Return of Enugu State assets by the EFCC
Many patriotic Nigerians protested when a court ordered the Federal Government to forfeit the properties owned by the people of Enugu that the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) had recovered from former Governor Chimaroke Nnamani.
On July 8, 2015, Justice Mohammed Yinusa of the Federal High Court, Lagos, issued an order directing that the Federal Government be granted possession of the assets, which included fourteen properties that belonged to the four companies that were retrieved from Nnamani: Rainbownet Nigeria Limited, Cosmos FM, Capital City Automobile Nigeria Limited, and Renaissance University Teaching Hospital.
It happened right after former President Muhammadu Buhari took office and made hateful remarks against Easterners for not supporting him. This created quite a commotion on social media, with many Nigerians wondering why such a decision was made.
However, things have swiftly improved after President Bola Tinubu granted Governor Peter Mbah’s plea to give the properties to Enugu State, their legitimate owners.
The transfer ceremony that took place last week at the Commission’s Abuja offices is a positive milestone.
We trust that Governor Mbah would keep his word and see to it that the people of Enugu get as much as possible from the reclaimed assets. Good leadership is achievable, as demonstrated by Governors Mbah and Alex Otti of Abia State.
This is especially true in the Southeast, which has had an unusually high rate of dishonest and inept governors over the previous 25 years.
With Olanipekun Olukoyede leading the anti-graft agency—the first person from the South to hold that position—the EFCC is gradually regaining the public’s trust. There is definitely a need for questioning following the contentious dismissal of previous EFCC leaders Farida Waziri, Ibrahim Lamorde, Ibrahim Magu, and Abdulrasheed Bawa from their positions.
The EFCC’s involvement in the Enugu State asset recovery case has highlighted the significance of having a federal agency that can protect the public’s assets from wealthy, renegade politicians and return them to their rightful owners without trying to redirect them. The EFCC still has a responsibility to monitor them and make sure they aren’t taken again.
We implore the EFCC to investigate the actions of a few former anti-graft agency leaders and provide answers to some unanswered concerns. For example, what is the real story behind the petitioner George Uboh’s claim that a former EFCC chairman diverted large amounts of confiscated funds?
Nigerians are also in search of explanations on the purported frauds that led to the removal of Magu and Bawa. How did former Attorney General Abubakar Malami handle the assets that were recovered, such as the “Abacha loots” that were repatriated? Nigerians are not oblivious.
Olukoyede has our best hope of carrying out his duty with excellence.
