The Nigerian Senate on Wednesday confirmed the appointment of Olanipekun Olukoyede as the new Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission.
President Bola Tinubu had nominated Olukoyede to take over leadership of the anti-graft agency following the controversial exit of its suspended Chairman, Abdulrasheed Bawa.
The red chamber also confirmed the appointment of Muhammad Hammajoda as the Secretary of the anti-graft agency.
Consequently, Olukoyede assumed office on Thursday, promising to reposition and refocus the EFCC for optimal effectiveness.
While speaking at a meeting with the management staff of the EFCC at the corporate headquarters in Abuja, he listed his agenda to revolve around clearer and robust pursuit of the mandate of the EFCC, creating atmosphere for transparency and accountability in governance, emphasizing preventive strategies in fighting corruption, total adherence to the rule of law, and better welfare packages for staff of the Commission.
Olukoyede is a lawyer with over two decades of experience.
Prior to his involvement and appointment as the Chairman of the EFCC, he worked as a lawyer at a law firm owned by a former Vice President of Nigeria, Yemi Osinbajo.
He served as the Chief of Staff to the Executive Chairman (2016–2018) and Secretary to the Commission (2018–2023).
He was nominated as Secretary to the EFCC in 2018 by former President Muhammadu Buhari
Olukoyede is expected to bring his expertise to reposition the EFCC and intensify the fight against corruption.
He is also expected to face high public expectations and pressure to perform given the magnitude of Nigeria’s graft problem.
A lot of Nigerians see the activities of the previous EFCC chairmen as a chain of endless overzealousness.
Also, there’s a general public perception that the commission is used for political witch-hunting of perceived opponents, among other things.
The previous chairmen were also seen as attack dogs, president’s boys and other derogatory names.
No doubt, the image of the commission has been tainted and there’s a need for redemption. Among other allegations, the leadership of the commission has been variously accused of lopsided prosecutions.
It is said that they lost some cases in court due to internal lapses.
If the truth must be told, removing or replacing the head of the EFCC will not solve any problem if its mode of operation does not change.
The new leadership of the agency should do everything to redeem its image and possibly bring stability and the needed transparency.
With the change of leadership in the organisation, the battle against corruption in Nigeria is expected to take a new and acceptable look.
In all sincerity, Nigeria needs a commission that can sincerely investigate corrupt persons and organisations.
What the new EFCC chairman is bringing to the table to change the narrative and bring new impetus to the fight against the corruption monster in Nigeria must be potent and credible.
The fight against corruption in Nigeria requires retraining and education as a means to instill transparent values.
The war against corruption must be critical because a corrupt system rewards those who do not play by the rules, creates patronage where resources are shared out by the elite, while the majority of the people are trapped in poverty.
Olukoyede, therefore, needs to revalidate this view, work in that direction to bring about the required reorientation among EFCC staff and Nigerians to ensure a credible approach to fighting the scourge.
He has to hold tight to the advocacy that a new era has come where the gains eroded by corruption would be brought back for the development and progress of the country.
The security challenges occasioned by corruption must be checked in collaboration with other law enforcement agencies, ensuring the rules of engagements to make various sectors sensitive to the fight against corruption.
“If the truth must be told, removing or replacing the head of the EFCC will not solve any problem if its mode of operation does not change”
Ministries, departments and agencies of government must be directed to devise means of ridding the country of corruption in the areas of money laundering and terrorist financing.
The appointment of a new chairman for the EFCC should bring the drift and commotion within the commission to an end and reposition it to perform its core functions more effectively.
Although the commission has been fairly successful in its core mandate of fighting corruption, it has also been in the news for the wrong reasons bordering on mismanagement of its resources, poor accountability and political interference in its affairs.
The war against corruption must now be strengthened and refocused. The people who stole from the country should never be allowed a moment of peace.
Top on his agenda should be the various reputational issues that have plagued the commission.
Olukoyede will have to deal with the various cases of conflicts of interest among staff, the questionable character of some operatives and the political interferences from the politicians. He should not yield himself as an instrument of witch hunt, and at the same time, nobody should be too big to be investigated.
To fully insulate the commission from political interference, the National Assembly should amend Section 3(2) of the EFCC Act 2004 which empowers the president to remove the chairman from office for whatever reasons.
Unfortunately, of all the six persons who have led the commission since inception (Nuhu Ribadu, Farida Waziri, Ibrahim Lamorde, Ibrahim Magu, Mohammed Umar and Abdulrasheed Bawa), none has completed a full four-year as a substantive chairman.
Such frequent changes at the top create institutional weakness, and compel the incumbent to seek to be subservient to the political authority, instead of being only loyal to the constitution.
Like the ICPC, the EFCC Chairman should be tenured for a fixed term of four or five years, and his removal from office should only be effected through the endorsement of the National Assembly.
This will discourage the incumbent from seeking to please the Minister or President at the expense of doing his job independently.
It is such independence and institutional stability that shields the FBI Director from political manipulation in the US, although the Director reports to the US Attorney General as well.
Olukoyede should also be prepared to work on lifting the sagged staff morale. Delayed promotion, nonpayment of severance package and debilitating work culture should be addressed.
He should see all staff as stakeholders in the war against corruption and be ready to build a highly motivated and effective team.
Despite its many leadership headaches, the EFCC has been one of the most successful agencies created during this democratic dispensation.
The relentless pursuit of corrupt politicians, the many recoveries of stolen assets and convictions of tainted government officials and their allies have made the commission one of the most feared, admired and respected institutions in the country.
Olukoyede must not disappoint Nigerians.
