The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has dismissed 27 of its officers from service for fraud and other acts of misconduct, but the commission kept silence on the affected officials.
Penpushing reports that Head, Media and Publicity of the commission, Dele Oyewale in a statement on Monday explained that the purge followed the recommendation of the Staff Disciplinary Committee of the commission.
The statement disclosed that the recommendation was ratified by the chairman of the commission, Ola Olukoyede, emphasizing that the commission will equally investigate all allegations of fraud and misconduct levelled against its officials.
Penpushing further reports that the statement did not disclosed cases against the dismissed officials, while it is recalled that in November 2024 the commission announced dismissal of two of its operatives and kept mute on their identities.
“Every modicum of allegation against any staff of the commission would always be investigated, including a trending $400,000 claim of a yet-to-be-identified supposed staff of the EFCC against a Sectional Head. The core values of the Commission are sacrosanct and would always be held in optimal regard at all times,” the statement said.
“We will declare our assets, and we are going to investigate it. We must live above board by setting the pace with good examples. As anti- corruption fighters, our hands must be clean, so we must declare our assets,” he said while addressing senior staff of the commission on October 24, 2024.
Penpushing also reports that the commission, however, alerted the public of the sinister activities of impersonators and blackmailers using the name of its Executive Chairman to extort money from high-profile suspects being investigated by the agency.
‘Two members of an alleged syndicate, Ojobo Joshua and Aliyu Hashim were recently arraigned before Justice Jude Onwuebuzie of the Federal Capital Territory, FCT, High Court, Abuja for allegedly contacting a former Managing Director of the Nigerian Ports Authority, Mr. Mohammed Bello-Kaka and demanding $1million from him for “Olukoyede to give him soft landing” on a non-existing investigation. Such characters are still on the loose seeking victims’, Oyewale wrote.
‘Additionally, the EFCC is aware of moves being hatched in some quarters to blackmail officers of the Commission through unwholesome means. Suspects being investigated for some economic and financial crimes who have failed to compromise their investigators would always clutch at any straw. Such blackmailers should not be accorded any form of attention’, he added.
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