ABUJA – The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has called for total overhauling of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to meet up with the standard of anti-graft agency.
The party said: “We are calling for a total overhaul of the EFCC Act, so that no President no matter how powerful he is, can appoint directors for the EFCC. Let the judiciary or the Senate be the one that will appoint Chairman or Board members of the EFCC. It should be removed from the exclusive control of the Presidency.”
Speaking against the backdrop of the arrest of former governor of Delta State, Ifeanyi Okowa, the party said that EFCC is not only picking on key leaders of the opposition, but has turned itself to chief financial hunter of the opposition leaders.
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Addressing newsmen in Abuja on Tuesday, the Deputy National Youth Leader, Timothy Osadolor, put President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and the EFCC on notice that nothing must happen to Okowa and key leaders of the PDP.
He said: “It is an open secret that this government has made it a hobby to pick on key leaders of opposition, especially those with capacity to give them a run for their money and guide the people against the evil that this current government is unleashing on the people.
“Former governor Ifeanyi Okowa was a running mate to former President Atiku Abubakar in the last Presidential election and he was walking freely until former President Atiku Abubakar shredded the economic policies of President Tinubu.
“It is surprising that a man who came to the EFCC office himself was detained and till now, he is still under detention. The man was not avoiding arrest, the man is a global figure and he is robed around humongous figures which is not true.
“Delta state government has not said that its money is missing. EFCC Port Hacourt and EFCC Abuja is playing both the role of a litigant and also that of the prosecution and going to the media with an investigation that was purportedly ongoing. The development is very dangerous and we must condemn it.”
He noted that EFCC has not done anything about Yahaya Bello, Atiku Bagudu and Bello Matawalle, who were accused of corruption and who some of them are now key members of President Tinubu’s government.
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He said: “Gov. Yahaya Bello of Kogi state has been declared wanted for over a year now, he comes to EFCC at his own convenience, he works in and out and many EFCC officers did not even know that he was in their premises. Former Gov. Bagudu, we all know the role he played in the Abacha gate, he is a principal officer in the government of Bola Ahmed Tinubu and nobody has asked him any question till today.
“We have heard the security report on former Gov. Matawalle, who is also a principal member of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s government. He’s going about freely with policemen and other security agents paid with tax payers money and nobody has invited him for questioning. What is the different with what has happenend in the case of Gov. Ifeany Okowa if not mere politics?
“We want to put on record that PDP youths across Nigeria and especially stakeholders in the Southern part of Nigeria want to put President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and his Agency, the EFCC which is now a political arm of his government on notice that nothing must happen to Ifeanyi Okowa and nothing must happen to the key leaders of the PDP.”
Speaking on the development in Edo state, Osadolor said, “we saw what happened recently in Edo state when they invited the Accountant General of Edo state. All these are targeted at killing the opposition in this country. Democracy without viral opposition is close to monarchy.
“We know that President Tinubu has grown thick skin to public criticism and opinion but let him be guided and reminded that he was once on this side of the divide.
“What is important to us now is that we need a country and we must first of all respect the integrity of our country and constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.”
The party demanded that the anti-graft agency shouldn’t see itself as extension of APC and should be neutral in its investigations.
“Our demands are that the EFCC should not see itself as an extension of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) or the Presidency. It should be a neutral independent body that investigates financial crimes. But its has taken it upon itself to be the chief financial hunter of opposition leaders in this country,” he said.
He said Okowa should be released and media trials and embarrassment of opposition leaders must stop.
He said: “We should also know that there is a pattern, from the arrest of Okowa, by next week he will go after Gov. Obaseki. This is a plan targeted at opposition leaders in this country. We are not saying that political office leaders should not be called to account but it should be devoid of political sentiments.”
