N1.3Billion Fraud: Obanikoro To Testify Against Fayose In Court

A Former Minister of State for Defence, Musiliu Obanikoro, has reportedly agreed to stand as state witness against former Ekiti State governor, Ayodele Fayose, as he's being probed by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).

Fayose is currently facing an allegation of receiving 1.3billion naira from the office of former National Security Adviser, Sambo Dasuki, in the run up to the Ekiti State governorship election in 2014.

Fayose has however denied the allegations.

When he posted news of his detention on his Twitter account (@GovAyoFayose) yesterday, he disclosed that his media aide, Lere Olayinka, will manage the account on his behalf until he regains his freedom.

Early on Wednesday, October 17, Olayinka, tweeting through Fayose's official handle alleged that the EFCC has claimed that Obanikoro has agreed to act as a state witness in the allegations against the former governor.

He posted, "@officialEFCC claims that @MObanikoro has agreed to act as a state witness in their allegation against @GovAyoFayose.

"There's no need to waste time. Simply charge the man to court and stop hoping you can hound him into accepting what he knows nothing about #FayoseIsNotAfraid."

Fayose is alleged to have collected the N1.3 billion through Obanikoro who was minister at the time and was a member of the People's Democratic Party (PDP), same as Fayose.

Obanikoro was subsequently arrested in 2016 on allegations of receiving N4.685 billion from Dasuki's office in 2014 and funneling it towards winning elections in Ekiti and Osun State for the then-ruling PDP.

The sum was sourced from the $2.1 billion voted for arms procurement and allegedly mismanaged by Dasuki who's also under probe.