President receives panel report from Osinbajo

President Muhammadu Buhari has received the Presidential Investigation Panel Report on corruption allegations against suspended Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Babachir Lawal and Director of the National Intelligence Agency (NIA), Ayodele Oke at his home office.

On Wednesday, August 23, 2017, the president received panel members, led by Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, who had been investigating the allegations for months.

President Buhari suspended Lawal on April 19 after months of mounting pressure for his sack arising from allegations of his complicity in the misappropriation of funds earmarked for the welfare of the Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) through the Presidential Initiative on North East (PINE).

Oke was suspended as the director of the NIA after his public involvement in the controversial $50 million loot recovered by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) from an Ikoyi apartment in April.

He had laid claim to the funds, saying it was earmarked by the agency for covert operations.

The other members of the three-man panel are National Security Adviser (NSA), Babagana Monguno, and Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami.

The presentation of the report happened just hours after the president cancelled the Federal Executive Council (FEC) meeting that would have been his first appearance since he got back into the country on Saturday, August 19 after a 103-day absence on medical vacation in London.