Two Chinese men, Mr. Meng Wei Kun and Mr. Xu Koi, have been arrested by the Sokoto Zonal Office of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) for offering N50million as bribe to its Zonal Head, Mr. Abdullahi Lawal.
The N50million was the first installment of the N100million offer.
A statement signed by the Commission’s Head, Media and Publicity, Dele Oyewale, on Tuesday, said the suspects were arrested on Monday, in Sokoto.
The anti-graft agency claims the money was offered, in a desperate bid to influence ongoing investigations of a construction company, China Zhonghao Nig. Ltd, handling N50billion contracts awarded by the Zamfara State Government between 2012 to 2019.
The contract was for the construction of township roads in Gummi, Bukkuyun, Anka and Nassarawa towns of Zamfara state and 168 solar-powered boreholes in 14 local government areas.
“The zonal office of the Commission is investigating the construction company, in connection with the execution of contracts for the construction of township roads in Gummi, Bukkuyun, Anka and Nassarawa towns of Zamfara State; and also the construction of one hundred and sixty-eight (168) solar-powered boreholes in the 14 local government areas of the state.
“Alarmed by the consistency and professionalism of investigation being conducted, the company reached out to Lawal with an offer of N100million as bribe to “bury” the matter.
“In a grand design to trap the corrupt officials, Lawal played along, and on Monday, two representatives of the company Meng Wei Kun and Xu Kuoi offered him cash totalling fifty million naira in their office along airport road, Sokoto. The cash was offered as a first installment,” the statement said.
It added that the suspects were arrested with the cash as evidence.
