Ayodele Fayose Stop It... We Did Not Give One Naira For Your Election – Zenith Bank

Zenith Bank has categorically denied any part in the funding of the 2014 governorship election effort of now Ekiti State governor, Ayo Fayose. In a letter of Disclosure to the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE), Zenith Bank said it did not fund Fayose's election, nor any other election in the country.

“As a policy the bank does not make political donations or fund any political association or party,” it said in response to an administrative inquiry by the NSE.

It added that as a financial institution, it only

maintains a cordial relationship with the authorities of states where it has offices, including Ekiti.

“The bank's only branch in Ekiti predates the assumption of office of the current· Administration,” it noted. “Moreover, the bank does not hold any business account of Ekiti State till date. There was therefore, no incentive to fund the election as alleged.”

It would be recalled that on June 22, Governor Fayose declared that his governorship run had been funded by Zenith Bank Plc and other private donors as he tried to challenge claims by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission that funds of the office of the former National Security Adviser, Sambo Dasuki (retd), had been deployed in the campaign.

In his account, the governor said, “The management of Zenith Bank, which majorly funded my election, called me to a meeting where I was assured that the fund would be provided for my election. I was asked to nominate a trusted ally to be related with and I nominated Mr. Abiodun Agbele.

“All the payments into Abiodun Agbele’s account domiciled in Zenith Bank were directly from Zenith Bank...Most of the funds posted into Agbele’s account were through the Ibadan, Akure and Lagos branches of the Zenith Bank and sometimes; they brought cash.”

But Zenith bank has dismissed Fayose's claims, saying it will continue to conduct its business in line with best practices and extant banking laws and regulations.