NewStats: 3,264,449 , 8,183,750 topics. Date: Wednesday, 11 June 2025 at 07:08 AM 4s234n

Barring any last-minute change of plan, President Bola Tinubu is set to appoint Olanipekun Olukoyede as the substantive chairperson of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), a move that is bound to set off controversy over the candidate’s qualification for the job.

Mr Olukoyede, a lawyer, had served as secretary of the anti-graft agency for two years during the reign of Ibrahim Magu as the acting chair of the commission. He, along with Mr Magu, was suspended from office by President Muhammadu Buhari in 2020 and was never recalled.

Before his secretary role, Mr Olukoyede had served as Mr Magu’s chief of staff.

“President Tinubu has chosen Olanipekun Olukoyede for appointment as substantive chairman of the EFCC,” a top presidency source familiar with the development but not permitted to discuss it ahead of the official announcement, told TIMES.

Also confirming the development, another source hinted that Mr Olukoyede’s appointment, which requires Senate confirmation, would be made public “very soon”.

President Tinubu, in June this year, suspended Abdulrasheed Bawa as EFCC chair, and in his place, appointed Abdulkarim Chukkol, then director of operations, in an acting capacity.

Mr Bawa’s suspension, anchored on “weighty allegations of abuse of office levelled against him” followed a conventional pattern of unceremonious removal of past EFCC bosses

This newspaper had chronicled how leadership succession at the two-decade-old EFCC had been steeped in controversies concerning allegations of fraud.

For four months now, Mr Bawa has been in detention at the State Security Service (SSS) after he honoured the agency’s invitation for interrogation regarding the corruption allegation.

There are speculations that Mr Bawa has agreed to officially resign from office.

Who is Olanipekun Olukoyede?

Mr Olukoyede, who hails from Ikere-Ekiti, Ekiti State, South-west Nigeria, was born on 14 October 1969. He will therefore clock 54 on 14 October.

Former President Muhammadu Buhari nominated Mr Olukoyede as Secretary to EFCC in 2018.

Subsequently, the Nigerian Senate confirmed his appointment in November 2018, to replace Emmanuel Aremo, whose five-year tenure ended in July of 2018.

But, Mr Olukoyede’s confirmation as EFCC scribe came with controversy, as a senator, Isa Misau accused the Chairman of the Senate Committee on Anti-Corruption and Financial Crimes, Chukwuka Utazi, of sidelining some of the senators in preparing the committee’s report which cleared Mr Olukoyede for the job.

He had worked as a lawyer at the law firm of former Vice President Yemi Osinbajo before he clinched the EFCC job.

Mr Olukoyede is a seasoned lawyer with expertise in compliance management, corporate intelligence and fraud management.

He is a certified fraud examiner who has led investigations and civil litigation of fraud and financial crimes in International development projects.

He equally specialises in anti-corruption research and analysis, corporate and business intelligence gathering and processing.

He is a member of the Fraud Advisory (UK), and also a member, of the Federal Government Technical Committee on the Repositioning of the Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit.

Controversy: Is Mr Olukoyede qualified to head the EFCC
If Mr Olukoyede’s nomination sails through, he will be the first Nigerian from the South of the country to lead the anti-corruption agency.

From the pioneer chair of the EFCC, Nuhu Ribadu who is now the National Security Adviser (NSA) to President Tinubu, to Farida Waziri, Ibrahim Lamorde, and Abdulrasheed Bawa, all substantive chairpersons of the commission, and even acting chairpersons, have always been from the Northern region.

However, there are concerns that Mr Olukoyede, who is being considered for the job and touted to likely break the trend of having northerners as the chair of the commission, may not be qualified for the job. There are statutory requirements for the appointment of the EFCC boss which Mr Olukoyede may not meet.

Section 2(3) of the EFCC Act, 2005, stipulates that a chairman of the commission “must be a serving or retired member of any government security or law enforcement agency not below the rank of Assistant Commissioner of Police or equivalent; possess not less than 15 years experience.”

Mr Olukoyede, who has played more istrative roles in EFCC for less than a decade, cannot be said to have attained 15 years of cognate experience, especially when he has never worked in the mainstream law enforcement operations of the commission or any related agency.

Mr Tinubu, who has been criticised for his istration’s lukewarmness towards the fight against corruption, is set to attract more rebukes if he eventually announces Mr Olukoyede with doubtful background qualification to lead Nigeria’s flagship anti-corruption agency.

SOURCE

I thought he was representing a southern ticket?.

Hmm 🤔

Ok

See his face like that yeye Garba sheghu

Na wa. Hasn’t the law that set up the commission clearly defined who qualifies & who doesn’t? There are plenty As & above or its equivalent in the security sector with 15yrs experience as required by law. I don’t want to believe this is true.

Okay...

Forgery will rain in Nigeria

Criminals already have hope in this country

Ronu the ronulites

See his heavy cone head

Government of the 🌽 people

He should look for a trustworthy Igbo or south south person for that position. People will read ethnic sentiments into whatever the EFCC is doing under a Yoruba president and Yoruba EFCC chairman.

Section 2(3) of the EFCC Act, 2005, stipulates that a chairman of the commission “must be a serving or retired member of any government security or law enforcement agency not below the rank of Assistant Commissioner of Police or equivalent; possess not less than 15 years experience.”

From the above, it's obvious Olanipekun Olukoyede is not qualified at all to head the anti graft agency

But, what do I know

The end is near

seunmsg:
He should look for a trustworthy Igbo or south south person for that position. People will read ethnic sentiments into whatever the EFCC is doing under a Yoruba president and Yoruba EFCC chairman.

seunmsg, this comment is unlike you

I never ed Tinubu but it will be unfair to accuse Tinubu of nepotism or Yorubanising his appointmentments.

Buhari set the bar so high. He turned deaf ears to anyone who cried.

Tinubu said it's his turn. Let him do as it please him

A known criminal........



President Muhammadu Buhari has suspended no fewer than 11 senior officials of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, as the probe of the shenanigans under the stewardship of disgraced Ibrahim Magu deepened.

Authoritative Presidency sources told P.M.News on Tuesday night that EFCC executive Secretary Olanipekun Olukoyede was among the senior officials suspended.

According to the source, ‘they were suspended for various alleged criminal and corrupt infractions”.

The suspension of the officials was also to allow for unfettered investigation of the commission.

“All the top officials in the agency have been suspended, their offices locked, to prevent any tampering with files at the commission”, the source added.

President Buhari suspended Ibrahim Magu, the former acting chairman of the agency last week and appointed the director of operations, Mohammed Umar Abba, to hold forte.

The source said Umar Abba survived the temporary purge, as he was found not to be a part of the suspected underhand dealings in the agency.

Olukoyede became the Secretary to the EFCC in November 2018 following confirmation by the Senate.

The Ikere-Ekiti born senior lawyer was a former chief of staff to Magu. He replaced Emmanuel Aremo, whose five-year tenure expired in July 2018.

The former acting chairman of the agency is facing for the second week, grilling by the presidential headed by Justice Ayo Salami, over financial allegations and improprieties, including money laundering.

He is facing tough questioning over allegations that he re-looted funds recovered by the commission. And that he accepted bribes to pervert cases of graft.

He is also accused of mismanagement of recovered assets by the EFCC.

Among the issues Magu is helping the to resolve are wide discrepancies in figures of recovered monies published by the agency.

The has also asked him to react to the Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit(NFIU) report accusing him of siphoning money from the EFCC.

NFIU report showed that a particular Bureau de Change, owned by Ahmed Ibrahim Shanono linked to the Acting Chairman based in Kaduna has more than 158 s and has been receiving huge sums of funds.

The report also accused Magu of laundering money through Pastor Emmanuel Omale of Hand of God Prophetic Ministry.

Omale was alleged to have bought a landed property on behalf of Magu worth N573 million in Dubai, United Arab Emirates.

“Another individual who is helping in laundering funds for the Acting Chairman and who has been referred to in several petitions is one Pastor Emmanuel Omale (Hand of God Prophetic Ministry).

“He is reported to have traveled to Dubai with Mr. Magu and his name was used in purchasing property in Dubai for Mr Magu.

“As an unknown pastor, the NFIU’s report showed huge movement of funds ranging from N573,228,040.41,’’ the report said.

Omale has denied laundering money for Magu.

Magu has also been accused of allegedly failing to give proper of missing 332 out of the 836 recovered real estate property as of March, 2018.

https://pmnewsnigeria.com/2020/07/15/complete-sweep-buhari-suspends-efcc-secretary-olukoyede-10-others/

Too much Yorubanization of federal position

not impressed with Tinubu appointments

Amotekun yahoo boys

EFCC is a toothless bulldog. Only good at chasing opposition

anticorruption crusade can never breef in dis istration... he shouldn't bother!

political witch-hunting song on cue!

Political reward for Ekiti people.
I hope Mr. Olanipekun would be diligent and upright in discharging his constitutional duties to develop the nation - not to functions as a mere Political bully.

Yoruba nation. Like buhari, like tinubu. Nigeria can't go far in of nepotism..

Let the best hands take lead.

Tinubu Jagaban the Eze-chukwu of Igbo land, the crusher of Peter girigory Obi and his people is really making a statement here

Mr Olukoyede enjoy your short lived appointment cos Supreme court hand go soon reach BAT.

This is a good move. It's time to allow another region to head EFCC. It is not only the northern part that are honest.

H

Yoruba people

Anoda grease e don apply for person wound this Lovey Sunday Eve.. next 4 + 4 , BAT go dey for dem MOUTH , Ękun Ayo ✌ ♾