The House of Representatives has advised the public to be guided by verified information regarding the $150m bribery allegation against three of its members by cryptocurrency giant, Binance, before taking a position on the matter.

Binance’s head of financial compliance, Tigran Gambaryan, on Friday, named three federal lawmakers, Ginger Onwusibe, Philip Agbese and Peter Akpanke, as the officials who demanded the $150m bribe from him to prevent his arrest and prosecution for alleged financial crimes.

Both Agbese and Onwusibe had dismissed the allegation in separate statements, vowing to use the instrument of the law to clear their names.

However, in its reaction on Saturday, the House of Reps urged the public not to allow itself to be swayed by what it called “recycled claims,” targeted at Nigerian institutions and public servants.

In a statement signed by its Spokesman, Akin Rotimi, the parliament said, “These allegations, which have been previously circulated last year, are directed at individual members, not the institution itself.

“The Honourable members named have assured the House leadership that they never had any such dealings as reported. One of the members has already instituted legal action to clear his name, while others affected have been encouraged to do the same in pursuit of justice and the protection of their reputations.

“It is also important to highlight that, with the active involvement of both the Nigerian and United States governments, this matter has evolved into a government-to-government engagement. Notably, in the course of high-level diplomatic discussions, the Federal Government of Nigeria has prioritised national interest over external commercial pressure, including rejecting financial settlement offers from Binance.”



https://punchng.com/binance-reps-caution-nigerians-on-150m-bribery-allegation/#google_vignette