…Visits Dangote Group HQ
Operatives of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) yesterday conducted a search operation at the head office of the Dangote Group in Lagos as it widens investigations into the foreign exchange transactions during the tenure of former governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Godwin Emefiele.
It was gathered that the EFCC wrote to the various companies asking for documentation on their forex transactions in the last 10 years. Details of the EFCC investigations are still sketchy, but it appears to be a blanket investigation into the biggest companies that got forex allocations from the CBN under Emefiele.
Some of the big companies being investigated, according to reports, are Dangote Group, BUA Group and Flour Mills. However, they have all denied wrongdoing in their communications with the EFCC. The investigation also included other top companies which got forex at the official rate from the CBN.
Recall that in November 2023, Dangote Group denied allegations of foreign exchange (forex) malpractices and money laundering of a purported staggering sum of $3.4 billion.
However, it was gathered that the operatives of the EFCC yesterday requested documents related to forex allocations to the Group from 2015 to the time Emefiele was suspended by President Bola Tinubu and subsequently arrested by the agents of the Department of States Services (DSS) in June 2023.
Some staff at Dangote Group also confirmed that EFCC agents were at the office earlier in the day. They, however, disclosed that the interaction was cordial as they provided the documents requested by the anti-graft agency.
According to insiders, the Dangote Group said it is ready to explain every detail of its forex transactions, saying it did not breach any laws. “It is an ongoing investigation. Nothing has been concluded yet”, disclosed a source at the Lagos office of the EFCC.
Until June 2023, Nigeria operated multiple exchange rates.
The EFCC spokesman, Dele Oyewale, declined comments when contacted as of the time of filing this report.
