The controversy trailing the seizure of $15 million from former Delta State Governor, James Ibori, deepened yesterday as a man, who claimed to be an oil magnate, Chibuike Achigbu, told a Federal High Court in Abuja that the money belongs to him.
Ibori, who was jailed by a London Court this year, for money laundering, was believed to have given the money as a bribe to a former Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Mallam Nuhu Ribadu, when the ex-governor was being investigated by the anti-graft agency.
Ribadu’s successor, Ibrahim Lamorde, confirmed that the money had been deposited with the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).
However, in an application filed on behalf of Achigbu by 10 lawyers yesterday, three of whom are Senior Advocates of Nigeria (SANs), Achigbu claimed he gave the money to Dr. Andy Uba, a former aide to former President Olusegun Obasanjo, for the purpose of financing the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the 2007 general election.
Achigbu said that he first sought legal advice on whether he could raise money to support the PDP and its candidates during the polls.
The applicant told the court that he set a target of N3 billion, which he intended to raise through himself and his associates.
However, by April 2007, just before the elections, he had raised money in excess of N2 billion, after which he realised that such donations could only be made and accepted through a financial institution.
He said that Uba allegedly advised him to deliver the fund to him (Uba) for onward transfer to the EFCC, being the agency of the Federal Government sufficiently equipped to give a clean bill of legitimacy to the fund before it could be donated to PDP.
In an affidavit he filed in support of the application, Achigbu said: “Andy Uba was a Special Assistant in the Presidency who offered to take custody of the fund with a view to inviting EFCC to carry out the audit and certification before being donated to the PDP.”
The SANs hired by Achigbu are Chiefs Adeniyi Akintola, Okey Amaechi and Abiodun Owonikoko.
Achigbu said that after he had allegedly delivered the money to Uba, he heard rumours about an attempt by Ibori to bribe the chairman of the EFCC.
He said that since he had nothing to do with Ibori, the rumour did not strike him as having any bearing with the fund he allegedly delivered to Uba for clearance by the EFCC.
He explained that due to Uba’s ambition to become the governor of Anambra State then, he was not able to reach him to seek an update regarding the fund.
He said: “That it was not until several months after Uba’s election was voided at the Supreme Court that he succeeded in making contact with him.
“That Uba, in a telephone conversation he had with him sometimes in the early part of 2008, confirmed that as agreed, he did invite the EFCC to take custody of the purported unclaimed fund and revert on their investigations about its suitability for the purpose that the fund was intended.”
Achigbu said that he, however, did not believe Uba and suspected that he (Uba) had allegedly diverted the money to fund his campaign.
Achigbu said that he chose not to pursue the case any further because he believed that God had sufficiently avenged Uba’s alleged betrayal when his election funded with the money was voided by the Supreme Court, less than a month into his tenure in June 2007.
He said that since then, he and Uba had become estranged.
However, on the night of August 27, 2012, Achigbu said received a call from Uba informing him about the latest development concerning the $15 million and that the money in question was the same fund he collected from him.
He added in the affidavit: “That Uba specifically confirmed to him that it was Ibrahim Lamorde, the then Director of Operations of EFCC, that was specifically instructed to receive the money from him (Uba) on April 25, 2007.”
Achigbu said that Uba had also allegedly agreed to depose to an affidavit to own up to the facts deposed to in his application.
The Delta State Government has since sued the Federal Government, claiming ownership of the money.