BREAKING: EFCC arrests ex-Minister, Abba Moro, two others over 2014 immigration recruitment scam

The Economic and Financial Crimes
Commission on Monday arrested a former
Minister of Interior, Abba Moro, over the
Nigerian Immigration recruitment scam in
which no fewer than 20 job seekers died.
Also arrested by the anti-graft agency were
former Permanent Secretary in the ministry,
Anaesthesia Nwaobia, and a deputy director
who allegedly facilitated the scam.
A source at the commission, who cannot be
named because she is not authorised to speak
on the matter, told PREMIUM TIMES the
three suspects were picked up in the evening.
“They were brought into the commission’s
headquarters today and will be arraigned on a
12-count charge in the Federal High Court
Abuja on Tuesday,” the source said.
Some of the charges against Mr. Moro and
his colleagues include obtaining by false
pretence, procurement offences, corrupt
practices and money laundering.
At least nine job seekers died on March 15,
2014 at the Abuja National Stadium while
scrambling to secure seats for a recruitment
test into the Nigerian Immigration Service.
The stampede ensued after the over 200,000
job seekers scrambled through a poorly
organized barricade at the stadium.
In Port Harcourt, Rivers State, four applicants
died from the stampede while 12 others
sustained injuries and were rushed to Rivers
government-owned Braithwaite Memorial
Hospital.
After the March 15 tragedy, several Nigerians
demanded the resignation or dismissal of Mr.
Moro and the Comptroller-General of
Immigration, David Parradang, as well as
their criminal prosecution for involuntary
homicide.
They were accused of putting in place a sham
recruitment process that enabled the interior
ministry to extort at least N520 million in
compulsory levy imposed on applicants.
The minister, who initially blamed impatience and refusal by
applicants to abide by instructions for the tragedy, later
accepted responsibility for the incident.
He, however, refused to step down.
Speaking on a Channels TV’s breakfast programme,
Sunrise, on October 20, 2014, Mr. Moro made it clear he
would not resign, saying he would rather stay put in office
to clear the mess caused by the incidence.
“The point at which we are now is not about resignation.
That time has gone,” Mr. Morro said in response to a
question over why he refused to quit.
“At the time (people were calling for his resignation), I think
emotions were very high. I was in the eye of a storm.
“At that time, a lot of options were on the table… The issue
is do you resign or do you stay to sort out the problem that
have been created?
“I decided that staying and mopping up the mess caused by
the lack of proper implementation of our plans is better.
That’s the point we are now.”
The minister said Nigerians should consider the tragedy as
an accident which he too did not plan for or envisage.
“I also have families. I didn’t set out on that journey
knowing that accident would occur that would lead to the
death of human beings.
“We took everything into proper perspective. If we had
succeeded, a few Nigerians would have congratulated us for
the job well done.”

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