The recent withdrawal of senior police officials from the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has elicited varied reactions, with many expressing fear it could hamper the agency’s operations. But law experts think otherwise, suggesting that the development should serve as an opportunity to retool the organisation for effectiveness.
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) made the news last week for reasons other than its fight against financial crimes.
It was revealed that Acting Inspector-General of Police (IGP) Usman Baba Alkali had via an April 15, 2021 letter, asked EFCC chairman, Abdulrasheed Bawa, to release all senior officers from the rank of Chief Superintendent of Police (CSP), and above, attached to the commission.
The news shocked many and attracted varied reactions, particularly in relation to its possible effect on the agency’s ability to remain afloat.
This was because since it was founded in 2003, the EFCC has been joined at the hip with the police.
Besides chairing the agency since inception till early this year, the police have provided the bulk of the commission’s foot soldiers.
The withdrawal
The IGP’s letter, marked: CB:/3380/IGP.SEC/ABJ/VOL. 3 /547, was titled: “Withdrawal of senior police officers from the rank of CSP (Chief Superintendent of Police) and above from EFCC.”
Signed by the Principal Staff Officer to the IGP, acting Commissioner of Police Idowu Owohunwa, it was addressed to the EFCC Chairman.
It reads in part: “I write to extend the warmest regards of the IGP and to inform the Chairman that the IGP has directed the withdrawal of all senior police officers from the rank of Chief Superintendent of Police (CSP) and above attached to your agency’’.
The motive
By the letter, the acting IGP gave an insight into the motive for his action, although many have also interpreted his reason in various ways.
Alkali said: “This decision is informed by the current operational requirements of the force.”
Force Public Relations Officer (FPRO), Frank Mbah was also quoted in media reports to have dismissed speculations that the withdrawal was due to inter-agencies feud.
Mba said: “The request is not predicated on any malice whatsoever. The request is purely, essentially due to operational exigencies of the force currently.
“It is part of largely deliberate effort by the force’s leadership to mop up police personnel from various units, departments, agencies and parastatals where policemen are.
“We have increasing challenges, emerging scenarios in the Southeast and we need to put our best foot forward. We are not withdrawing all police personnel. If we were withdrawing all our personnel in the EFCC, may be you can then begin to say there is a problem.
“We are just withdrawing senior officers there from the rank of CSP and above. These are officers that we need at tactical command levels. Like I said, we need to put our best foot forward.”
There is also the claim that the withdrawal was in furtherance of the recommendation by the Justice Isa Ayo Salami panel of inquiry that probed the tenure of the immediate past acting Chairman of the EFCC, Ibrahim Magu.
Previous withdrawal
The Nation findings revealed that a similar withdrawal was done in July 2020 shortly after President Muhammad Buhari approved Magu’s suspension.
It was learnt that unlike in this present instance, the 79 mobile policemen withdrawn on the directive of the then IGP, Mohammed Adamu, were ordered to be replaced.
Salami panel recommendation
A key feature of the Justice Salami panel recommendation to President Muhammadu Buhari was that since the police had produced the Chairmen of the EFCC from inception, Magu’s successor should be chosen from elsewhere.
Justice Salami, while submitting the panel’s report to the President in November 2020, said: “Your Excellency, permit me to say that four successive chairmen of the EFCC from inception, have been drawn from the police, therefore, in appointing a new chairman of EFCC, consideration should be given to candidates from other law enforcement or security agencies and qualified core staff of EFCC as provided in the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (Establishment Act 2004),” he said.
“It is also important to point out that at the moment, 970 policemen (114 drivers, 641 mobile policemen and 215 operations), are on secondment in the EFCC, therefore an exit plan for the disengagement of the police and other personnel within two years from now should be considered. This will address the issue of no promotion of core staff for over nine years.
“Your Excellency, our thinking here is that whoever you are appointing other than a core EFCC staff, should be in transitional capacity of two years during which period, arrangement would be made for appointment of any of the core staff who has been commended by National Crime Agency, UK and other international law enforcement for their professionalism.”
Past EFCC Chairmen
Since its establishment in 2003, the EFCC has had four Chairmen, chosen from the Police, with the exclusion of the incumbent, Abdulrasheed Bawa.
They are: Nuhu Ribadu (2003-2007); Farida Waziri (2008-2011); Ibrahim Lamorde (2011-2015) and Ibrahim Magu (2015 – 2021).
Before Salami panel recommendation
Before the Justice Salami panel recommended the disengagement of police personnel from the operations of the EFCC, many had argued at different fora that some unethical conduct exhibited by some officials of the agency resulted from their prolonged association with men of the police.
Speaking in Abuja at the Third Annual Criminal Law Review Conference organised by the Rule of Law Development Foundation, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN) Mike Ozekhome criticised the practice whereby people with police background were chosen to head the EFCC.
Ozekhome, who faulted the approach of the Magu-led EFCC to the anti-corruption war, asked the government to stop appointing police personnel to head the EFCC.
He made same submission when he appeared before the Justice Salami panel.
Another lawyer, Abdullah Raji, also argued that the sourcing of EFCC’s personnel from the police was a violation of the objective for the establishment of the EFCC as a specialised agency, with a distinct schedule, focusing on new trends in economic, financial and cyber-crimes, as distinct from the training and competence of the conventional police force and its personnel.
“In addition, the EFCC Act also saddles the commission with the responsibility of enforcing the provisions of other laws and regulations relating to economic and financial crimes that were seen not to have been properly handled by the regular police force.
“Also, recall that a specialised research and training facility was established with the EFCC to develop a new crop of professionals and relevant data base for tackling what was then an emerging form of financial crime.
“The government set up the EFCC Academy in 2005 to develop and deliver the training and research needs of its staff. The academy offers trainings of all categories in Anti corruption Studies, Cybercrimes and Digital Forensics and Forensic Accounting.”
Raji argued that the domination of the EFCC by police personnel before now, has rendered redundant, the academy and its products.
Implications of police withdrawal
On what, if any, implications the withdrawal of senior police officers will have on EFCC operations, its spokesman, Wilson Uwujaren was not worried.
He said: “The return of the officers will not adversely affect the operation of the commission.”
An EFCC insider said it was a welcome development and had provided the agency with the opportunity to deplore its well-trained staff, whose duties the police had usurped before now.
“The police officers that were withdrawn are less than 30. They were not occupying core positions as being wrongly portrayed. We have sufficient hands that have been trained over the years in our academy.
“So, it will be wrong to assume that the withdrawal of a few police hands would cripple the EFCC. We have well-trained hands that have since been deployed to take the positions earlier occupied by withdrawn police personnel,” the senior EFCC official, who did not want to be named, said.
Lawyers back IGP
Lawyers, including Ozekhome and Tunde Falola said the gradual disengagement of police personnel from the EFCC was a welcome development that should be capitalised on by the agency’s new management to reform and reorganise it for effectiveness.
Ozekhome said: “That is the way to go. There is shortage of police officers across Nigeria. They should go and face their core duties of protecting and defending the lives and properties of Nigerians.
“Those few ones that have been trained and retrained for EFCC duties can be retained.
“However, where they are retained, they must be responsible and answerable to the youthful Executive Chairman of the EFCC, Mr Abdulrasheed Bawa. They should not throw around their superiority complex.”
Falola saw nothing unusual about the decision to recall some police personnel earlier redeployed to the EFCC in the normal course of the performance of their official duties.
“I think the starting point regarding the propriety or otherwise of the withdrawal of the senior police officers attached to the EFCC by the newly appointed IGP is to examine the motive behind the move
“In other words, we must as a matter of fact, examine the reasons given by the IGP for the withdrawal and examine same within the ambit of the law establishing the commission.
“For us to probably achieve this, a perusal of the letter written by the IGP in this regard becomes paramount. Even though one may not be privy to have a copy of the letter, being a classified or official document, reliance will be placed on media reports.
“In conclusion, I see nothing wrong in the withdrawal provided it is meant for re-evaluation and training of these officers, and provided it was not politically-motivated,” Falola said.
