By Iliyasu Gashinbaki
I have read the letter from the former President, Nigeria Bar Association (NBA), Dr. Olisa Agbakoba, SAN, addressed to the Chairmen of the Constitution Review Committee of both chambers of the National Assembly- Deputy Senate President and Deputy Speaker, House of Representatives. I was looking for his prayers to the esteemed lawmakers on clear and unambiguous anomalies he observed in the Establishment Act of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) that need legislative action in the review exercise. I must confess, I could not find any.
Instead, the legal luminary made a sweeping statement that is neither rooted in facts nor verifiable evidence that “I very strongly believe the EFCC is unconstitutionally established. The powers under which it was established go beyond the powers of the National Assembly. The EFCC is an unlawful organisation.” How? I have asked myself repeatedly. The EFCC is a creation of the National Assembly. It is their duty to make laws for the good governance of the country and establish any Ministry, Department or Agency (MDAs) from either members’ bills or executive bills. It is an intricate process which even requires the President of the Federal Republic to sign off before it becomes law. Of course, the learned silk knows this.
So how the EFCC which passed through this convoluted process and has been a legal entity in the last 21 years suddenly became “an unlawful organization,” because “the powers under which it was established go beyond the powers of the National Assembly,” beats my imagination. So whose powers is it to establish an agency of government to fill identifiable gaps in the polity with clear mandates?
I am aware of the trenchant faulting of the views canvassed by Agbakoba by his fellow legal titan, Femi Falana, SAN, on points of law among other cogent reasons in his article widely circulated in reputable newspapers and online platforms. I will therefore leave the two legal giants alone. I can only add that the EFCC draws its powers from Section 15, Sub-section 5 of the constitution.
Let me state unequivocally that Nigeria was facing an existential problem of corruption and financial crimes which warranted the establishment of the EFCC to mitigate, during the administration of former President Olusegun Obasanjo in 2002 through an Act of Parliament and amended in 2004. I cannot say these sore issues are no longer with us two decades down the line, but I shudder on where Nigeria would have been without the EFCC.
The EFCC has given a good account of itself in fighting corruption. It has made a lot recovery of looted funds and secured convictions by the courts through diligent prosecutions. Significantly, Nigeria’s image received a boost locally and internationally in the fight against corruption and financial crimes. EFCC should be encouraged to do more. In football parlance, you do not change a winning team. Instead, you fortify it to win more laurels. By all standards, EFCC is Nigeria’s most visible crack team in taming corruption and should be encouraged to do more.
Are there things the EFCC could have done differently? Of course, yes. One of the strategies that would have set EFCC apart, would have been the adoption of the three prong approach of Education, Prevention and Deterrence. These strategies were successfully deployed by the Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC, Honk Kong) as well as the Corrupt Practices Investigation Bureau (CPIB, Singapore), with aggregate performance of over 95% conviction rate.
On the issue of the case initiated by the Kogi State governor joined by 15 others on the legality or otherwise of the Establishment Act of the EFCC, I have no problem with that. The courts have always been fair to those who approach them as issues are dealt with on their merits and not on sentiments. The local governments would not have had the financial autonomy it currently enjoys but for the judgment of the Supreme court. Since the inception of democracy in the 4th Republic (1999 till date), local government finances had been tied to the apron strings of the State governors under the nebulous Joint Account and Allocation Committee (JAAC). Not anymore.
That is why I am confident that justice will be served dispassionately in the governors’ case at the Supreme court. But I am not too sure of the motive of the governors in instituting this case especially given the antecedent of the prime mover. Truth be told, State governors are not fans of the EFCC. It is an agency they love to hate. They would rather the EFCC left them alone to do whatever they wish with their finances.
They want total freedom to deal with their finances any way they so desire. They would prefer to have State established versions of EFCC in the manner of State Independent Electoral Commission (SIEC) that dance to their tune. Tell me, have you seen any local government election handled by SIEC where the party in power wins less than 100%? That is the perfect scenario they wish for State EFCC if they succeed in their current suit at the Supreme court. But wishes are not horses and the Supreme court will examine the case on its merit and give a ruling for the benefit of a corruption-free Nigeria.
Let me sound it loud and clear. There’s no right way of doing a bad thing. Corruption, frauds and financial crimes are bad and must be done away with if Nigeria will take its pride of place in the comity of nations. Our current Corruption Perception Index (CPI) in the world reckoning is an embarrassment. This is why the Chartered Institute of Forensics and Certified Fraud Investigators of Nigeria (CIFCFIN) has developed cutting edge forensic tools and Artificial Intelligence (AI) to support the anti-corruption agencies in Nigeria in gathering iron clad evidence to nail perpetrators of corruption at the courts.
Indeed, I am suggesting that the Constitution Review Committee in the National Assembly conscious of the urgent need to rid Nigeria of corruption, should make EFCC and Independent Corrupt and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) as part of the new constitution, the same way the present constitution has the Code of Conduct Bureau (CCB) in the Fifth Schedule. Also, the time has come to establish special courts for corruption, frauds and financial crimes in the country. Such courts should be designated as courts of records with the final say on corruption and related offences. Desperate times call for desperate measures. No country can be completely corruption or fraud free but advanced countries have put measures in place that ensure that no matter how long it takes them, criminals always get caught and the court processes are swift. We have to do the same. A situation where corruption cases liger in courts for years on end is no longer acceptable.
-Gashinbaki is the President/Chairman-in-Council, Chartered Institute of Forensics and Certified Fraud Investigators of Nigeria (CIFCFIN).
