THE Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) on Monday arraigned the immediate former Head of Civil Service of the Federation (HoS), Winnifred Oyo-Ita.
The EFCC had on Sunday released a press statement that Oyo-Ita would be arraigned along with eight others before Justice Taiwo Taiwo of the Federal High Court, sitting in Abuja.
This morning, operatives of the anti-graft agency brought Oyo-Ita to the Federal High Court in Abuja over allegations of fraud.
According to the release, others arraigned along with Oyo-Ita are: Frontline Ace Global Services Limited; Asanaya Projects Limited; Garba Umar and his companies: Slopes International Limited; Gooddeal Investments Limited; Ubong Okon Effiok and his own company, U & U Global Services Limited and Prince Mega Logistics Limited.
They were arraigned for frauds relating to Duty Tour Allowances, (DTA), Estacodes, conference fees fraud and receiving kick-backs on contracts.
During investigation by EFCC, it was discovered that Oyo-Ita, in her roles in the civil service as Director, Permanent Secretary and Head of Service, used her companies as well as Effiok’s and Umar’s companies as fronts to receive kickbacks from contractors of various ministries and parastatals where she worked.
The former Head of Service in collusion with Effiok who was her Special Assistant, along with one Titus Okunriboye Tomsin, made bogus claims of fictitious DTA, Estacodes, conference fees which were paid by the government to the accounts of the suspects.
Abeeb Alawiye formerly works with The ICIR as a Reporter/Social Media officer. Now work as a Senior Journalist with BBC News Yoruba. You can shoot him an email via [email protected] or follow him on Twitter @habsonfloww