JUST IN: Amaju Pinnick, Dikko, Others To Be Invited By EFCC Over Fraud Petition

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission is to investigate and take necessary action against a former President of the Nigeria Football Federation, Amaju Pinnick; Second Vice President, Mallam Shehu Dikko, and three other top board members of the Federation.

This follows  a petition it received from a former National Twam Coach, James Peters, on May 4, 2018.

The petition was titled: “MONUMENTAL STEALING AND FINANCIAL CRIMES IN THE NIGERIA FOOTBALL FEDERATION.”
It was received by the Acting Chairman of the EFCC, Ibrahim Magu, on May 4, 2018.

In the petition, sourced from TheEagle Online, Peters, who coached national teams and led them to notable victories and also served as Technical Director with the Nigeria Football Federation for many years, urged the EFCC to carry out a thorough investigation on an alleged “unprecedented stealing, corrupt practices and financial crimes being perpetrated by the current President Mr Amaju Melvin Pinnick, the General Secretary Dr Mohammed Sanusi, the 1st Vice President Barrister Seyi Akinwumi, the 2nd Vice President Mallam Shehu Dikko and a member of the Executive Committee Alhaji Ahmed Yusuf (AKA Fresh).”

The former Technical Director also alleged “stealing and fraudulent activities by FINANCIAL DERIVATIVES LTD, a company cunningly brought into the NFF by President Amaju Pinnick for the sole purpose of warehousing money outside the official accounts of the NFF in the Central Bank and diverting same for fraudulent activities.”

Similarly, the petition stated: “These NFF chieftains have also used the company MEDITERRANEAN SPORTS LIMITED belonging to Mallam Shehu Dikko who is the 2nd Vice President of the Executive Committee, Chairman of the League Management Company, a body saddled with the responsibility of running the Elite league, and  attracts millions of dollars from sponsorships and Chairman, Marketing and Sponsorship sub-committee of the NFF to collect over 40% of revenues from the numerous sponsors of the NFF.”

In a letter, ref no. EFCC/EC/mos/59/17, written to the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Youth and Sports by Magu, the EFCC notified the Ministry that it has received a petition from Peters and thereby “forward same for investigation and necessary action”.

The Petitioner in the letter alleged that despite the Federal Government’s policy of Treasury Single Account where monies of  government Parastatals are lodged for purposes of checking leakages among others, Pinnick and others obtained the services of FINANCIAL DERIVATIVES COMPANY LTD to warehouse revenue accruing to the NFF from well spirited individuals and corporate organizations which never got to the NFF.

He alleged too that funds made available by corporate sponsors were never disclosed.

Peters called for a forensic audit to be carried out to look at all approvals and retirements by the mentioned persons