EFCC Didn’t Invite Me Over Alleged Corruption – Ex-NAHCON Boss, Hassan

The immediate past Chairman of the National Hajj Commission of Nigeria (NAHCON), Zikrullah Hassan, has denied reports that he was invited by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) over allegations of corruption.

Naija News recalls that President Bola Tinubu had sacked Hassan as the NAHCON boss in October 2023, and approved the appointment of Jalal Arabi as his successor.

The president also directed Hassan to proceed on a three-month pre-retirement leave, beginning in October 2023 and ending in January 2024.

Recently, some reports said Hassan was quizzed by EFCC officials at the agency’s head office in Abuja over an alleged 92 million Saudi Riyal fraud.

Reacting to the reports via a statement on Thursday by his spokesman, Shakirudeen Bankole, Hassan said there is no iota of truth in reports that he was invited by EFCC.

The former NAHCON boss said EFCC officials only examined the books of the commission when he was still in office.

Hassan stated that officials of the commission provided answers to the questions raised by the anti-graft agency.

He said: “On my honour as a Muslim and a decent family man, I make bold to say that not for once did the EFCC operatives on investigation mission at NAHCON consider it necessary to query me.

“You can’t find any evidence of my interface with contractors nor running any financial transaction in place of the relevant officials.

“If they run their checks ten times more, the result will remain same. That is, I don’t meddle with specialized responsibilities being a responsible professional myself.”