EFCC invitation: Mudashiru Obasa opens up

Speaker of the Lagos State House of Assembly, Mudashiru Obasa has opened up on the fraud allegations leveled against him by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).

In a statement issued by his media office shortly after he was released by the EFCC after answering some questions over the allegations, Obasa said he was never detained.

The speaker was invited by the Lagos zonal office of the EFCC on Thursday and he honoured the invitation and was subsequently released. This is the second time in less than a week the EFCC is grilling the speaker over financial misappropriation.

He was also a guest to the EFCC last Friday where he was questioned on the same matter of misappropriation of funds.

A top source at the Lagos State House of Assembly said some lawmakers were giving out information to the EFCC to get him out of the way. The source said the investigation by the EFCC would come to naught as the speaker was not accused of stealing money, but misappropriation of funds.

According to the source, members of the Assembly had perfected all documents relating to expenditures of the Assembly and that the speaker could not be found wanting.

“What is the purpose of money? Is it not to spend? But the question, how did you spend this money? Do you have budgetary provision for the money you are spending? Yes.

“Training, seminar are not part of the budget? Festival and all sorts under which you have parties. They alleged we used N258 to print invitation cards, is that possible? I don’t even think Dangote will ever do such a stupid thing when the total budget for the programme was N61m,” he was quoted to have said.

As a good citizen of Nigeria, a public officer and lawmaker, it was just justified that I honored an invitation by an agency trying to find out some answers relating to some questions. It is normal for the EFCC to invite whoever it deems should be invited. Honouring the invitation simply shows patriotism,” Obasa said in the statement.

The Speaker added that he had returned home and was never detained by the EFCC as was already being speculated.

EFCC’s spokesman, Wilson Uwujaren, had earlier said that Obasa was not arrested but was invited to answer questions and that he was responding to the questions.