A former Minister of State for Defence, Musiliu Obanikoro, on Wednesday, told Justice Nnamdi Dimgba of the Federal High Court, Abuja that the sum of N1.219 billion cash was airlifted to former Ekiti State Governor, Ayodele Fayose, for the 2014 governorship election in the state.
Fayose is facing trial by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) alongside his firm, Spotless Investment Limited, following their alleged involvement in N6.9 billion money laundering.
When prosecution counsel, Wahab Shittu (SAN) asked Obanikoro to shed light on the source of the said amount, the ex-minister said he did not know the source of the money and that he only got the information on the money from the former National Security Adviser (NSA), Col Sambo Dasuki (retd).
According to a statement by the anti-graft agency on Wednesday, the ex-minister explained that the former NSA contacted him that the said money had been paid into the account of Sylvan Mcnamara Ltd.
Giving his testimony before the court, Obanikoro said, “I was a minister under Jonathan’s administration in 2014. Sometime in 2014, we were going to have an election in Ekiti State. I was saddled with the responsibility of coordinating the activities in the election.
“Some days before the election, I got a call from Governor Fayose asking me if I received any message for him from ONSA, I can recall that prior to that, we had some activities among which was fundraising for the purpose of that election.
“When Mr. Fayose called, I told him I would call him later. I had a phone conversation with the NSA and was told he would get back to me. After, he got back to me that N2.2 billion was paid into the account of Sylvan Mcnamara Ltd.
“The money came from the NSA. I can’t vouch for the source of the funds. Only the NSA can explain the source of the fund.
“I handed over the N1.219 million cash to Agbele for onward delivery to Fayose. I did not take any money or N19 million, contrary to a publication by a Lagos-based online platform.”
