The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has dismissed 27 officers from its workforce in 2024 over offences related to fraud and misconduct.
Dele Oyewale, spokesperson for the EFCC, made this known in a statement on Monday, saying that the dismissal was recommended by the Staff Disciplinary Committee and approved by the Executive Chairman, Ola Olukoyede.
“In its quest to enforce integrity and rid its fold of fraudulent elements, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission dismissed 27 officers from its workforce in 2024. Their dismissal, following the recommendation of the Staff Disciplinary Committee of the EFCC, was ratified by the Executive Chairman, Ola Olukoyede,” Oyewale stated.
Olukoyede reaffirmed the commission’s zero tolerance for corruption, emphasizing that no officer is immune to disciplinary action.
“Every modicum of allegation against any staff of the commission would always be investigated, including a trending $400,000 claim of a yet-to-be-identified supposed staff of the EFCC against a Sectional Head. The core values of the commission are sacrosanct and would always be held in optimal regard at all times,” he said.
The EFCC also warned the public about impersonators exploiting its name to extort money from high-profile suspects.
According to the commission, two individuals, Ojobo Joshua and Aliyu Hashim, were recently arraigned before Justice Jude Onwuebuzie of the Federal Capital Territory High Court, Abuja, for allegedly demanding $1 million from Mohammed Bello-Koko, a former Managing Director of the Nigerian Ports Authority, to secure a “soft landing” in a non-existent investigation.
“The commission noted that similar criminal elements are still at large and urged the public to report such individuals,” Oyewale added.
The EFCC further clarified that its chairman, Olukoyede, remains committed to upholding integrity, dismissing allegations of inducement as baseless. “Olukoyede remains a man of integrity who cannot be swayed by monetary influences. The public is enjoined to always report such disreputable elements to the commission,” Oyewale noted.
Addressing attempts to discredit the commission, Oyewale said, “Suspects being investigated for some economic and financial crimes who have failed to compromise their investigators would always clutch at any straw. Such blackmailers should not be accorded any form of attention.”
