A lawyer and senatorial aspirant of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) in Enugu West district, Ogochukwu Onyema, has petitioned the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) over allegations of extortion. He claims that members of the party’s Senatorial Screening Committee extorted N20 million from him through misrepresentation, undue influence, and coercive pressure.
Petition Details
In a petition dated June 3 and addressed to the EFCC Chairman, Onyema urged the commission to investigate the circumstances surrounding the collection of the money. He called for the recovery of the funds and accountability for those involved in what he described as obtaining money by false pretence, fraudulent inducement, extortion, abuse of office, and conspiracy.
The petition, signed by his solicitor Ayomide Ahmed, was made available to The Guardian. Onyema stated that after the release of party guidelines for congresses and nomination processes, he purchased the NDC’s Expression of Interest form for N3 million and completed it.
Alleged Extortion Process
According to Onyema, prior to the screening, a party leader in the state forwarded the party’s account number (1046691859 with FCMB) and requested a voluntary development levy. He voluntarily paid N500,000 into the account. However, during the screening exercise, committee members asked if he had paid the development levy.
“Upon informing the committee that I paid N500,000, I was informed that senatorial aspirants were expected to show capacity by contributing N20 million; House of Representatives aspirants N10 million, and governorship aspirants N50 million, as a pathway to candidacy,” Onyema stated.
He added that although the payment was described as voluntary, the committee’s comments and conduct conveyed that paying N20 million was necessary to demonstrate seriousness, capacity, and eligibility. One committee member even told him it was the pathway to the senatorial ticket.
Payment and Aftermath
Despite protesting, Onyema said he believed the committee’s representation and paid an additional N20 million into the same party account, submitting evidence to the screening committee. However, he later discovered that several aspirants who did not pay comparable sums were still being considered for nomination. He alleged that the leadership held meetings with their favoured candidates, indicating a deliberate double standard to extort him.
“Furthermore, despite the completion of the screening exercise and primary election activities, no nomination form was issued to me, no screening report was published, and no official explanation was provided regarding the status of my candidature,” Onyema stated. He emphasized that he would not have paid the additional N20 million had the representations not been made, especially after willingly paying N500,000 as a party support levy and N3 million for the Expression of Interest form.
Resignation and Demand for Refund
Onyema resigned from the party on June 1 and sent a letter to the party leadership demanding a refund of the N20 million, but received no response. He has therefore asked the EFCC to investigate his claims, examine the roles of the screening committee members, recover his money, and prosecute those responsible for the alleged extortion.
