to unfreeze her bank account as it is from it she pays for her medical expenses.
She made the plea in a letter to EFCC chairman, Ibrahim Magu, concerning the account in which $31.4m was found.
The former First Lady previously filed a suit against the anti-graft agency after the account linked to her was frozen, after it was identified as being involved in a fraud case before a Federal High Court in Lagos.
Amajuoyi Azubike Briggs; who was an Aide for ex-president Jonathan, former Skye Bank official Damola Bolodeoku, Pluto Property and Investment Company Limited, and Avalon Global Property Development Company Limited had all been charged to court over their individual involvement in fraudulent activities with companies without address.
In a letter through her lawyer, Patience Jonathan explained to Magu that she was a law-abiding citizen and used the account to pay for her medical bills and personal expenses.
‘It is noteworthy to emphasise that the said accounts, which were in US dollar denomination, were card-based accounts and our client is the sole signatory to these accounts. Our client has been operating the said accounts using the cards for her medical bill payments and purchases for her private purposes without any let or hindrance.’
‘Our client was therefore surprised when the said cards stop functioning on July 7, 2016, or thereabout. Our client immediately, thereupon, contacted Skye Bank Plc through our solicitors. ‘It was only then that the bank officials informed our client that the said accounts were placed on a ‘No Debit Order’ following investigations and instruction from your commission and this is without notice to our client by either the bank or the commission.’
‘It is in the light of the foregoing that we urge you to use your good offices to vacate the ‘No Debit/Freezing Order’ placed on the said accounts.’
‘Despite the foregoing, our client, who is a law-abiding citizen, has watched with surprise how efforts are being made surreptitiously to indirectly harass or harangue her and short-change her of her personal funds in breach of her fundamental human rights. We urge you sir, to kindly intervene to stop the untoward and wrongful actions of your officials to embarrass, inconvenience and short-change our client.’
An EFCC source said: ‘What we have noticed is that in order to conceal funds, what politicians and top civil servants do is to open bank accounts in the name of family or friends and then make themselves the sole signatory to the account. Don’t forget that we traced about 17 bank accounts to the immediate past Chief of Defence Staff, Air Chief Marshal Alex Badeh (retd.).
‘Often times, they do this in connivance with bank officials and that is why the EFCC Chairman, Mr. Ibrahim Magu, has said henceforth, whenever we are investigating a bank official, we will probe the entire bank as well because these officials usually act under the instruction of their superiors.’
