Stop scandalizing my name, I did not collect money from Dasuki – Secondus writes EFCC

The National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Prince Uche Secondus, has written the Acting Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission EFCC, Alhaji Ibrahim Magu for being accused of collecting money from the former National Security Adviser, Col Sambo Dasuki rtd.

Prince Secondus through his lawyer, Emeka Etiaba, SAN, in a letter REF NO: EESE&C/02/03/05/1 and dated 3rd May, 2018 titled “Re: Mention of Prince Uche Secondus on the list of Looters of Nigeria Economy” and copied to the Minister of Justice and Attorney General of the Federation as well some Foreign Missions in Nigeria, insisted that he never collected or sent anybody to collect money on his behalf at any time from the former National Security Adviser.

In a statement from his media Adviser, Ike Abonyi, Secondus feared that the continued listing of his name might be a deliberate ploy by the anti-graft agency to implicate him in a desperate attempt by the ruling APC to suppress him and equally dent the credibility of the PDP.

The letter also reminded the EFCC that the issue concerning Secondus was already in court and wondered why the commission should not approach the court with its evidence if any than continuously indulging in the media trial.

The attention of EFCC was drawn to the suit before the Chief Judge of Rivers state in Port Harcourt where an interlocutory order was granted against the defendants and same restrained them from further publishing the name of Secondus.

The letter also drew the attention of the commission to the injunction order published in the dailies as ordered by the court a copy of which was attached to the letter to the commission.

“The said publication by the Minister has become a subjectmatter of Suit No: PHC/1013/2018 in Prince Uche Secondus Vs. Alhaji Lai Mohammed, Federal Government of Nigeria and Vintage Press Limited (publishers of The Nation Newspapers). The above Suit is pending at Court 1, High Court of Rivers State, Holden in Port Harcourt, Rivers State and same has been adjourned to the 28th May, 2018 for hearing”

“Having regard to the fact that the subject matter has become subjudice and having drawn the attention of the Commission to the facts contained in this letter, it is our hope that the subsisting Order of Court should be obeyed and if the Commission has evidence of collection of money from the office of the National Security Adviser by Our Client, (as an Agency of the Federal Government which is the 2nd Defendant in Suit No: PHC/1013/2018), the Commission should avail such information to the Federal Government for its defence of the Suit.

“Our Client wishes for the umpteenth time to state that he neither collected money from the office of the National Security Adviser nor instructed anybody to collect money on his behalf. He also wishes to state that he never had a Special Assistant by name Chukwurah who is being touted as the one that collected the sum of ₦200,000,000.00 (Two Hundred Million Naira) on his behalf.

 “Our Client hopes that the ongoing scandalization of his name is not a ploy by the Commission to give effect to the desperate attempt by the federal government to intimidate him and destroy his credibility and that of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) as well as other opposition leaders as the general elections approach in the pretext of war against corruption,” he wrote.