The immediate-past Minister of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development, Sadiya Umar-Farouk, has officially written to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission seeking an extension of the deadline to meet with the commission’s interrogators over an ongoing probe into the N37.1bn allegedly laundered during her tenure in office through a contractor, James Okwete.

Umar-Farouk in her letter cited health challenges as her reason for her plea.

Freelanews had earlier exclusively reported that the ex-minister risked arrest after failing to appear before interrogators at the EFCC Headquarters on Wednesday.

Reacting to the development in an exclusive telephone interview with our correspondent on Thursday, the spokesperson for the EFCC, Dele Oyewale, said Umar-Farouk had sent a legal representative to the commission and written to be given more time to honour the invitation while citing health challenges.

Oyewale said, “The former humanitarian minister didn’t appear before the commission yesterday, but she sent in a letter pleading for more time and also explaining that she has some health challenges and that was why she couldn’t honour the invitation. She also sent in her lawyer to meet with interrogators.

“However, the commission has mandated her to submit herself to the commission without further delay. We are still tracing all the transactions; hence, we cannot put a figure to everything now as the investigation is still ongoing.”

Freelanews had reported that Umar-Farouk kept interrogators waiting for over eight hours on Wednesday without an official communication to the commission as to why she did not honour the invitation.

The former minister was asked to appear before investigators at the EFCC Headquarters, Jabbi, Abuja, on Wednesday, January 3, 2024, at about 10 am, to give an account of the alleged monumental fraud that took place under her watch, a document exclusively seen by our correspondent on Saturday revealed.

However, our correspondent who was at the EFCC Headquarters from 9 am and left at about 6.30 pm on Wednesday, confirmed that Umar-Farouk did not show up at the anti-graft agency’s office for interrogation.

Our correspondent who monitored development at the EFCC Headquarters on Wednesday observed the presence of journalists who arrived at the venue at different intervals in expectation of Umar-Farouk’s arrival.