The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) says it has not declared former governor of Zamfara State, Bello Matawalle, wanted as reported in some national daily on Sunday.
EFCC spokesperson, Wilson Uwujaren, said the report by some newspapers that the anti-graft agency had declared Matawalle wanted was false, adding that the commission has procedures for declaring someone wanted.
“The attention of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has been drawn to a report entitled Alleged N70bn Fraud: EFCC Declares Ex-Zamfara Governor Matawalle Wanted, which appeared in the Sunday Tribune of June 18, 2023 and purports that the commission had declared a former Zamfara State governor, Bello Matawalle, wanted and requested the Department of State Services (DSS) to arrest him, ‘anywhere he is seen’.
“Without prejudice to the case involving the former governor, the report is incorrect as the commission has yet to declare Matawalle wanted or solicit the assistance of any agency, including the DSS, to effect his arrest.
“The commission has standard procedure for declaring persons wanted and communicating the same to the public, not through faceless security sources,” the statement reads in part.
It should be noted that Matawalle and the EFCC have been engaged in a media battle over allegations of about N70 billion he was said to have mismanaged while he was the governor of Zamfara State.
Matawalle had also accused the suspended chairman of the EFCC, Abdulrasheed Bawa, of demanding for $2 million bribe from him.
