The Association of Mobile Money and Bank Agents in Nigeria (AMMBAN)  has called on the police to  investigate the activities of its suspended president, Mr. Fasasi Sarafadeen Atanda, over allegations of embezzlement.

 

 

The association’s  board members, in a strongly- worded petition sent to the Assistant Inspector General (AIG) of Police, Zone 2 Command, headquartered in Onikan, Lagos,  stated that Atanda was  suspended to pave the way for an unfettered investigation.

 

 

In the five-paragraph petition sent to the AIG, members of AMMBAN stated that the suspended chairman had been diverting monies meant for the association for his personal use.

 

 

Furthermore, Mr. Atanda  was alleged to have failed to account for the monies received from members, despite several engagements.

 

 

” It has come to our attention that the President has been receiving Association funds directly into his personal/corporate bank account, an action directly violating Article 23.2 of the Association Bye-Laws, which mandates that all funds must be maintained in the Association’s official accounts.

 

 

“This deliberate disregard for the established financial protocols of AMMBAN constitutes a serious mismanagement of Association resources and poses substantial risks to financial accountability,” declared the members in their petition to the AIG,” the association added.

 

 

It  stated that  Atanda’s suspension, effected by members of its Board of Trustees (BoT), became imperative since he kept parading himself as the substantive president, hoodwinking members who did not know that he was diverting their payments away from the official payment channels of the association.

 

 

In the petition, which was received Monday, November 04, 2024 by the police, AMMBAN outlined how the suspended chairman used his office to enrich himself.

 

 

The  president is alleged to have fraudulently diverted monies into his personal company’s account (Partner De Ecosystem) to organise an event that would benefit the association, but, till date, he has not been able to account for such monies.

 

 

” This blatant misrepresentation is a significant breach of trust and accountability to the members and stakeholders of AMMBAN. Such actions are incompatible with the fiduciary duties of transparency and integrity that the President is obligated to uphold,” the association’s BoT stated.

 

 

It therefore urged the police to look beyond the fraud allegation, and also investigate the several breach of extant laws and regulation, such as CAMA, allegedly perpetrated by the suspended chairmen.

 

 

The association concluded its petition by urging the police to expedite action in investigating  Atanda, in order to prevent unsuspecting members of the association falling prey to his schemes since he still parades himself as the president of AMMBAN.

 

 

In a related development, the BoT has appointed Dr. Obioha Otti, the  association’s former Vice President 1 as acting President, in accordance with the bye-laws of the association.

 

 

Otti assured members of AMMBAN of his leadership readiness to stabilize the  association, adding that  he would work round the clock to transform the association to one indivisible and big family.