The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) on Thursday disclosed that it secured a total of 3,785 convictions in 2022 alone.
Ramiah Ikhanaede of Legal and Prosecution Department of the EFCC, who made the disclosure while presenting a paper at the workshop on Effective Reporting of Economic and Financial Crimes in Makurdi Zonal Command, said the number was the highest in the history of the commission.
He said, “In 2022, the EFCC hit 3,785 convictions, the highest so far since the formation of the organisation.”
Ikhanaede further disclosed that the Makurdi zone of EFCC had already secured 43 convictions plus this year (2023) alone while it also made appreciable outing of 39 convictions in 2022, a total of 16 convictions in 2019 when the zone was established in Makurdi and only nine in 2020 following the COVID-19 disruption.
Acting Executive Chairman of EFCC, Abdulkarim Chukkol, in his remarks said the workshop was designed to upgrade participants skill to enable them to discharge their duties as financial crime reporters more efficiently.
“Today’s workshop is the ninth in the series by the Commission this year but the first outing in Makurdi Zonal Command. The decision to engage you all in a training session is buoyed by the appreciation of the fact that you occupy a strategic place in the fight against corruption.
“You are the vehicle through which the EFCC reaches the Nigerian public with information about our operations. You also play crucial roles in helping to mobilize the people to embrace the fight against corruption. This makes the media one of the most critical allies of the EFCC,” he said.
Chukkol however urged the media to continue to align itself with the progressive aspirations of Nigerians, to see that corruption is reduced to the barest minimum.
He said that through the commission’s enforcement activities, recoveries running into several billions of naira had been recorded and the country’s anti-money laundering framework strengthened, adding that a key component of the framework is the reinvigorated Special Control Unit against Money Laundering (SCUML) which is driving the fight against money laundering and illicit financial flows among Designated Non-Financial Businesses and Professions (DNFBPs).
He said, “On this score, I would like the media to educate family members and friends of politicians and others holding political offices that they run the risk of going to jail if they allow their companies or bank accounts to be used to launder proceeds of illegal activities.
“Under the Money Laundering Act, 2022 family members and close allies of politicians and public office holders, including top civil servants, are now classified as Politically Exposed Persons.
“The EFCC is determined to ensure that anyone who steals from the public treasury and all those who assist them to do so under whatever guise, are brought to justice and ignorance of the law will not be an excuse.
“I won’t conclude this remark without reminding us of the challenge which we face with the involvement of youths in cybercrime within the zone. This development, in spite of the enforcement and enlightenment efforts of the Commission is worrisome.
“I therefore appeal to the media to lend a hand in helping to sensitize the youth against internet-related fraud activities. The youth must be reminded that they can productively use the resources available in cyberspace for legitimate pursuits without embracing criminality.”
