NEARLY three years after the late President Muhammadu Buhari left office, a growing number of senior officials who wielded power during his era, including governors, ministers, and top economic managers, have been entangled in corruption probe under the current President Bola Tinubu-led administration.
While skepticism persists over the nature and outcome of these probes, the individuals under investigation are accused of a range of financial crimes, including money laundering, criminal breach of trust, abuse of office, and misappropriation of public funds.
Yahaya Bello
Among the most prominent cases is that of former Kogi State governor, Yahaya Bello. The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) investigations into Bello began in 2024, when the commission declared him wanted.
Bello, who governed the state from 2016 to 2023 under the All Progressives Congress (APC), is facing multiple charges over the alleged laundering of more than N80 billion in state funds.
Investigators alleged that the funds were diverted to acquire high-value properties in Abuja and other locations. Bello’s arraignment in 2024 followed months of tension between him and the EFCC, including failed attempts to secure his arrest.
The commission publicly declared Bello wanted after he failed to appear for arraignment at the Federal High Court in Abuja on N80.2 billion money-laundering charges. According to the EFCC, Bello conspired with his nephew, Ali Bello, and others to convert state funds for personal use shortly after assuming office in February 2016.
He has since been charged on 19 counts and has pleaded not guilty; his trial is ongoing.
Despite the trial, Bello has declared interest to contest the Kogi State Senatorial District election in 2027.
Darius Ishaku
In Taraba State, former governor Darius Ishaku faces similar legal hurdle as he’s currently on trial over alleged diversion of public funds.
The EFCC is prosecuting Ishaku alongside Bello Yero, a former permanent secretary in the Taraba State Bureau for Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs, on charges of criminal breach of trust, conspiracy, and fraudulent conversion of about N27 billion, alleged to have occurred during Ishaku’s tenure between 2015 and 2023.
During the trial on November 4, 2025, witness Ismail Lawal testified that funds received from Taraba State officials were disbursed to various beneficiaries on Ishaku’s instructions.
Lawal, who said he kept a private notebook documenting the transactions, noted that some diverted funds serviced personal liabilities while others went to security and government agencies.
Ishaku and Yero pleaded not guilty to the charges.
Ifeanyi Okowa
Before joining the APC in 2025, former Delta State governor Ifeanyi Okowa was implicated in the alleged mismanagement of N1.3 trillion oil derivation funds received by the state during his eight-year tenure.
On November 4, 2024, EFCC investigators took him into custody at its Port Harcourt office, following an invitation linked to the commission’s probe. These funds represented 13 per cent of Delta State’s total allocation between 2015 and 2023.
Investigators alleged Okowa failed to account properly for the funds and engaged in questionable investments, including the purchase of N40 billion worth of shares in UTM Floating Liquefied Natural Gas. Additional allegations include the diversion of state funds to acquire properties in Abuja and Asaba.
No formal case has been filed against him amid claims that the Tinubu government is shielding him.
Willie Obiano
Similarly, former Anambra State governor Willie Obiano is under trial for alleged N4 billion money laundering. His trial, which began on January 24, 2024, was suspended indefinitely in November 2025 by the Federal High Court in Abuja.
The adjournment followed a request from the EFCC to allow Inyang Ekwo, the judge handling the case, to continue proceedings once available, rather than have the matter reassigned to another judge.
Obiano faces allegations of diverting public funds, including over N1.2 billion from the state’s security vote to private accounts, in breach of the Money Laundering (Prohibition) Act.
His legal team has denied wrongdoing, describing the case as an abuse of judicial process. The trial remains on hold pending the return of Justice Ekwo.
Malami, Ngige, Emefiele other Buhari appointees on trial
The ICIR reports that these prosecutions form part of a broader investigation into former Buhari-era officials. Beyond ex-governors like Ishaku and Okowa, several ministers in the late president’s government are caught in the web of corruption trials.
Since December 2025, former Attorney-General of the Federal and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami, has faced repeated arrests by the EFCC and the State Security Service (SSS). In January 2026, Malami was re-arrested by the SSS immediately after his release from Kuje Correctional Centre, following his arraignment over an N8.7 billion money laundering case. Several properties linked to him has been confiscated by the court.
A fresh investigation links him to arms allegedly discovered at his residence during EFCC raids in December 2025. Malami is also accused of questionable asset recovery deals, controversial settlements, and mismanagement of recovered public funds.
Similarly, former Minister of Labour and Employment and ex-governor of Anambra State, Chris Ngige, is under trial for alleged N2.2 billion contract fraud while overseeing the Nigeria Social Insurance Trust Fund (NSITF).
Charges against him include abuse of office and receipt of gratification through companies linked to his associates, with contracts worth hundreds of millions of naira. Ngige was granted bail under strict conditions, including surrendering his international passport and providing sureties with verified properties in Abuja.
Meanwhile, former Central Bank of Nigeria Governor, Godwin Emefiele, faces multiple cases involving procurement fraud, money laundering, and alleged abuse of office. Since the charges have been brought up, courts have ordered the final forfeiture of millions of dollars, shares, and high-value properties, including a 753-unit housing estate in Abuja and prime properties in Lagos linked to him.
Timipre Sylva
Recall that former Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Timipre Sylva, was declared wanted in November 2025, by the EFCC over an alleged $14.86 million fraud.
According to EFCC spokesperson, Dele Oyewale, Sylva is accused of conspiring to dishonestly convert funds belonging to the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB).
He noted that the funds were part of an investment in Atlantic International Refinery and Petrochemical Limited for a modular refinery intended to boost Nigeria’s local refining capacity.
Sylva served as minister between 2019 and 2023 and was APC’s governorship candidate in the 2023 Bayelsa election.
Mustapha Usman is an investigative journalist with the International Centre for Investigative Reporting. You can easily reach him via: musman@icirnigeria.com. He tweets @UsmanMustapha_M