Women Called For Arrest Of Ayodele Fayose

Led in the protest by its leader, the group said the fact that the governor enjoys immunity is not as sacred as human lives.

Speaking to journalists, the leader of the group Nnenna Jideofor said: "The reality is that people are unanimous in desiring that the anti-graft agencies must not lose the anti-graft war.

The group urged the president and the EFCC to intensify their fight against corruption in Nigeria.

The women under the aegis of Patriotic Mothers without Borders called for the arrest of Ekiti state governor Ayodele Fayose over his alleged involvement in the famous $2.1 billion arms deal.

"This is why there are deep running concerns in the land that the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has been caged but we do not want to believe this. We do not want to accept that the EFCC is merely making a show of fighting corruption,” Jideofor said.

She also added that several developments contributed to the spread of this impression among Nigerians.

She said, however, the group strongly believes that the EFCC’s inability to do anything about the Ekiti state governor is the leading cause.

"The Ekiti state governor and his accomplices have blood on their hands in addition to stealing public funds. They took part in stealing the money meant for buying arms to fight Boko Haram.

"The crippling of the military’s fighting capabilities as a result of this have made some women widows and children orphaned.

"What Nigerians are saying is that the EFCC can lose its cases against others that took part in the theft of the arms money simply on account that Fayose is being treated as one who is above the law thereby providing his collaborator with the excuse that the Ekiti state governor cannot be walking free as a direct beneficiary while they get punished as partakers.

"His collaborators, former Minister of State for Defence, Musiliu Obanikoro, Senator, Iyiola Omisore and others have returned some money. The gravity of this crime does not permit that we wait indefinitely for Fayose to leave office.

He would have finished spending his share of the loot by then. Besides, this implies the EFCC would not have any exhibit on him again – he has all the time to destroy evidence and clean his track while terrorists continue to kill Nigerians because of his action.

"EFCC owes us as mothers, it owes us as Nigerians to reassure us that its refusal to arrest Fayose up till this moment is not the reason why it has become a relic, a shadow of the anti-corruption agency that was once dreaded for its efficacy" she said

In his reply to their petition, the spokesperson of the EFCC Wilson Uwujaren and a staff of the commission Umaru Mohammed who received the letter of petition on behalf of the acting chairman of the EFCC Ibrahim Magu, promised to follow it up and ensure that justice is done.