The Campaign for Democracy (CD) has urged Mr. Ibrahim Lamorde, the Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), to rise up and let his leadership be felt in the war against corruption.
In a speech during a courtesy call on Mr. Lamorde on Monday, Dr. Joe Okei-Odumakin, the President of CD challenged the EFCC the EFCC to devise ways of preventing corruption as that would be cheaper than having to fight it.
He reminded the chairman that he has taken office at a time corruption in Nigeria has assumed, in the words of renowned author Niyi Osundare, “the status of Grand Commander of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.”
“A situation where we no longer measure corruption in millions but metering it in billions and trillions is worrisome for all those with a stake in the future of our country,” CD said. “We have become a butt of practical jokes in the international community given the cases of graft coming out of Nigeria on daily basis.”
Citing recent comments by various important public figures on the state of corruption in the country, it called on the EFCC leadership to “hit the ground running” on:
• The several cases of former governors indicted for corruption across the country with no visible progress being made on their trials; and
• The fuel subsidy regime scam in which over N3trn was stolen in place of N245b that was budgeted.
“We insist that the bribery saga involving Mr. Femi Otedola and Hon. Farouk Lawal has not anyway negated the report of the House of Representatives,” CD said. “The request and offer of bribe occurred after the report was already submitted and there has been no repudiation of the fact that he budget was overspent by 1100% in a year. We want to see the indicted companies and individuals being interrogated and charged to court.”
The Campaign also urged Mr. Lamorde to pay attention to the rate at which judges are throwing out cases filed by the EFCC against accused corrupt people on the grounds of shoddy prosecutions by expensive Senior Advocates, and to ascertain that there was no compromise with the accused persons in some of those cases.
“We shall have great words of commendations for you if at the end of your tenure, economic and financial criminals catch cold at the mention of the EFCC,” CD promised Mr. Lamorde.
It would be recalled that the new EFCC chairman assumed office in November 2011 following the sacking of his predecessor, Mrs. Farida Waziri. Some commentators have described Mr. Lamorde’s tenure so far as lackluster or “business as usual,” saying that that Nigeria’s army of the privileged corrupt continues to enjoy their loot uninterrupted.
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