Follow Us on Google
From Kenneth Udeh, Abuja
Senate has confirmed the appointments of Ola Olukoyede as chairman, Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and Halima Shehu as coordinator and chief executive officer of National Social Investment Program Agency (NSIPA).
The Senate presided over by Godswill Akpabio also confirmed Muhammad Hassan Hammajoda as secretary of the anti-corruption agency.
Olukoyede, Hassan and Muhammad who hail from Ekiti, Katsina and Adamawa states respectively also received the approval of the lawmakers to preside over the affairs of the respective agencies.
The Senate screened the EFCC nominees in accordance with the provisions of Section 2 (3) of the EFCC Establishment Act 2004 (committee of the whole).
Prior to his confirmation, Olukoyede solicited support for the agency, promising to implement preventive measures that would block corruption incentives.
He answered to questions bordering on the functions of the Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit (NFIU), allegations of the anti-corruption agency being used as a tool for political witchhunt, synergy between the agency and the Independent Corrupt Practices Commission (ICPC), impunity of the EFCC and its gestapo style of carrying out arrests, lack of focus in investigating crimes in the financial institutions, especially the banking sector, illegal sales of forfeited and recovered assets among other questions.
He said: “The fight against corruption has been more rhetoric than showing commitment. The time has come to show commitment. For instance, if we have the opportunity to investigate someone, the moment you open the investigation you become the person’s enemy including his family, friends, associates and so on and this is bad. We must support the agency to call a spade a spade. The time has come to call evil evil.
“The time for us to look at prevention rather than enforcement. The incentives to attract corruption are everywhere, we shall do our best to block these leakages. We must also make the criminal justice system adjudicate effectively.”
Similarly, Shehu was grilled on her her plans to turn around the affairs of poverty alleviation agencies, including plans to rejig the six interventional programmes of the agency namely N-Power, National Home-Grown School Feeding Programme, Grant for Vulnerable Groups, Alternate School Programme, Government Enterprise and Empowerment Programme.
