Magu blocked from seeing Buhari after failed confirmation

The embattled acting Chairman of the
Economic and Financial Crimes
Commission, Mr. Ibrahim Magu, has been
unable to meet with President Muhammadu
Buhari since the beginning of the crisis that
engulfed the confirmation of his
appointment.
Reliable sources told Sunday PUNCH on
Saturday that Magu had made spirited
efforts to see President Buhari in the
aftermath of the Senate’s refusal to confirm
his appointment. The Senate, on Thursday,
had based its decision on a security report
by the Department of State Service which
accused Magu of abuse of office and
corruption.
The report by the DSS says Magu’s
antecedents and his conduct after his
appointment as the anti-corruption czar,
made him ineligible to hold the office in
full capacity.
The DSS report
concludes,
“Magu has failed the
integrity test and will
eventually constitute a
liability to the anti-
corruption drive of the
present
administration.”
SUNDAY PUNCH  and Alabatvnews gathered that the
embattled EFCC chairman, who is said to be
at loggerheads with some members of
Buhari’s kitchen cabinet, tried to see the
President on Saturday night but his efforts
were futile.
Buhari’s Chief of Staff, Abba Kyari, handles
the President’s appointments and
determines, in most cases, who gets to see
him.
There have been reports that Magu is
involved in a power struggle with the
Director General of the DSS, Mr. Lawal
Daura, and some top aides of the President,
who are said to be against his
confirmation. The acting EFCC chairman is
said to be an ally of the National Security
Adviser, Gen. Babagana Monguno.
Magu was conspicuously absent at the
Saturday’s wedding of the President’s
daughter, Zahra, to Ahmed Indimi.
However, other heads of security agencies
including the former chairman of the EFCC,
Nuhu Ribadu, were present at the lunch
which held inside the old Banquet Hall of
the Presidential Villa.
Multiple sources in the presidency
confirmed to our correspondent on
Saturday that Magu was sighted in the
Presidential Villa around 6.30pm on
Friday.
While he failed to see the President, Magu
attended the Asset Recovery team meeting
which holds weekly at the Presidency. The
meeting had Vice President Yemi Osinbajo ;
the Attorney General of the Federation,
Abubakar Malami; the Minister of
Information, Mr. Lai Mohammed, and
others, in attendance.
SUNDAY PUNCH learnt that Magu has
written a letter stating his side of the story
over the allegations levelled against him by
the DSS. A source, who said the letter
would be delivered to the President during
the week, added that Magu defended
himself and also detailed his running
battles with some of the president’s closest
aides.
Magu, it was gathered, had wanted to issue
a statement through the agency to respond
to the DSS allegations, but later had a
change of mind.
It was gathered that the confirmation crisis
had polarised the President’s cabinet.
A source in government told one of our
correspondents that some ministers who
are in support of Magu visited the
President of the Senate, Dr. Bukola Saraki,
before the Senate session on Thursday. The
source said the ministers tried to prevail on
Saraki to ensure that Magu was confirmed.
Saraki was said to have told them that he
did not have the sole power to confirm the
EFCC’s acting chairman.
Some ministers who are however staunchly
against Magu reportedly reached out to the
senate president and urged him not to
make the mistake of ensuring Magu’s
confirmation or it could come back to
haunt him.
He can only be reconsidered if DSS clears him
— Senators
Meanwhile, the Chairman, Senate
Committee on Ethics Privileges and Public
Petitions, Senator Samuel Anyanwu, has
said that the senate may review its decision
on the acting chairman if he clears himself
of the allegation contained in the security
report on him.

Anyanwu, who spoke
on Saturday, said,
“The presidency has
the right to present
him for screening
again if it is satisfied
that the allegations
against him in the
report are baseless.
The senate will do its
constitutional duty by
adequately
investigating petitions
against any nominee
so that a wrong
person will not be
appointed.
“Mr. Magu should
clear himself of the
allegations leveled
against him otherwise
senate will refuse to
screen him if Mr.
President should
forward his name
again,” he said.
Alabatvnews.