Court stops EFCC from investigating N7b out of N13b proceeds of crime
By Jeph Ajobaju, Chief Copy Editor
A powerful religious body has obtained a court order to stop the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission from investigating a N7 billion linked to terrorists, Ola Olukoyede has disclosed.
The EFCC Chairman said the agency was investigating a N13 billion fraud when it discovered N7 billion of the cash is linked to the account of the religious body.
He made the disclosure at a sensitisation event titled, “Youth, Religion and the Fight Against Corruption” held at the Yar’Adua Centre in Abuja.
Another religious body was found to be protecting a money launderer after an amount suspected to have been laundered was traced to its bank account, Olukoyede added.
He did not name this particular religious body and the terrorist group but announced that several religious organisations, institutions, sects, and bodies are engaged in money laundering.
Said he: “A religious sect in this country was laundering money for terrorists, We were able to trace some laundered money to a religious organisation, and when we approached the religious organisation about it as we were carrying out our investigation, we got a restraining order stopping us from carrying out our investigation.”
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Need to change strategy
Olukoyede lamented that despite efforts of the EFCC to stamp out corruption, graft and financial crimes are rising across the country, necessitating the need to change the strategy of detection and prosecution, per Vanguard.
“With all modesty, we have been effective in deploying our enforcement powers in tackling various forms of financial crimes, including grand corruption and cybercrimes.
“Our conviction profile and record of asset recovery is unmatched by any other agency but rather than abate, these crimes appear to have festered, suggesting that a change of approach might be imperative.
“This realisation commends a re-consideration of the Commission’s anti-graft strategy with a new focus on prevention in line with the popular dictum that prevention is better than cure.
“It is also in tandem with the recommendations of the United Nations Convention Against Corruption (UNCAC).
“To ensure that this intervention is not lost in a polemic maze, we have prioritised two focal areas of concern to the Commission: the involvement of youth in cybercrimes and the susceptibility of our Ministries, Departments and Agencies, (MDAs) to grand corruption.
“The allure of computer-related fraud for our youth, especially those in tertiary institutions, is deeply concerning. So too, is what appears like a push back against the enforcement actions of the Commission by the youth themselves and managers of some of our institutions.
“The danger of having a tribe of future leaders whose outlook in life is that fraud and corruption are the stairways to fame and fortune is, however, too dire to treat with kid gloves.
“In the same vein, extreme vulnerability of our Ministries, Departments and Agencies to corruption, has led to resource haemorrhage and attendant negative impact on the nation’s development. Both trends easily provoke a lot of questions.”
Olukoyede appealed to religious leaders to tailor their messages to reduce corruption and promote contentment among their members so as to reduce the level of corruption in society.
