Zero Corruption Coalition (ZCC) like most Nigerians learnt of the sack of Mrs. Farida Waziri and the immediate replacement of her by Mr. Ibrahim Lamorde with immediate effect after about 39 mounths in office .
While the EFCC Act gives the President the powers to remove the Chair and indeed any member of the Commission, such removal according to section 3(2) of the EFCC Act 2004 should be premised upon inability to perform the functions of his /her office (whether arising from infirmity of mind or body or any other cause), or for misconduct or in the interest of the Commission or the public interest.
In view of this express provisions of the EFCC Act 2004, we call on the Office of the President to provide the Nigerian public further explanation over the decision to sack the EFCC’s boss..
While we note that Ms. Farida Waziri handling of her office appeared to have led to a situation where many Nigerians started to lose confidence in the EFCC especially the way she suddenly promoted the plea bargaining which encouraged public officers to loot public funds, – This in addition to the many cases of arrests without prosecution owing to the bogus charges without clear evidence casted a lot of question mark on the performance of the EFCC under her leadership.
. The ZCC is however worried about the way and manner the government appoints and sacks public officials, specifically the head of EFCC, without due respect to the provisions of the EFCC Act. Nigerians need to know the reason behind the removal of Mrs. Farida Waziri so as to serve as a lesson for future leaders of the Commission. If Mrs. Farida Waziria has run fowl of any law of the land or guilty of any misconduct for that matter, we call that she should be prosecuted and if found guilty to be punished according to the provisions of the law, otherwise it becomes tantamount to abuse of office to remove a tenured officer without due process.
In the same vein, the ZCC also calls for more holistic approach to the fight against corruption in the country. ZCC believes that issues around anti graft crusade require more holistic, sincere political commitment and passionate approach. This is against the backdrop of the manner of appointment of head of anti-graft institutions which has become mired in political considerations , which in turn gives room for government’s influence over such appointees.
The mode of appointment into the leadership of anti-graft agencies is very crucial because of the corruption that has eaten deep into the fabrics of the nation and the chances of desperate politicians hijacking such a process for the selfish reasons of ensuring that they are not brought to book for acts of corruption.
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The sack of Mrs Farida Waziri we do hope will serve as a lesson to other public officials who hold public offices in trust for the people to be more serious and committed in carrying out their responsibilities; and it is hoped that the next EFCC boss will not allow the Executive control and interference with the workings of the commission in fighting corruption.
We call on government to be more supportive of the commission and provide financial autonomy that will enable the commission to draw money direct from National Assembly appropriation
ZCC further calls for an amendment of the Act that established the commission to reduce government interference and executive manipulation and to institute a case management system to curb selective investigation and prosecution. The Act should also make provision for citizens to seek court order to compel the commission to investigate identified cases of corruption.
Signed by
Auwal I.Musa (Rafsanjani)
Chairman, Zero Corruption Coalition (ZCC)
Babatunde Oluajosho
General Secretary Zero Corruption Coalition (ZCC)
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