I have returned Metuh’s N25m to EFCC

Abba Dabo, a former aide to erstwhile Vice President Namadi Sambo told a Federal High Court sitting in Abuja on Thursday that he has refunded the N25m given to him by Olisa Metuh to the PDP.

He said that he was given the money to fund Peoples Democratic Party, PDP's media activities.

Testifying as a prosecution witness, Dabo said that he returned the money in January 2016 on realisimg that it was part of the funds earmarked for the procurementof arms in the office of the National Security Adviser.

He was led in evidence by the prosecution counsel Sylvanus Tahir.

Dabo told the court that N25m was paid to him through an account operated by Metuh’s company, Destra Investment Limited  on December 16, 2014, five days after former President Goodluck Jonathan and Vice President Namadi Sambo were selected as the party’s candidates for the office of president and vice-president in the 2015 presidential election.

He said that he decided to refund the money to the EFCC because he couldn't reach Metuh who was incarcerated at the time.

His words:
“Unfortunately, there were reports in the media, on this transaction with Chief Metuh linking it to controversial circumstances. I mean it was identified that Chief Metuh paid the N25m to my account through his company and that the source of the money was from the arms deal that was being discussed generally in the country.

“As a result of that publication, we thought we needed to explain, and because it was paid to my personal account , in my name, I decided to make a refund, and  I paid it to EFCC, because I couldn’t reach Mr. Metuh that particular time.

“The newspapers were awash with the story that linked the money given to me to the arms money that was said to have been diverted to other uses by the Office of the National Security Adviser. On my own volition, I decided that the the best way out of the rigmarole was to pay back the amount. I paid it back to EFCC.”

He also said that Metuh gave him the money to “mitigate and counter negative media reports against the then Jonathan-led government and the PDP.”