Security agencies In Nigeria have been ordered to put some 50 high-profile graft suspects on a watch list and prevent them from leaving the country.
A presidency statement said the move was to ensure the implementation of an executive order (EO6) which empowers President Muhammadu Buhari to temporarily seize and forbid access to any suspicious assets.
“To this end…Nigeria Immigration Service and other security agencies have placed no fewer than 50 high-profile persons directly affected by EO6 on watch-list and restricted them from leaving the country pending the determination of their cases,” it said.
“Also, the financial transactions of these persons of interest are being monitored by the relevant agencies to ensure that the assets are not dissipated,” it added.
Buhari got the approval to implement the executive order this week after the opposition lost a court bid to stop its implementation.
Names of those affected by the order are not yet known. However, opposition members believe they are the target. A number of opposition members have been on trial for corruption charges though no convictions have been made to date.
