There are such a lot of issues arising from the nation’s capital together with the a lot trumpeted ‘cupboard shake-up’ that might have turned out to be a tragic denouement however for the elimination of the Training Minister, Professor Tahir Mamman and nomination of Minister-designate for the brand new Ministry of Livestock Growth, Alhaji Idi Mukhtar, a profitable dairy farmer and former chief government of Kaduna Refinery from Adamawa State.
And so I want to take part deconstructing what I’ve thought of a conundrum: I imply we have to debate the involvement of a senior and revered citizen and senior Advocate of Nigeria, Olisa Agbakoba who has curiously joined the bandwagon of our great governors who’ve requested the Supreme Court docket to scrap the Financial and Monetary Crimes Fee (EFCC). I take into account {that a} weightier matter of the legislation. I’m propelled by the way in which the ‘public enemy Quantity One corruption has ruined Nigeria.
The origin of curiosity…First, The Financial and Monetary Crimes Fee (EFCC) raised an alarm when its operatives mentioned they’d arrested a person recognized as Kayode Cole, for reportedly issuing a dying risk in opposition to Ola Olukoyede, chairman of the anti-graft company. Cole was mentioned to have been arrested within the Lugbe space of Abuja after making the risk through his Instagram deal with, “1billionsecrets,” in response to an Instablog9ja submit on February 1, 2024.
The early warning sign story was lately adopted by a growth that would not be ignored when sixteen state governments consolidated a swimsuit earlier than the Supreme Court docket difficult the legislation establishing the Financial and Monetary Crimes Fee (EFCC). The sixteen states filed the fits difficult the powers of the EFCC, the Nigerian Monetary Intelligence Unit and every other related company of the Federal Authorities. The plaintiffs within the consolidated case, marked: SC/CV/178/2023, are Anambra, Benue, Cross River, Enugu, Edo, Kogi and Kebbi. Others are Katsina, Jigawa, Nassarawa, Niger, Ondo, Oyo, Ogun, Plateau and Sokoto.
The plaintiffs aver that the organising of the EFCC, via the EFCC (Institution) Act 2004, was not in conformity with the provisions of Part 12 of the 1999 Structure (as amended). Part 12 of the Structure captioned ‘Implementation of treaties’ reads: “(1) No treaty between the federation and every other nation shall have the power of legislation besides to the extent to which any such treaty has been enacted into legislation by the Nationwide Meeting. (2) The Nationwide Meeting could take legal guidelines for the Federation or any half thereof with respect to issues not included within the Unique Legislative Record for the aim of implementing a treaty. (3) A invoice for an Act of the Nationwide Meeting handed pursuant to the provisions of subsection (2) of this part shall not be introduced to the President for assent, and shall not be enacted except it’s ratified by a majority of all of the Homes of Meeting within the Federation.”
The plaintiffs contended that it was a United Nations Conference in opposition to corruption that was decreased into the EFCC Institution Act, therefore the constitutional provision concerning treaties and making it a Nigerian legislation was not complied with in establishing the EFCC.
The plaintiffs additionally contended that as contained in Part 12(3) of the structure, the vast majority of the state Homes of Meeting should first agree that the conference be adopted earlier than the EFCC Act may very well be validly enacted. In response to them, the EFCC Act, as at present enacted, couldn’t be utilized to states that by no means authorized of it. The plaintiffs need the court docket to declare that any establishment, so established, such because the EFCC, ought to be thought to be an unlawful physique. A number of the reliefs being sought within the swimsuit are: “A declaration that the Federal Authorities via the Nigerian Monetary Intelligence Unit (NFIU) or every other company lacks the ability to difficulty any directive, guideline, advisory or any instrument howsoever referred to as for the administration and administration of funds belonging to a state. A declaration that the EFCC, the NFIU or any company of the Federal Authorities can not examine, requisition paperwork, invite and or arrest anybody with respect to offences arising from or bearing on the administration and administration of funds belonging to a state or any native authorities space.”
The EFCC was established by an Act of the Nationwide Meeting on December 12, 2002 by the administration of President Olusegun Obasanjo. Following the appointment and affirmation by the Senate of the pioneer chairman, Mallam Nuhu Ribadu, and different administrative officers, the operational actions of the fee commenced on April 13, 2003. The institution of the Fee was partly in response to strain from the Monetary Motion Activity Power on Cash Laundering, additionally identified by its French identify, Grouped’actionfinancière. GAFI is an intergovernmental organisation based in 1989 on the initiative of the G7 (Group of Seven), an inter-governmental political discussion board consisting of Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the UK and the USA of America to develop insurance policies to fight cash laundering. FATF had earlier than then ranked Nigeria as one of many 23 international locations that have been non-cooperative within the mixed efforts to struggle cash laundering globally. And so due to recognized inadequacies within the 2002 Institution Act, the Nationwide Meeting repealed it and re-enacted the 2004 Institution Invoice, which was signed into legislation on June 4, 2004 by the then President Obasanjo.
Ribadu was handed the duty of midwifing the company. Part 2 (c) of the Institution Act describes the fee as “the designated Monetary Intelligence Unit (FIU) in Nigeria, which is charged with the accountability of co-ordinating the assorted establishments concerned within the struggle in opposition to cash laundering and enforcement of all legal guidelines coping with financial and monetary crimes in Nigeria.”
A number of the tasks of the Fee, as enshrined in part 6 of the EFCC Institution Act are: “(b) the investigation of all monetary crimes together with advance charge fraud, cash laundering, counterfeiting, unlawful cost transfers, futures market fraud, fraudulent encashment of negotiable devices, laptop bank card fraud, contract rip-off, and so forth.; (c) the co-ordination and enforcement of all financial and monetary crimes legal guidelines and enforcement capabilities conferred on every other individual or authority; (d) the adoption of measures to determine, hint, freeze, confiscate or seize proceeds derived from terrorist actions, financial and monetary crimes associated offences or the properties the worth of which corresponds to such proceeds.” Part 7 particulars the particular powers of the Fee. It states: The Fee has energy to- (a) trigger investigations to be carried out as as to whether any individual, company physique or group has dedicated any offence below this Act or different legislation referring to financial and monetary crimes. (b) trigger investigations to be carried out into the properties of any individual if it seems to the fee that the individual’s life-style and extent of the properties aren’t justified by his supply of revenue.”
Being the coordinating physique for all establishments coping with financial and monetary crimes in Nigeria, part 7 (2) of the Institution Act states, “The Fee is charged with the accountability of imposing the provisions of – (a) the Cash Laundering Act 2004; 2003 No.7 1995 N0. 13; (b) the Advance Payment Fraud and Different Fraud Associated Offences Act 1995; (c) the Failed Banks (Restoration of Money owed) and Monetary Malpractices in Banks Act 1994, as amended; (d) The Banks and different Monetary Establishments Act 1991, as amended; (e) Miscellaneous Offences Act; (f) Another legislation or rules referring to financial and monetary crimes, together with the Prison code of penal code.”
Undoubtedly, from the outset, the Fee compelled itself into the reckoning of Nigerians when it started arresting people who have been suspected of corrupt practices. From Ribadu to Farida Waziri, Ibrahim Lamorde, Ibrahim Magu, Mohammed Abba, Abdulkarim Chukkol, Abdulrasheed Bawa and to the current substantive chairman, Olanipekun Olukoyede, the EFCC has prosecuted high-profile instances involving serving and former public workplace holders amongst others.
Nevertheless, regardless of the successes that the anti-graft company could have recorded, it has additionally been criticised for abuses of elementary rights of residents in the midst of its obligation. In the identical vein, some civil society activists have additionally censored the anti-graft physique for selective prosecution and alleged media trials. The EFCC has additionally been lampooned for allegedly focusing extra on small fries like younger fraudsters popularly often known as ‘Yahoo Boys’ and abusers of the Naira, whereas failing to diligently pursue and prosecute suspects with doubtful credentials.
Previous to this consolidated case, a number of state governments had gone to court docket to problem the EFCC’s powers to probe their state funds, arguing that they’d their Home of Meeting, Accountant-Common and Auditor-Common to do this throughout the context of apply of federalism. Some have additionally gone forward to arrange their states anti-corruption businesses to deal with corruption of their states. Apparently, among the state governments that challenged the EFCC and misplaced their instances have been joined within the present case initially instituted by the Kogi State Authorities, which had claimed transparency after the EFCC invited its officers to reply prison allegations associated to the alleged withdrawal of N46bn from the state’s financial institution accounts.
In Could 2023, a Federal Excessive Court docket sitting in Awka, Anambra State dismissed a swimsuit filed by the Anambra State Authorities difficult the EFCC’s energy to analyze its funds, describing it as factually and forensically missing in benefit. The state authorities had approached the court docket presided over by Justice Nnamdi Dimgba to find out whether or not below the federal system of presidency with the constitutional doctrine of separation of powers, “the appropriation, disbursement and or administration of funds belonging to a State Authorities is topic to investigation by the EFCC being an company of the Federal Authorities.”
However now, how will we place the curiosity of a former President of the Nigerian Bar Affiliation, Dr Olisa Agbakoba, (SAN) who has written to the Nationwide Meeting on the standing of the identical EFCC whilst he praised the swimsuit of the sixteen governors.
In two separate letters to the Senate and Home of Representatives, dated October 14, 2024, Agbakoba mentioned the EFCC was an illegal organisation that he believed was “unconstitutionally established.”
He mentioned, “I very strongly consider the EFCC is unconstitutionally established. The powers below which it was established transcend the powers of the Nationwide Meeting. The EFCC is an illegal organisation,” Agbakoba mentioned.
The Supreme Court docket had on October 22 deferred ruling on the swimsuit introduced earlier than it by the16 states, looking for to declare that EFCC has no proper to test the accounts of the state authorities.
Though Femi Falana, SAN had written to problem the place of Agbakoba, ought to the nation again the nullification of the EFCC legislation as a substitute or search reform of its operations to serve frequent good? Are the governors looking for the abrogation of the EFCC legislation doing that due to public or private curiosity? As we await the ruling of the Supreme Court docket, the solutions to those questions shouldn’t blow within the wind of authorized technicality, once more!
