Power To Probe State Finances: EFCC Knocks Agbakoba Describes Senior Lawyer’s Comments As “Indecorous And Utterly Irresponsible.”

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) on Monday faulted claims by a former president of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), Dr. Olisa Agbokoba (SAN) that it has no power to probe a state’s finances.

The anti-graft agency, in a statement by its Head, Media & Publicity Mr. Wilson Uwujaren, described the senior lawyer’s comments as “indecorous and utterly irresponsible.”

It vowed that no amount of intimidation and sponsored attacks will deter the Commission from investigating cases of corruption at any level of government, or involving any individual.

Agbakoba told journalists in Lagos on Sunday that how a state spends its money should not be the business of the anti-graft agency.

He referenced the EFCC’s recent case against a nephew of Governor Yahaya Bello of Kogi State and the previous N20 billion bail-out controversies.

The SAN described the situation as an unwarranted media trial.

Agbakoba argued that the Supreme Court had clarified that the scope of the agency’s mandate as contained in Section 46 of the EFCC’s Act, does not include state expenditures.

Aliyu Bello, said to be a nephew to Governor Bello, alongside one Dauda Sulaiman, was last Thursday arraigned before an Abuja Federal High Court, over alleged N10bn money laundering and fraud.

Disputing his stand, the EFCC accused Agbakoba of wrongly casting aspersion on its commitment to rule of law, adding that he failed to provide evidence of the Supreme Court decision.

It also rejected Agbakoba’s claim of media trial.

It said Agbakoba was playing a “game of ostrich”, by “continually harping on Section 46 of the EFCC Act” while ignoring Section 7 of the same Act and various provisions of the Money Laundering Prevention and Prohibition Act, the Advance Fee Fraud Other Fraud Related Offences Act, etc., “which gives the Commission power to investigate all fraud cases.”

Uwujaren said: “The Commission takes great exception at the indecorous and utterly irresponsible attempt by Agbakoba to dress it in the borrowed garb of a lawless entity and a meddlesome interloper, who has no business probing the stealing of Kogi State resources.

“In all his tirades, no evidence was presented to support his claim that the EFCC has been lawless, nor did he mention any law which the Commission’s investigation of the finances of the Kogi State Government violated.

“Instead, his refrain was to a non-extent decision of the Supreme Court which he also failed to electorate upon.

“But it is important to state that contrary to the views of Agbakoba, the Supreme Court at no time delivered any judgment which forbids the EFCC from investigating fraud cases involving a state government.

“The Learned counsel ought to have known that the Apex Court of the Land as far back as 2010 in JOLLY TEVORU NYAME V FRN (2010) 11 NWLR (PT.1193)344 held that the “claim that the money belongs to Taraba State and that the state has an exclusive claim on it to the exclusion of any other authority by virtue of Section 120 of the 1999 constitution cannot stand.”

He said Agbakoba’s “erroneous views” ought to be tempered by the decision of the Supreme Court in A.G ONDO STATE v. A.G., FEDERATION (2002) 9 NWLR [pt.772] page 222 at page 308 where the Honourable Court held that: “…both the Federal and State Government share the power to legislate in order to abolish corruption and abuse of office.”

According to Uwujaren, Agbakoba’s views “are totally unsupported by the facts, circumstances of Kogi’s case and the decision of the Court of Appeal in KALU V FRN & (2012) LPELR- 9287 (CA) which decision knocked the bottom out of the contention of Agbakoba.

“From the decisions of the Appellate Court it is clear that whilst the State Assemblies can investigate finances of their states, they are not empowered to investigate and prosecute fraud cases; that responsibility lies with agencies such as the EFCC.”

According to the EFCC, it is “morally reprehensible for a learned Silk of Agbakoba’s calibre to promote the view that state governments cannot be questioned on how they use the resources of their states, and that law enforcement organisations cannot investigate cases of alleged wanton theft of Kogi State’s resources particularly where the alleged thieves do not report themselves!

“Had this view been promoted by any other lawyer than Agbakoba who rose to national prominence as an advocate of civil liberties and anti-corruption, it would have been pardonable.”

According to the agency how Agbakoba delivered his message in the media briefing, “he sounded more like a spokesperson of the Kogi State Government than an advocate of the rule of law.

The EFCC wondered why Agbakoba is “so jittery about the robust response of the EFCC to corruption that he would openly incite the next administration against the Commission?”

“That essentially was the agenda when he said: ‘So the candidate (2023 election candidates) must tell us what they are going to do with all these agencies because we need to know if they are going to allow the EFCC to continue to engage in media trials and carry on as the attack dog of the Federal Government against other arms and levels of governments,” the commission added.