October 15, (THEWILL) – Last week, President Bola Tinubu approved the appointment of Ola Olukoyede as the executive chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC). His appointment comes nearly four months after he suspended the erstwhile anti-graft agency chief, Abdulrasheed Bawa. At the time former EFCC boss, Ibrahim Magu was removed from office on allegations of corruption, Olukoyede was the most senior official and was touted to replace him. Unfortunately, former President Muhammadu Buhari chose to replace him with the now embattled Bawa. Many claim the reason he did not replace Magu was because he is not an operative officer. From Ekiti State, he is the first south westerner to occupy the position since the creation of the agency. He is also a lawyer with over 22 years of experience as a regulatory compliance consultant and specialist in fraud management and corporate intelligence. In 2008, he established his law firm, Ola Olukoyede & Co, from where he joined the EFCC. He was a member of the Fraud Advisory Panel, in the United Kingdom, and is a member of the federal government technical committee on the repositioning of the Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit (NFIU).
A man of a few firsts, Olukoyede’s appointment makes him not only the first Christian to occupy the position, but also the first clergyman too, being an ordained pastor of the Redeemed Christian Church of God, (RCCG). All other chairmen have been Muslims. His appointment brings to four, the number of RCCG pastors who are actively involved in secular/political affairs on a national level. Besides the immediate past vice president, Professor/Pastor Yemi Osinbajo, there is the first lady, Remi Tinubu who was ordained pastor in 2018 and the National Youth leader of the All Progressives Congress, APC, Pastor Dayo Israel. Other full-time RCCG pastors who abandoned their sheep to take up secular appointments on a regional/state level are – Pastor Kehinde Gbadewole Olugbenle who in 2012 emerged the new Olu of Ilaro and paramount ruler of the Yewa-Awori axis of Ogun state; Pastor Gabriel Ayodele Adejuwon who was crowned king of Isan-Ekiti in Ekiti State and Pastor Afolabi Ghandi Olaoye now the Soun of Ogbomoso, Oyo State. One wonders if Olukoyede will truly bring to bear the fruits of the spirit, which every true Christian must manifest at all times, as he navigates the murky waters of the deep seethed corruption in Nigeria, while discharging his duties in the anti-graft agency. Besides his test of faith, many allude that he is not qualified to lead the anti-corruption agency. These set of people point to his 2021 suspension alongside 21 other directors of the commission during Magu’s probe. They claim the suspension automatically disqualifies him to head the agency. But his lawyer has been quick to shut down the claims, saying that the suspension was part of administrative protocol and not because of any wrongdoing. Again, they allude to the fact that his working experience doesn’t qualify him to head the commission as he is not an operative officer. They point to Section 2(3) of the EFCC Act which demands that the 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. Olukoyede is not an operative officer. Again, his lawyer claims that his credentials surpass the 15 years cognate experience needed to qualify for the commission’s chairmanship position. In the same vain, the presidency added that his extensive experience in the operations of the EFCC, having previously served as chief of staff to the executive chairman (2016-2018) and secretary to the commission (2018-2023) makes him fully qualified to fulfill the statutory requirement for appointment as chairman of the EFCC.
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