The Presidency has berated opposition political parties over allegations that President Bola Tinubu’s administration is using the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to witch-hunt their members.
Bayo Onanuga, Presidential Spokesman, reacting to the allegations, noted that while the Presidency does not speak for the EFCC, the anti-corruption body is an “independent institution established by law and empowered to carry out its statutory responsibilities without interference or favour.”
The Presidency therefore advised those with cases to answer before the EFCC to be “bold and brave enough to defend themselves if they are clean,” adding that “President Tinubu does not issue directives to any anti-corruption agency on whom to investigate, arrest or prosecute.
“President Tinubu has significant state issues to address rather than engage in political targeting.
“The prosecution is conducted by the courts, not by any sleight of hand, and those found not guilty will receive a clean bill of health.”
It will be recalled that there were recent arrests and detention of Abubakar Malami, a former Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice under the late former President Muhammadu Buhari, who served for eight years.
Malami is being investigated by the EFCC over his role in the management of funds recovered from the late President Sani Abacha, among others.
Similarly, the EFCC also recently docked Chris Ngige, who served as Minister of Labour and Employment under the same administration, over alleged misappropriation of more than N2.2 billion while in office.
Malami, who was granted bail, later had his bail revoked over allegations that he failed to meet the bail conditions.
The revocation was seen as a political witch-hunt by the African Democratic Congress (ADC), which linked it to Malami’s presence at a political gathering in Kebbi State as part of his preparations for the 2027 governorship contest.
However, the Presidency counselled opposition parties to see the EFCC as an agency with “a mandate to investigate and prosecute financial crimes, irrespective of the personalities involved, their political affiliations or their positions in society.”
It added: “We find it curious that the same people who claim they want to rescue Nigeria are now the ones waging a war of attrition against accountability and probity
“Allegations of ‘weaponisation’ are distractions by politicians who are running short of campaign issues to challenge President Tinubu and the APC’s achievements in less than three years in office.”
The Presidency, while noting that “no one is above the law,” said, “Everyone must be accountable for their actions, both in and out of office. Political affiliation should not be a shield against the EFCC’s statutory work, which recently led to Nigeria’s removal from the FATF grey list.
“We have taken cognisance of the signatories to the statement. It is instructive that some of them were previously investigated and prosecuted by the EFCC even before President Tinubu took office in 2023.
“Some of these politicians have also been indicted in international financial probes for money laundering, with some of their accomplices jailed abroad.
“Are they now signing statements because their chickens are coming home to roost?
“We advise such politicians not to undermine the integrity of our nation’s institutions and the collective resolve to fight corruption by weaponising politics to escape accountability and encourage impunity.
“The fight against corruption is a collective responsibility and should not be trivialised by baseless allegations or jaundiced, politicised narratives.”
The Presidency accused the parties of “blowing hot air, seeking scapegoats for their failures and attempting to confuse the polity in a desperate search for cheap political gains.”
“They also alleged a threat to multiparty democracy because many top politicians are joining the governing All Progressives Congress of their own free will.”
The Presidency, however, reminded members of the opposition that “Nigeria’s Constitution guarantees freedom of association and affords citizens the right to change their political affiliations at any time of their choosing.
“None of the individuals who joined the governing APC was pressured to do so. They acted of their own free will, motivated by the visible gains of President Bola Tinubu’s reform programme.”
Business Day