Tinubu suspends EFCC chair indefinitely, orders probe

Forum 10 months ago

Tinubu suspends EFCC chair indefinitely, orders probe

The President, Bola Ahmed Tinubu, has indefinitely suspended the Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, AbdulRasheed Bawa, from office.

The Director of Information in the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Willie Bassey, who stated this in a statement on Wednesday, disclosed that the suspension was meant to ensure investigations into “weighty allegations “ of abuse of office against the suspended EFCC chairman.

Former President Muhammadu Buhari had in February 2021 appointed Bawa as the EFCC chairman following the removal of his predecessor, Ibrahim Magu, over allegations of corruption.

According to Buhari’s letter to the Senate, Bawa, 40, is a trained EFCC investigator with vast experience in the investigation and prosecution of Advance Fee Fraud cases, official corruption, bank fraud, money laundering, and other economic crimes.

“He has undergone several specialized trainings in different parts of the world and was one of the pioneer EFCC Cadet Officers in 2005. Bawa holds a B.Sc degree in Economics, and Master’s in International Affairs and Diplomacy,” the letter added.

Magu’s exit

Magu, a Commissioner of Police, was suspended from office following allegations of abuse of office and corruption levelled against him.

Although he denied all the allegations, a presidential panel led by former President of the Appeal Court, Justice Ayo Salami, investigated him and recommended his dismissal from the EFCC.

The panel, which submitted its report to President Buhari in November 2020, also asked the president to appoint a new EFCC chairman in an interim position for two years.

A few years, after his appointment, Bawa faced strong opposition from non-governmental organisations who called for his removal.

Also, in February the Kogi State Government, Yahaya Bello, accused the EFCC led by Bawa of being a “pawn in the hands of political opponents in a bid to satisfy certain political interests”.

Similarly, A civil society organisation, Coalition of Concerned Citizens accused Bawa of abuse of office, and corruption among others

Last month, a former Governor of Zamfara State, Bello Matawalle, accused the Chairman of the EFCC of demanding a two million dollars bribe from him.

He made the allegation during an interview with BBC Hausa, amid the ongoing rift between the governor and the anti-graft agency.

Matawalle said, “It is not just to always blame governors. It is not only governors who have treasuries, the federal government also has. What does the EFCC boss do to them? As he is claiming he has evidence on governors, let him show the world evidence of those at the federal level.

“If he exits office, people will surely know he is not an honest person. I have evidence against him. Let him vacate the office, I am telling you within 10 seconds probably more than 200 people will bring evidence of bribes he collected from them. He knows what he requested from me but I declined.”

But during an interview with BBC Hausa, Bawa denied the allegations. He that it would be beneficial for Matawalle to provide supporting evidence for his allegations.

“There is no human being who is 100% clean, I read somewhere he (Matawalle) asked us to extend our investigation to ministers. We carry out our investigations thoroughly and if Governor Matawalle has knowledge of any minister or governor involved in corrupt practices, he should report it to the appropriate authorities.

“If he has records of my purported corrupt practices, the appropriate channels for redress would be through reporting to the police, ICPC, and the Code of Conduct. Subsequently, investigations into such complaints would ensue.” Bawa said.

Bawa suspended

In a statement on Wednesday, Bassey said Bawa had been suspended and been directed to immediately hand over to the Director, Operations in the Commission pending the conclusion of the investigation.

The statement read, “ President Tinubu has approved the indefinite suspension from office of AbdulRasheed Bawa, CON, as the Chairman, Economic, and Financial Crimes Commission to allow for proper investigation into his conduct while in office. This follows weighty allegations of abuse of office levelled against him.

“Bawa has been directed to immediately hand over the affairs of his office to the Director, Operations in the Commission, who will oversee the affairs of the Office of the Chairman of the Commission pending the conclusion of the investigation. “

News of Bawa’s sack came hours after Tinubu received the EFCC Boss in audience at the Presidential Villa on Wednesday.

It was his second meeting with anti-graft agency’s chief since assuming office on May 29.