Posted on: 09:20 Thu, 04 Feb 2016



The Publisher and Editor in Chief of THISDAY Newspapers, Nduka Obaigbena,
has reportedly returned the sum of N350m to the Economic and Financial
Crimes Commission (EFCC), according to reports.

This represents more than half of the N670m he is believed to have received
from the office of former national security adviser, Sambo Dasuki.

Obaigbena was said to have paid the money to the anti-graft agency on
Tuesday, February 2.

Of the N670m, Obaigbena revealed that N120m was given to the Newspaper
Proprietors’ Association of Nigeria as compensation for losses incurred during
the military clampdown on newspaper houses in 2015 while N550m was given
to Thisday newspaper as compensation for the 2013 bombing of the Thisday
premises in Kaduna and Abuja.

The anti-graft agency subsequently released him, after signing an undertaking
to refund the money in two weeks.

A top operative of the EFCC was quoted to have said that Obaigbena would pay
an outstanding N200m next week, after the initial payment of N350m.
“The Publisher of ThisDay Newspaper, Mr. Nduka Obaigbena, has returned
N350m out of the N670m he received from the ONSA.”

Obaigbena’s 14-day period of grace to repay the money he received from
Dasuki’s office, expires next week Tuesday, February 9.