Aminu Tambuwal, the immediate past governor of Sokoto State, has been detained in the custody of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) over allegations of fraudulent cash withdrawals of a total of N189 billion.
Sources within the anti-graft agency disclosed that the action of the former government was against the Money Laundering (Prevention & Prohibition) Act, 2022.
Why EFCC detained Tambuwal
According to Vanguard, Tambuwal, currently serving in the 10th National Assembly as a senator representing Sokoto South, arrived at the headquarters of the EFCC in Abuja on Monday at about 11:30 am, where he was being questioned by the EFCC’s interrogation team.
A source within the anti-graft agency, who did not want to mention his name, disclosed that the senator was being questioned over the suspicious transactions during his tenure as governor of Sokoto. He said it was in connection with an unauthorised withdrawal of public funds.
The source further disclosed that the agency has been investigating the former governor for a long time. Dele Oyewale, the spokesperson of the commission, declined to speak on the development until the completion of the interrogation.
Senator Tambuwal is a prominent figure in the leading opposition, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). He was the governor of Sokoto from 2015 to 2023. He had earlier served as the speaker of the House of Representatives.
Tambuwal is a strong member of the camp of the former Vice President, Atiku Abubakar, who is championing the call for opposition leaders to form a coalition to sack President Bola Tinubu in the 2027 election. Ahead of the 2023 presidential election, Tambuwal stepped down for Atiku to pave the way for Atiku as the PDP presidential canadidate in the election
The former governor, though he was yet to resign his membership from the PDP, has recently been associating himself with the coalition and was present when the group adopted the African Democratic Congress (ADC) as its political platform ahead of the 2023 election.
The coalition has been positioning itself as the alternative for Nigerians, while calling on the people to sack President Tinubu and the APC in the 2027 ballot, while criticising the economic policies of the current administration.
