…Akinwumi Adesina was allegedly accused of corruption
Former President of Ireland, Mary Robinson will head the panel to investigate African Development Bank’s (AfDB) president, Akinwumi Adesina.
Adesina was allegedly accused of corruption by whistleblowers at the beginning of this year. In a report submitted to question him, his leadership has been dented with poor governance, impunity, favourtism and personal enrichment.
The sixty-year old charismatic speaker, who is the first Nigerian to attain topmost position in AfDB, was cleared by the Bank’s internal investigators, but the United States leading those mounting international pressure insisted on autonomous investigation.
Also read: Adesina speaks on Jennifer Blanke’s resignation as AfDB vice president
According to a release on Wednesday, Robinson will head other members of the investigative team, which include Gambia’s Chief Justice Hassan Jallow and the World Bank’s integrity vice president, Leonard McCarthy, and the board of governors in the Bank.
Robinson is a trained barrister that governed Ireland from 1990 to 1997 before serving as the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights until 2002.
The governors of the AfDB has reiterated, “their complete confidence” in the panel which is to deliver its judgments within two to four weeks.
The AfDB is one the world’s five biggest multilateral development lenders, and has a actively contributed to African economies in funding projects in agriculture, health, energy, education, transport and other development areas.
