Disregard fake news on Atiku’s arraignment – EFCC

Seun Adeyeye 12:38 - 11 January 2020

Atiku 1

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has urged the public to ignore online publications speculating that the commission had arraigned former vice president Atiku Abubakar over alleged fraud of N75.3 billion.

In a statement on Friday, January 10, 2020, Mr Tony Orilade, the commission’s acting spokesperson dismissed the report of Atiku’s alleged arraignment before Justice Mojisola Dada of the Special Offences Court, Ikeja, Lagos, as fake.

“The attention of the commission has been drawn to an online report which claimed that the commission on Thursday, January 9, 2020, arraigned former Vice President Atiku Abubakar.

“We wish to state categorically that nothing of such took place.

“The Commission also wishes to state that no statement or press release emanated from the spokesperson of the Commission, Mr Wilson Uwujaren, to that effect as claimed in the report.

“Nor was there any involvement of any sort from the Commission’s prosecutor, Joy Amahian, in the imaginary arraignment.

ALSO READ: APC to Atiku: ‘Return stolen resources and apologise to Nigerians’

“The story remains the authors imagination of fake news.

“The Commission, therefore, urges the general public to disregard the fake news as handiwork of mischief makers,” the statement read in part.

The ruling party, All Progressives Congress (APC), had in a separate report some days ago asked the former Vice President and Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to return stolen resources and apologise to Nigerians.