It was gathered that the anti-graft agency earlier this week quizzed some legislators in Lagos over the reported stealing of public funds by Obasa and his cronies in the parliament
The doctoring of vital documents that has to do with approvals of funds for various purposes in the Lagos State House of Assembly has begun on the orders of Speaker of the parliament, Mudashiru Obasa.
According to findings by SaharaReporters, the alteration of key documents was being done through the Clerk of the Assembly as the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission begins its investigation into allegations of misappropriation of public funds by Obasa and other leaders of the parliament.
SaharaReporters in a series of well detailed reports backed with relevant documents had exposed how Obasa through different guises signed off various sums of money for himself and close allies in the Lagos Assembly.
In one of such reports, the online news medium exposed how Obasa operated over 64 bank accounts using different names to steal public funds.
The BVN: 2296663231, reveals that Obasa operates accounts with multiple names in Polaris Bank, Zenith Bank, Access Bank, Eco Bank Nigeria, Stanbic IBTC Bank, Guaranty Trust Bank, United Bank for Africa, First City Monument Bank and Wema Bank.
To conceal his identity, the Speaker changed his name and date of birth in some of the accounts.[story_link align="left"]81203[/story_link]
Aside from using Ajayi Mudashiru Obasa, he also used Obasa Abdulrahman Gbadunola and Gabriel Adedoyin Savage to register some of the bank accounts.
SaharaReporters had exposed how Obasa awarded contracts to himself using different companies owned by him and how he got the Assembly to approve N258m for printing of invitation cards for the inauguration of lawmakers two months after the event held.
Other reports also revealed how he approved N17m monthly to maintain his personal residence and guest house, and N53m from the state coffers to travel with his mistress to the United States of America.
It was also revealed that 19 lawmakers led by Obasa went for a women leadership programme and received N80m as estacode after returning from the programme.
Following the plethora of allegations against him and the demand by several civil society groups calling for an investigation into the scandal, the EFCC recently launched a probe on the matter especially after the public rejected the sham investigation carried out by the Lagos Assembly members to let Obasa off the hook.
Responding to calls for a probe last week, Zonal Head of the EFCC, Mohammed Rabo, disclosed that they will ensure all allegations against the Lagos Assembly Speaker were looked into with the aim of bringing him to justice if found culpable of financial misappropriation.[story_link align="left"]81186[/story_link]
It was gathered that the anti-graft agency earlier this week quizzed some legislators in Lagos over the reported stealing of public funds by Obasa and his cronies in the parliament while some more members will appear before interrogators next week.
SaharaReporters gathered on Friday that the development has since sent panic across the camp of the Lagos Speaker, who is desperate to conceal any evidence available in order to save his political career.
“The Clerk’s office has become like Oluwole where documents are forged and altered in different forms.[story_link align="left"]81756[/story_link]
“Obasa and other principal lawmakers have been daily seeing to the alteration of financial records all in a bid to escape being realised by the EFCC. They are in serious panic because they fear that once the EFCC nails them for all the financial fraud that had been reported, it could mean the end of their political careers,” a source in the Assembly told SaharaReporters on Friday.
The leadership of the All Progressives Congress in Lagos and at the national level is believed to have given an express order to Obasa to clear his name or risk losing his position in the Assembly and party in general.
Desperate to meet that target, the Lagos Speaker is doing everything within his powers to ensure that he doesn’t go down with this scandal.