Group wants president Tinubu to immediately scrap the EFCC, to save the country from disgrace, ridicule

By Obansa Ibrahim, Lokoja

A group Movement for the Actualization of True Federalism and Political Restructuring in Nigeria, has call on President Ahmed Bola Tinubu to immediately scrap the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, (EFCC) to save the country from disgrace and ridicule.

The group said it was constrained to join other well meaning Nigerians to call for the scrapping of the agency based on the disgraceful outing of the organization which is seen by many Nigerians as mear political witch-hunt.

Addressing a press conference in Lokoja, the leader of the group, Comrade Benjamin Olurunfemi Timothy, said that the EFCC over the years has earned the reputation of the GESTAPO, following their habitual nocturnal raids of homes and workplaces of citizens and incessant flagrant disregard for rule of law and constituted authorities of the Nigeria

Describing the agency as a child of illegitimacy, Timothy added that “unfortunately for EFCC, Nigeria is not Nazi Germany and definitely not a banana republic, hence the call for the immediate disbandment of the agency, which he said has painted negative image for Nigeria.

“GESTAPO is a German acronym for the German Secret State Police in Nazi Germany known for its terrorist methods of operation. Going secretly at night under the cover of darkness against any perceived enemies or suspects.

“The EFCC over the years has however earned the reputation of the GESTAPO following their habitual nocturnal raids of homes and workplaces of citizens and incessant flagrant disregard for rule of law and constituted authorities of the Nigeria. Unfortunately for EFCC, Nigeria is not Nazi Germany and definitely not a banana republic.

“Another perfect way to describe the crude and ancient EFCC’s modus operandi is that of the dance to the popular K- pop song by the South Korean artist, PSY released July 15th 2012 called ” Gangnam Style ” which millions of Nigerians from the south west extraction nicknamed ” Gra- Gra Style” judging from the way the artist and his crew danced in a coordinated , planned but wild and gangsta manner.

“When asked about the meaning of the song Gangnam style, he said ” Gangnam is a Territory in Seoul Korea. I described it as noble at the daytime and going crazy at the night time” which perfectly described the actions of the EFCC behaving noble at day time but going ballistic, gun blazing and violent at odd hours.

He added that in 2016, the EFCC in their usual gestapo manner stormed the home of justice Ofili Ajumogobia , a judge of a Federal High Court at 5:00am in the morning under the guise of investigation and prosecution of a case of alleged money laundering and breach of public trust.

Eventually, after such a public show of shame and National embarrassment by the EFCC, the cases were struck out by a high court judge of Lagos state in 2019 and she was reinstated as a Federal High Court judge on the 1st of December, 2022. An Abysmal performance , worst methodology and waste of resources by the agency .

On the 29th of October 2021, the EFCC again stormed the maitama home of a supreme court judge, Justice Mary Odili in Abuja. The operatives accompanied by policemen broke into her home in search of her husband who was a Governor in Rivers state between 1999 and 2007 after the latter had obtained perpetual injunction from a court of competent jurisdiction banning EFCC from investigating him and got another fresh injunction in 2020 against any impending probe. The EFCC flagrantly disobeyed and disregarded the laws of the country .

It’s also public knowledge that operatives of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission stormed the Kogi Government Lodge, Asokoro in an attempt to forcefully arrest former Governor Yahaya Bello. They shot sporadically in an attempt to forcefully arrest former Governor Yahaya Bello when it was reported earlier that the former Governor went to the EFCC Office voluntarily earlier that day but the Commission told him to leave and come at a later date, only to mount a Gestapo-like attack on the Kogi State Government facility in Asokoro.

Speaking further he said “Many Notable Nigerians had condemned the methodology of the EFCC . The former President, Nigerian Bar Association, Dr Olisa Agbakoba once said the EFCC shouldn’t have been in existence, challenging it’s legality and the alien methods of operation.

“More worrisome is the ” Naming and Shaming” of the citizens and the accompanying media trials which they have unjustly incorporated and normalized due to the Nigerians distrust of the justice system. The agency has adopted the ” bypass the courts ” strategy and taking their cases directly to the courts of public opinions , a mild form jungle justice taking advantage of the alternative justice system of medial trial because of the citizens have lost faith in the nation’s judiciary.