By Vivian Okejeme
Abuja
The Attorney General of Federation (AGF) and three others have been dragged to the Federal High Court, Abuja, by three persons claiming to be the genuine whistleblowers that gave information that led to the recovery of about N13billion that was stashed at Flat 7 Osborne Towers, Ikoyi, Lagos state.
In the suit marked FHC/ABJ/CS/1158/2017, dated November 22, the plaintiffs are asking the court to stop the federal government from paying the 5 per cent whistle-blowing fee to no person but to them.
Also, they are insisting that they were the ones that had sometime in December 2016, notified the Lagos office of the EFCC about the recovered loot which the National Intelligence Agency (NIA) subsequently claimed it kept in the Ikoyi apartment for “covert operations”.
The plaintiffs in the matter are Abdulmumin Musa, Mr Stephen Sunday and Mr Bala Usman.
Other defendants are Federal Ministry of Finance, and the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
The plaintiffs added that they were surprised when the EFCC announced that it was on the verge of paying 5 per cent commission on the recovered money to another whistle-blower.
The plaintiffs, through their lawyer, Hammart and Co. (Tafida Chambers), wrote separate letters to the AGF and the Minister of Finance, Mr. Kemi Adeosun, accusing EFCC of attempting to short-change them by bringing people that were not original whistleblowers on the Ikoyi loot.
In their petition dated August 24, which was received by the Office of AGF on September 8, the plaintiffs insisted that the people EFCC claimed it was relating with over the 5 per cent commission were not the arrowhead of the whistle-blowing.
It reads “Our clients informed us sometime in December 2016 that three (3) of them voluntarily walked into the office of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission(EFCC) at 15A Awolowo Road Ikoyi, Lagosand gave vital information that led to the recovery of over N13 billion at the Ikoyi Towers, Lagos.
“That when the operation was carried out, it was successful but since then they have not received any commendation by the commission, let alone give any reward as stated even though the EFCC have their names and phone numbers”.
The petitioners said, rather than do the needful, some of the EFCC staff told them that they were not the only people that supplied information on the Ikoyi Tower, though they declined to disclose identities of the other purported whistle-blowers.
Meanwhile, in their suit, the plaintiffs are among other things, praying the court to declare that FG represented by the AGF and the Federal Ministry of Finance, as well as the EFCC, “are bound to comply with the whistleblowers Executive Policy or whistleblowers Executive Order to pay 2.5 per cent-5p per cent of whistle blowing fees or percentage as issued by the federal government of Nigeria.
No judge has been assigned for the hearing of the suit.
