A former Group Managing Director of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), Andrew Yakubu is yet to reveal names of those he claimed gave him the $9.8million cash seized from his house in Kaduna.
An EFCC source at the weekend said the names of donors would enable detectives conduct more investigations.
“We suspected that the cash came in between 2012 and 2014 but Yakubu has refused to disclose the sources,” the source told Nation.
“Maybe when his trial begins, he will open up in court.
“We believe he owes it a duty as a citizen to name those who showered the huge gifts on him.
“Apart from that, since the gifts allegedly came while in office, the constitution makes it mandatory for him to declare them and the sources.”
Section 6 (3) of Part 1 of the Fifth Schedule to the constitution says: “A public officer shall only accept personal gifts or benefits from relatives or personal friends to such extent and on such occasions as are recognized by custom;
“Provided that any gift or donation to a public officer on any public or ceremonial occasion shall be treated as a gift to the appropriate institution represented by the public officer, and accordingly, the mere acceptance or receipt of any such gift shall not be treated as a contravention of this provision.”
But reacting, Mr. Ahmed Raji, Yakubu’s counsel said: “There is no law that says that Andrew Yakubu must disclose the sources of the gifts. This is more so because he is no longer a public servant.
“It is like asking him to prove his innocence. Is there any money missing? He does not owe the EFCC any duty to submit the list of those who gave him gifts.
“You can declare gifts if you are only a public servant. My client told me that the bulk of gifts came after he had left office during ceremonies, occasions and as sympathy gifts because of the way he was sacked.
“The burden of proof is on EFCC if any money is missing or any money has been stolen. Yakubu is no longer a public servant.”
Meanwhile, Yakubu has been relocated from Kano to Abuja preparatory to his arraignment this week.
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