The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has raised the alarm over what it described as planned campaigns of calumny by politicians and interest groups seeking to undermine its investigations and prosecutions.
The anti-graft agency said it had uncovered attempts by individuals with vested interests in the commission’s probes or prosecutions to sponsor media attacks against its leadership and the institution.
This was disclosed by the Head of Media and Publicity of the commission, Mr Dele Oyewale in a recent statement that attacks are aimed particularly at its Chairman, Ola Olukoyede, with the objective of distracting the agency.
According to the EFCC, the alleged campaign involves “a motley crowd of paid jobbers” drawn from politicians, academics, self-styled civil society activists and some Nigerian fugitives in the diaspora, who have been recruited to spread what it termed phantom allegations of political bias.
The commission said the attacks are aimed particularly at its Chairman, Ola Olukoyede, with the objective of distracting the agency and intimidating it into refraining from investigating opposition politicians, out of fear of being branded partisan.
“Their objective is to befuddle the works of the Commission and, through scaremongering, intimidate the Commission into a timid mode,” the statement said.
The EFCC warned that the campaign is expected to intensify as the country moves closer to the 2027 general election, a period it said is often marked by heightened political tension and attempts to discredit anti-corruption efforts.
While noting that it is monitoring the activities of those involved, the commission cautioned that it would not tolerate any attempt to derail it from its patriotic responsibility of promoting accountability and combating corruption.
Reiterating its non-partisan stance, the EFCC stressed that its operations are guided strictly by its Establishment Act and the Constitution, and not by political considerations.
“Facts on the ground clearly show that any political actor belonging to the ruling party or opposition party, with corruption baggage, has no hiding place from the operational radar of the Commission,” it said, adding that prominent members of both the ruling and opposition parties are currently under investigation or facing trial.
The commission also addressed criticisms suggesting selective prosecution, noting that references to the constitutional presumption of innocence for defendants in court should not be misconstrued as a defence of any individual.
“The Commission has no alliance or working relationship with any political party. All these facts are unassailable,” it said.
The EFCC further declared that it would not succumb to pressure or blackmail to publicly disclose the names of politically exposed persons under investigation, insisting that such disclosures are guided by law and operational procedure.
The agency said it remains committed to carrying out its mandate “without fear or favour,” regardless of political affiliation or status.
