EFCC Grills APC Chieftain Muiz Banire, As Iyiola Omisore Returns N350million

The National Legal Adviser of the All Progressives Congress(APC), Mr. Muiz Banire, SAN was yesterday quizzed by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission(EFCC) for about seven hours at its Lagos Zonal Office over an alleged payment of N500,000 into the account of a judge{Justice Terseer Agbadu-Fishim of the National Industrial Court}. Banire was later released on administrative bail after the agency seized his international passport. Going by reports, Banire was summoned to the Lagos office of the EFCC on Thursday and he obliged by turning up for questioning after which he was asked to return on Friday(yesterday).
Meanwhile, Banire in a text message to PUNCH before he was invited by the EFCC, maintained that the money was not a bribe but he was merely helping the judge who was broke at the time. Banire in the text said, “Thank you for clarification sought. I have no official relationship with the said judge. I have never appeared before him in any matter and in fact, in my entire professional career, I have only recently a month ago appeared at the industrial court before a separate judge.He was an old friend in the 90s, who only called me up some years back to seek financial assistance due to his mother’s death. Beyond that, I have not seen him in the last 17 years.”

In another development, former Minister of State for Defence, Mr. Musiliu Obanikoro was yesterday granted bail by the anti-graft agency after refunding the sum of N100 million out of the sum of N4.7 billion he allegedly embezzled. Obanikoro is being accused of paying over N3.88 billion out of the N4.7 billion traced to companies linked to him to Ekiti State governor, Mr. Ayodele Fayose and former Osun Sate Deputy governor, Senator Iyiola Omisore. VANGUARD reports that Omisore refunded N50 million to EFCC yesterday following the initial return of N300 million before making this latest payment.