22 August 2009

Lagos — The Economic and Financial Crime Commission has frozen the bank accounts of the managing directors of the five banks sacked last week.

The affected former MDs are Union Bank's Bartholomew Ebong, FinBank's Okey Nwosu, Afribank's Sebastian Adigwe, Intercontinental Bank's Erastus Akingbola and Oceanic Bank's Cecilia Ibru.

The external and internal auditors of the five banks have also been invited for interrogation by the EFCC.

Also yesterday, the commission mounted surveillance on the home of Akingbola in Ikoyi, Lagos in a bid to gather information about his movement.

According to a source at the EFCC office in Abuja, the accounts of the sacked MDs were frozen "so that they will not continue to have access to huge money while being investigated."

The five banks MDs are said to operate accounts in different banks in the country with unspecified but large amounts.

Although, their foreign accounts were not affected by yesterday's action, the EFCC source said that it was only a matter of time before their foreign accounts are frozen, wherever they might be.

"With money in their accounts, you and I know quite well that they would do and undo. But without money anywhere, intense and proper investigations would be conducted on them. We hope to arrest the remaining two banks chiefs in no time."

The source said further: "Wherever they are, we will fish Mrs. Ibru and Erastus Akingbola out and they would be made to face the music they have been playing.

"We will ensure that not only their local accounts are frozen but also their foreign accounts.

"This will be done so as to properly prosecute them effectively and so that those suspected to have fled abroad would be left with nothing to bank on wherever they may be.

"We will ensure that sanity returns not only to the banking sector, but to every part of our economy."

The EFCC's spokesperson, Femi Babafemi, who confirmed the story, said as event unfolds, members of the public would be furnished with more information.

The EFCC boss, Farida Waziri alleged that the auditors conspired with the erring bank MDs to defraud their banks.

She warned that if they do not all appear before the commission today, they would be declared wanted and this, she said, would further compound their problems.

"During our investigations, we found out that all the erring bank chief executives were given a clean bill to operate by both external and internal auditors who were paid to do so.

"It is sad to know that these auditors conspired with the bank MDs to commit the crime.

"Our officials are already out for them and anyone who fails to appear before the commission by tomorrow (today), will be declared wanted and would be made to face the music," Waziri warned.

A close aide of Akingbola said officials of the commission have been parading the house of the former bank chief in Ikoyi, but are yet to enter the building.

He said: "To start with, Akingbola never fled the country. He actually travelled on medical grounds.

"They (EFCC) know Akingbola is not around and they are trying to break into his house when they have not established anything against him.

"They have taken photographs of his house and even went to the extent of writing the Registrar of Titles in Lagos to get more information about his house. "

The EFCC's spokesman confirmed that Akingbola's house was under surveillance "since the commission is still looking for him."

"It is also not unusual for anybody that has a case to answer to have his or her house and other known places where they go under surveillance," he said.

In a bid to compel bank debtors of the five banks to pay up, the apex bank last Wednesday published the names of debtors - a development that triggered a string of protests by the companies and individuals whose names were published.

But Chief O.B. Lulu-Briggs yesterday protested the inclusion of his name as "the majority shareholder/director" in respect of a loan granted to MTS First Wireless Limited by Union Bank.

A letter from his solicitor said: "Our client unequivocally denies any involvement whatsoever in the grant, issuance, disbursement or application of this loan either as a director, shareholder or majority shareholder of MTS.

"He therefore views the prominent display of his name with respect to this loan either as a grave error of judgement or a mischievous and malicious attempt by the bank to impugn his well earned reputation and reduce the esteem in which he is held in the society."

Briggs' lawyer said the loan facility for which the CBN publication listed MTS as a debtor customer of the bank was secured and expended to MTS in 2003, "three years before our client became a shareholder /director of MTS in 2006."

The lawyer said Briggs was neither a shareholder nor director of MTS when it obtained and disbursed the loan with officials of the bank and as such cannot be personally liable in any manner whatsoever.

Bank Auditors

Oceanic Bank - PriceWaterhouseCooper

Intercontinental - PriceWaterhouseCooper

Union Bank - Akintola Williams Deloitte

Oyekanmi Soetan Adeleke & Co

FinBank - Akintola Williams Deloitte

Afribank - Akintola Williams Deloitte

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