We ‘ve Not Suspended Arraignment Of Oil Marketers – EFCC

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC),  says it has not suspended the arraignment of oil marketers indicted in the fuel subsidy scam.

According to EFCC, the clarification became necessary because of a story published in one of the national newspapers, yesterday, suggesting that owing to political pressure, the arraignment had been stopped.

The EFCC said that it was on track with the arraignment of the suspects.

A statement by the commission reads, “the attention of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, (EFCC) has been drawn to a report which appeared in Thisday Newspaper yesterday, August 7th, 2012 with the banner, Subsidy: EFCC Suspends Arraignment of Marketers. The report suggests that the Commission has, following political pressure, suspended further arraignment of oil marketing companies and their directors suspected to have been involved in the fuel subsidy scam. The Commission views the suggestion as a distasteful misrepresentation of the reality on ground.

“The true position is that there is no untoward pressure on the EFCC to charge or suspend the charging of any suspect to court.

“Secondly, the fact that the Commission has not taken any accused person to court in the past few days is simply because the courts have all gone on break and EFCC can only take matters before open courts.

“It must be restated however, that, before the first batch of suspects were charged two weeks ago, the Commission had announced that the arraignment of suspects involved in the subsidy fraud shall be at intervals.  That format was chosen given the number of organisations and individuals involved in the on-going investigation.

“After the first batch of suspects (20 in all) were arraigned, the courts went on recess. When they resume, the Commission would certainly continue with the prosecution of the first batch and arraignment of the next set of oil subsidy scam suspects.”