Loud rumblings have started creating tension in the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC where operatives and other officials are complaining bitterly about unpaid allowances, corruption in the agency and poor leadership of its Chairman, Ibrahim Lamorde. According to messages being circulated by the staff of the Commission, the complaints by the staff have also pitched Lamorde and Secretary to the Commission, Mr Aremo Emmanuel Adegboyega against each other.
As a result, Adegboyega was said to have refused to join Lamorde to the Senate on Tuesday to defend the Commission’s budget. According to the messages being shared by the staff of the Commission, “The EFCC Secretary has been battling the Management of the Commission especially the Executive Chairman and the Director of Finance and Account on issues of Staff unpaid Allowances and Welfare.
The Secretary, Mr. Aremo Emmanuel Adebgoyega, has refused going with them for Budget defence, arguing that until the Management pay Staff their allowances. So, they thought he was in need of money, they now credited his account with his own 25% of the allowance. He, the Secretary, told them that they should go and remove their money from his account and that as a “SAN”, there is nothing he wished to have, which he has not gotten in life. Rather, all he is saying is that these children (staff) be given their entitlements (allowances).”
An obviously disturbed staff who initiated the conversation, voiced their frustration saying “am just so confused, why is this country DERAILING in all aspect. This is an Office that is expected to FIGHT corruption. Imagine that Mr. Adegboyega who is not even an Investigator or Operative, but rather the Commission Secretary and Senior Advocate of Nigeria, has been the one insisting the Management of EFCC must do the right thing. This is quite disgusting and unfortunate. What can staff do now? Since any protest is seen as “Mutiny”. May God bring Change to this country. God bless Nigeria.”
Apart from the message in the protest message, it was further gathered that “before the Secretary to the Commission was pushed to the point of confronting the Chairman on Tuesday, he has been ridiculed to the point that a lady who is our head of Human Resources is more powerful than Mr Adegboyega and does not take instructions from him. Because of whatever is between her and the Chairman, she decides who to sack at will and now, there are 11 senior officers she has listed for sack for failing promotion exam. Where does she get her power from? We are worried.”
In another message being circulated by disgruntled officers of the Commission titled “THE INEFFECTIVENESS AND GIMMICK OF THE NIGERIA ANTI GRAFT AGENCY, EFCC, UNDER THE STEWARDSHIP OF IBRAHIM LAMORDE”, they accused Lamorde of swimming in corruption, tribalism, ineptitude and destroying the gains of his two predecessors. The message written in form of an article/petition riddled with errors is reprodued below unedited:
“Most of us are aware that the Anti graft Agency, known as Economic and Financial Crimes Commission EFCC, was established to fight both Economic and Financial Crimes as a result of the persistent corruption bedeviled our country. The agency had extremely done well during the stewardship of Nuhu Ribadu, in spite of accusations that trailed the Commission of witch hunting opponents particularly those that are not loyal to the ruling party. However the emergence of Mrs. Farida Waziri as the Commission’s head, tremendously transformed its activities in motivating staff and operatives through salary increment, promotions and training unlike the era of Nuhu Ribadu when Operatives worked day and night without good salary and all. During Farida’s era, the high number of Police officers seconded to the Commission were slashed down and she ensured regular recruitments of Cadets who are the permanent staff. She introduced many initiatives into the commission by copying the Scotland Yard Police, FBI, SSS etc and also created more departments and units but as fate would have it, immediately after the demise of President Umaru Yaradua, the present leadership of Ebele Jonathan who is breeding corruption, brought Ibrahim Lamorde back into the Commission to frustrate and also give soft landing to corrupt public officials and politicians who are loyal to the present administration of Goodluck Jonathan who cannot distinguish between stealing and corruption. As all Nigerians know, Lamorde was the Director of operations during Ribadu’s administration and was an Acting Chairman when Ribadu was forced to proceed for NIPSS studies. He, Lamorde was not made to run as substantive Chairman, rather he was posted to Ningi as an AC, CID. The resurface of Lamorde back to EFCC among other issues was to ridicule Farida Waziri and the legacies she introduced into the commission. Lamorde ensured that all the corrupt Police being redeployed by Farida Waziri are brought back to the commission, one Supritendant of Police from Sokoto and Chief Supritendant of Police from Adamawa who has head strategic Units over time in the commission and also, investigated the highly corrupt Ex Bayelsa Governor Diyepriye Alameiseghia have resurfaced back in the commission through Goodluck Jonathan who is Alameiseghia’s boy. The said CSP is one of the EFCC most corrupt Police officers and was later redeployed to the NSA office to help actualize the corrupt tendencies of Sambo Dasuki especially in arms purchasing deal, citing the current security insurgency. Lamorde has also ensured all corrupt Police officers that have over stayed in the commission, are being given preferential treatment. Consequently, Senior Police officers in the EFCC are busy making millions by extorting huge amounts of money from corrupt public officials as well as awarding contracts to their cronies. Lamorde has frustrated all Pensions and Subsidy cases, violated Federal character whereas Adamawa state has exhausted its quota in the Commission and the North East, by extension. Business tycoon, Oil Moguls and Politicians like AA oil, Yusuf Agabi, PDP Aspirant in Nasarawa State, Nyesom Wike of Rivers State etc have been given clean bills despite various petitions against them. Similarly, Staffs and Operatives that are not Police officials are being marginalized, witch hunted, indicted and even dismissed for minor misconduct whereas, Police officers are consistently given soft landing by redeploying them back to their mother organization for any offence or misconduct committed. It was during the Lamorde’s era that the commission’s staff embarked on protests in 2013 for non promotion, marginalisation and poor remuneration. The EFCC under Ibrahim Lamorde’s administration lacks the moral obligation to fight corruption, instead it is witch hunting innocent staff as well as compromising high profile cases.
The recent publication by the agency that it has recorded over hundred conviction cases, is nothing to celebrate rather they are cases that either emanates from issuance of Dud cheques, Internet fraud,etc while there was no Corrupt public officials or Politicians among them.
