Deputy Senate President, Ike Ekweremadu, on Wednesday, described as baffling and worrisome, the decision of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission to deny the title of Anti – Corruption Ambassador, bestowed on him by an official of the agency on Tuesday.

Ekweremadu in a statement by his Special Adviser, Media and Publicity, Mr. Uche Anichukwu, explained that the EFCC denial which was contained in a statement by its spokesperson, Mr. Wilson Uwujaren, was most unfortunate.

The statement reads, ” We want to put it on record that the EFCC Liaison Officer to the National Assembly, Mr. Suleiman Bakari, and his team, applied for and subsequently paid a courtesy call on the Deputy President of the Senate in his Office on Tuesday, April 19, 2016.

“Mr. Bakari, amongst other issues he raised, solicited the support of the Senate and National Assembly towards the anti-corruption crusade of the present administration, and even presented a frame with a bold picture of President Muhammadu Buhari, bearing the inscription: “If we don’t kill corruption, corruption will kill Nigeria”.

“Mr. Bakari also, on behalf of the Acting Chairman, management, and staff of the EFCC decorated Senator Ekweremadu as an Anti-Corruption Ambassador of the EFCC.

“It is also a fact that the visit and decoration was captured in both pictures and video.”

It also faulted the claim by the EFCC spokesperson that the agency has never and could not have decorated anybody as an Anti-Corruption Ambassador, since, according to him, “the Commission is not in the habit of awarding titles to individuals.”

It added,”We wish to refer him (Uwujaren,) to December 7, 2007, when the Nuhu Ribadu-led EFCC conferred the Role Model Award in the Fight Against Corruption, on certain persons, including a former President of the Senate; a taxi driver; and a former Justice of the Federal High Court at the Musa Yar’Adua Centre, Abuja.”

The statement added that the said denial by the EFCC was coming in three different statements all within a few hours is, therefore, baffling, inexplicable, and contradictory.

It said, “Taking cognisance of the command structure of the agency, we also wonder whether Mr. Bakari could have acted on his own or read from a prepared text without recourse to the Commission, which he represents, especially as the visit and decoration was never solicited for in the first place.

“We leave the rest to discerning members of the public to read in-between the lines and make their own judgments.

“However, Ambassador or no Ambassador, the Deputy President of the Senate will not back down from his legislative efforts and advocacy as captured in his several public statements and lectures over the years.

“He will continue to push for legal and institutional reforms such as Special Anti-Graft Courts; Security of tenure and financial autonomy for the EFCC and related agencies.

“Only such reforms would fast-track justice and insulate the anti-corruption agencies from external interference and self-reversals.”

Meanwhile, attempts by our correspondent to get the official reaction of the Senate to specific allegations contained in the EFCC statement were not successful as the Spokesperson, Senator Sabi Abdullahi, did not pick his calls while a text message sent to him was returned undelivered.

egalitarian78:
The whole drama is clear even to a 5yr old . The APC led Fed Govt were suddenly taken aback at d sudden upsurge of goodwill d presentation of d award garnered in d camp of d DSP vis-a-vis d Pdp and d Ogas at d top must v been embarrassed and put a call to d commission. Dia is no way and I repeat no way dat d Liason Officer wud v taken such a unilateral decision to award such a high premium recognition to an Ipob, a 5% representative, a mbr of d opposition and above all somebody whose position is d major cause of d squabble in d Apc and one of d main reason why Saraki is being hounded without d consent of d commission hierarchy. The job of d Effcc liaison officer is to liaise btw d commission and d natnl assembly and thus cant be autonomous or execute decisions not originated from d commission. He specifically mentioned he was doing that under d instruction of Magu. Do these guys think we r kids?. They v only exposed d obvious dat Efcc under Buhari watch is not independent. Good a thing he never lobbied for it and this rejoinder has busted Efcc claims dat it had never given awards to ppl in d past. Ikeoha congratulations cos in d court of public opinion u r d beautiful bride here.

lukecent:
My distinguish DSP, They re not just happy for your spiral rise politically. Let them keep hating while you continue rising.

Always with you

egalitarian78:
The whole drama is clear even to a 5yr old . The APC led Fed Govt were suddenly taken aback at d sudden upsurge of goodwill d presentation of d award garnered in d camp of d DSP vis-a-vis d Pdp and d Ogas at d top must v been embarrassed and put a call to d commission. Dia is no way and I repeat no way dat d Liason Officer wud v taken such a unilateral decision to award such a high premium recognition to an Ipob, a 5% representative, a mbr of d opposition and above all somebody whose position is d major cause of d squabble in d Apc and one of d main reason why Saraki is being hounded without d consent of d commission hierarchy. The job of d Effcc liaison officer is to liaise btw d commission and d natnl assembly and thus cant be autonomous or execute decisions not originated from d commission. He specifically mentioned he was doing that under d instruction of Magu. Do these guys think we r kids?. They v only exposed d obvious dat Efcc under Buhari watch is not independent. Good a thing he never lobbied for it and this rejoinder has busted Efcc claims dat it had never given awards to ppl in d past. Ikeoha congratulations cos in d court of public opinion u r d beautiful bride here.

egalitarian78:
The whole drama is clear even to a 5yr old . The APC led Fed Govt were suddenly taken aback at d sudden upsurge of goodwill d presentation of d award garnered in d camp of d DSP vis-a-vis d Pdp and d Ogas at d top must v been embarrassed and put a call to d commission. Dia is no way and I repeat no way dat d Liason Officer wud v taken such a unilateral decision to award such a high premium recognition to an Ipob, a 5% representative, a mbr of d opposition and above all somebody whose position is d major cause of d squabble in d Apc and one of d main reason why Saraki is being hounded without d consent of d commission hierarchy. The job of d Effcc liaison officer is to liaise btw d commission and d natnl assembly and thus cant be autonomous or execute decisions not originated from d commission. He specifically mentioned he was doing that under d instruction of Magu. Do these guys think we r kids?. They v only exposed d obvious dat Efcc under Buhari watch is not independent. Good a thing he never lobbied for it and this rejoinder has busted Efcc claims dat it had never given awards to ppl in d past. Ikeoha congratulations cos in d court of public opinion u r d beautiful bride here.

If it is true that EFCC has never given such Awards in the past, then the Award just emanated from the imagination of the Liason Officer who has seen the rot in the NASS and came up with a strategy to make the Acting SP Ekweremadu not to behave like his predecessors. It's like a case of ordaining a prominent Church member an Elder so that he will shelf his plan of marrying a second wife or changing church.
But the court of Public Opinion knows that Ekweremadu has not done so much to be given that Award when we talk of Anti corruption. I don't mean he is corrupt but he has not been an activist or proponent of anti corruption all thru his national assembly years from 1999 till date (16 years). A girl born in the village in the North the same year Ekweremadu joined the Senate would have 2 kids by now!
If at all EFCC wants to give such a Prestigious Award to a whole Acting Senate President, is it not EFCC chairman that will present such?? Just a liason officer.

Nature129:

I'm really worried at of the direction everything is going under APC-led Federal Govt. Nothing seems organised and coordinated anymore