The ongoing battle between the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and the former governor of Kogi State, Yahaya Bello, has been a topic of discourse across various media platforms for a while, with people expressing diverse opinions. YEJIDE GBENGA-OGUNDARE reports that what should be a simple case of arraignment and trial has become a media circus and many have questioned the manner in which the anti-graft agency is handling the matter.
Over the last five months, there had been what can be described as a cat and mouse game akin to that of the character in a popular cartoon series; Tom and Jerry between the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and the former governor of Kogi State, Yahaya Bello. Indeed, their dramatic relationship commenced immediately the former governor left office when the anti-graft agency declared him wanted for allegations bordering on financial impropriety, leading to him being declared wanted by the EFCC in a notice on its official Facebook page in April 18, 2024 based on money laundering allegations in the sum of N80,246,470,089.88.
The commission at that period stated that the former governor had refused to honour its invitation and was being protected by Usman Ododo, the incumbent Governor of Kogi State. And this drama continued between the duo and both parties were at different times issuing statements to the press on their stand on the issue.
The EFCC maintained that the governor was running from the agency. And this was the situation until Wednesday, September 18, 2024, when Bello decided to turn around the narrative that he was declared wanted because he was running away from questioning. He appeared at the EFCC office where he waited for hours and was not received or given any attention.
This was not the expectation of many who were already envisaging that the EFCC had gotten its prey when Bello walked into its den on his own volition as his surprise appearance was announced by his media team immediately via a statement. Indeed, the expectations of people that the drama was coming to an end did not materialise as Bello walked out of the EFCC office after hours of waiting without anyone attending to him. And while people were looking forward to reading about his arrest and consequent arraignment, the EFCC issued a release that he was still a wanted person and not in their custody.
Many found this confusing and the agency had to clarify its position in a statement made by its Head of Media and Publicity, Dele Oyewale, where it reminded Bello that there was no hiding place for him, adding that there was need for Bello to clear his name rather than playing the victim and crying persecution where none exists, reiterating that he would definitely have his day in court
The statement added that “it is public knowledge that a former governor of Kogi State, Mr. Yahaya Bello had made several unsuccessful attempts to throw spanners in his ongoing trial through some irresponsible and utterly rascally efforts. The appropriate place of surrender would be before Justice Emeka Nwite of the Federal High Court, Abuja, before whom his legal team had undertaken to produce him to answer to the 18-count charge of money laundering preferred against him by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
“Yahaya Bello should be more interested in clearing his name than playing the victim and crying persecution, where none exists. To even insinuate that he was the target of a phantom assassination attempt because the EFCC made efforts to effect his arrest at the Kogi State Governor’s Lodge where he had been hiding is preposterous. It is the first time in the Commission’s more than two decades existence that such a jejune claim would be made. This is no more than scaremongering intended to scandalise the commission.
“But EFCC is not deterred by this, and other shenanigans by the ex-governor. The commission remains committed to ensuring that the law takes its course in the money laundering charges already filed against Yahaya Bello in court. EFCC is eager to engage the former governor in the courtroom where the avalanche of evidence so painstakingly assembled can be presented and arguments marshalled for justice to be served to all parties involved in this saga. The true test of Yahaya Bello’s willingness to abide by the law in the criminal proceedings instituted against him at the Federal High Court Abuja by the EFCC is to present himself to the court in obedience to the order of Justice Nwite. His presence in court is the only step that will convince Nigerians that his touted submission to the EFCC which was widely reported in the media on September 18, was not a stunt
“Till date, Bello is yet to take his plea in the alleged N80.2billion money laundering charges preferred against him before Justice Nwite. His invasion of the corporate headquarters of the Commission with a retinue of security details, hand-to-hand cahoots and carriage with a sitting governor having immunity, unwarranted media blitz, scripted sleight of hands unknown to the public and other backend intelligence available to the Commission, compelled a tactical rebuff of his touted surrender offer. The incident of Wednesday, September 18, 2024 regarding the orchestrated antics of the former governor to surrender himself to the EFCC, having denied being invited by the Commission and operating underground as a fugitive for several months, expectedly raised concerns and curiosity of many Nigerians who had been waiting frantically for his arrest and trial.
“As a responsible anti-graft agency, the EFCC is sensitive to public opinions, especially if they are in tandem with its operational codes and Standard Operating Procedures. However, no hysteria, blackmail, sentiment or coordinated attacks in some section of the media would make the Commission compromise its integrity. Yahaya Bello’s matter cannot define the success or failure of the works of the EFCC, as the scorecard of the Commission is remarkable and undeniably impressive,” it added.
However, Bello’s camp did not allow the statement by EFCC slide. Yahaya Bello Media Office in a statement by its director, Ohiare Michael on September 25, alleged that the EFCC is desperate to execute a hatchet job for unknown interests, adding that the agency is bent on tarnishing the image of the former governor for political reasons and other considerations best known to them.
It described the statements released by the EFCC as a face-saving but badly scripted statement, adding that “the statement, which should be regarded as an embarrassment to the anti-graft agency itself, is filled with all forms of vulgar invectives that clearly show malicious intentions against the former Governor rather than the EFCC’s pretentious fight against corruption.
“Ordinarily, we would not have responded to the clear absurdities in the press statement, signed by Mr. Dele Oyewale, but for the need to set the records straight. The EFCC has already shown to the world, with its operational blunder, last Wednesday, that there is another motive behind its fixation on Kogi State and the former Governor other than the fight against corruption. The interesting thing is that the more the Commission issues press statements under tension, the more glaring this assertion becomes.
“It is, however, sad that an agency as important as the EFCC has now degenerated to the level of crafting press statements in rogue styles to satisfy the hirers of the gun. Even if he is striving hard to keep his shirt by satisfying some supposed benefactors, like some have insinuated, the EFCC Chairman must be reminded that we are a member of the global village.
“What the Commission should be doing now is self re-appraisal with a view to repairing whatever is left of its battered image and not still dragging the name of our President, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, in the mud with practices that are completely alien to the fight against corruption the world over.
We want to reiterate that former Governor Yahaya Bello has acted like a democrat by subscribing to the rule of law and by approaching competent courts of jurisdiction to protect him. He is never afraid of facing justice, hence his submission to the trials at various courts. The laws allow for representation and he has constantly been represented by his lawyers. As a Nigerian, he has the right to explore all avenues within the rule of law to protect his fundamental human rights. The EFCC cannot dictate to him, or anyone for that matter, how to go about this.
“But the EFCC must enlighten itself on the fact that Former Governor Yahaya Bello remains innocent of the trumped up charges against him until proven guilty by a competent court of jurisdiction.
“As we write, many informed Nigerians, at home and abroad, cannot still understand why an anti-graft agency, which had declared the former governor wanted, would beg him to go after four hours, after voluntarily presenting himself at the EFCC office.
“The chronology of events since April this year will reveal clear bias, intimidation, oppression, and total disregard for the rule of law by the Commission. We stress again that as of the time of the initial siege on the former Governor’s residence in April, the EFCC had no business there because he had a valid court order restraining such action, which had not been vacated. The Commission cannot also provide proof of a formal invitation to him,” he said.
In the face of these continuous back and forth, people have been asking whether the anti-graft agency has not lost sight of how to manage its operations without making a spectacle of itself.
Some have expressed the belief that the EFCC is playing politics with the issue as they think that it is illogical that a suspect that had been declared wanted on his own accord, presented himself to the agency that declared him wanted and rather than arrest him, for prosecution, he was ignored and allowed to walk away.
They wondered why the agency will reject Bello’s method of reporting to the commission on the ground that it was a breach of its protocol when the important issue was that a wanted suspect had presented himself for interrogation especially since there were precedents for such appearances.
Examples of such was on October 16, 2018, when former Governor of Ekiti state, Ayodele Fayose reported at the EFCC office in Wuse, Abuja accompanied by Nyesom Wike and others and was still taken into custody and detained as well as in 2014, when the DSS invited the former FCT Minister, Nasir El-Rufai, who went with Rotimi Amaechi and Chris Ngige.
In a write-up on the matter, Semiu Okanlawon, the publisher NPO Reports in Lagos after reviewing the chain of events wondered what influenced the EFRCC’s action, asking that “apart from Bello, how many of the EFCC’s wanted persons would submit themselves and still be asked to go away for them to be arrested ‘properly?’
He said, “in my view, Bello’s case seems to have put out the commission in some very bad light forcing one to query the very thought processes leading to some of the actions taken so far on this case. By my reckoning, even if the EFCC chairman has all the good intentions with his agenda, does he have the personnel to drive the vision? And by personnel, we must include whether he has around him, officials who have the courage to tell him the bitter truth especially when it comes to the commission’s operational modus operandi under him.
“In the case of Yahaya Bello, could someone have, at the nick of time on September 18th, dissuaded the EFCC Chairman by telling him that sending him away uninterrogated would throw up some unsavoury backlash? Every institutional leader needs around him, those who can speak some unpatronizing words for them to achieve their goals. Of course, it might just be that Olukoyede is not surrounded by good advisers only, the commission has some bad eggs whose agenda are just at variance with the very objectives of the commission,” he said.
According to him, Bello showed up at a time he was no longer the topic in the face of Nigeria cascading on a litany of other political and economic galloping. And the impression we have all had was that Bello did not want to be questioned over the alleged theft of over N80bn belonging to Kogi state. With the attention that had trailed his fiasco with the commission in about five months, not many were taken aback realising that the EFCC didn’t know what to do with a man that had been on its wanted radar, at the very critical moment when he showed up.
“A week after that incident, I am yet to see the logic in allowing a man accused of N80bn financial misdeeds walk away after offering you an effortless opportunity to take him in.,” he added.
In the heat of the matter, the Human and Environmental Development Agenda (HEDA Resource Centre), a leading anti-corruption organization and human rights advocacy group, asked the Inspector General of Police, Mr. Kayode Egbetokun and the Director-General of the Department of State Security (DSS), Mr. Adeola Ajayi, to immediately enforce a subsisting court order on Bello.
In a letter signed by its Chairman, Olanrewaju Suraju, HEDA expressed deep concern over the ongoing disregard for the rule of law, stating that despite valid court orders from both a Federal High Court and the Court of Appeal mandating Bello’s arrest and his presentation for trial, he continues to evade justice with alleged protection from the Nigeria Police Force and the DSS.
According to Suraju, HEDA is particularly concerned over reports of confrontations between the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and other law enforcement agencies, including the Nigeria Police Force and DSS, each time the EFCC attempted to arrest Mr. Bello.
“HEDA strongly condemns this apparent protection of a fugitive and demands that the Nigeria Police Force and DSS immediately stop obstructing justice. We call for the immediate arrest of Mr. Yahaya Bello so that he can face the charges against him in court. The continued defiance of court orders not only undermines the integrity of our judiciary but also erodes public trust in our law enforcement institutions,” Suraju added.
In reaction to HEDA’s call, a coalition of CSOs, Anti-corruption Civil Society organisations; Transparency and Accountability Network (TAN), Activists for Good Governance, Campaign Against Impunity, Ohaneze Youth Congress, Centre Against Injustice and Domestic Violence (CAIDOV) and Coalition of Anti-Corruption Organizations, stated that any call for the arrest of Yahaya Bello is a “display of egregious ignorance.”
The coalition made the assertion while reacting to calls for Bello’s arrest by HEDA, adding that with the current situation of things around the EFCC- Governor Yahaya Bello saga, only an uninformed person would still be calling for his arrest, adding that
“It is particularly hypocritical for HEDA to demand the arrest of Mr. Bello while failing to address the real issue: EFCC’s inaction! Only days ago, Mr. Bello voluntarily visited the EFCC headquarters in Abuja to respond to the allegations against him. Instead of recognizing this act of compliance, HEDA chooses to stoke unfounded outrage, thereby undermining the very process it claims to support,” the coalition said.
“The Coalition of Anti-Corruption Organizations strongly condemns a recent media statement from the Human and Environmental Development Agenda (HEDA), which demands the forceful arrest of former Kogi State Governor, Alhaji Yahaya Bello, on allegations raised by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), that the former Governor is a fugitive. This call is not only reckless but represents an insidious disregard for the rule of law in our nation.
“The ongoing trial of Alhaji Yahaya Bello is currently a matter before multiple courts, including the Supreme Court of Nigeria. The politicization of this case by the EFCC has not only created unnecessary drama but has also complicated the legal proceedings. HEDA’s insistence on a forceful arrest undermines the judicial process and disrespects the courts that are tasked with delivering justice.
“We here call upon the current chairman of the EFCC, Mr. Ola Olukoyede, to remain vigilant against groups like HEDA that disguise their intentions under the guise of supporting anti-corruption initiatives. History shows that yielding to such pressures can lead to lawless actions that jeopardize landmark prosecutions and the integrity of the commission itself.
“As a coalition dedicated to promoting public accountability and justice, we stand firmly opposed to any action that seeks to undermine the rule of law and respect for our courts. The pursuit of justice must be grounded on lawful processes, not in sensationalist calls for unlawful arrests and persecution.
“We urge all stakeholders, including civil society and the media, to recognize the importance of upholding legal standards in all matters related to anti-corruption. It is essential that allegations are addressed through the proper legal channels, without succumbing to mob mentality or unwarranted calls for immediate action. The biggest problem in the EFCC-Yahaya-Bello saga has been the unnecessary promotion of mob mentality through media trials of the former Governor,” the coalition added.
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