25days after the senate refusal to confirm Mr Magu Ibrahim as chairman of the EFCC due to the security report of various allegations of corrupt practices, Magu still occupies the position as the acting chairman of the agency.

Amongst the various allegations reported by the DSS one involving the Minister of the FCTA caught my attention and it is clear that it’s been ignored by the presidency and the senate.

The DSS security reports stated that Mr Magu currently occupies a residence rented for N40 million at 20 million per annum and furnished with 43million. The accommodation was not paid for from the commission (EFCC) finances, but by one Umar Mohammed, air commodore retired who according to DSS report was under EFCC investigation.
In Mr Magu’s defence, premium times on the 17th of December published an article with the headline “How SSS lied against EFCC boss, Magu.” The article clearly stated that “PREMIUM TIMES has obtained evidence showing the property in question was paid for by the Federal Capital Development Administration, and not Mr. Umar Mohammed. The payment schedule was signed by Isiyaku Ismaila and confirmed by Zanna A. Hamza. Mr. Magu lived in Karu, a suburb of Abuja, before his appointment as acting EFCC chairman. With his new position, Mr. Magu moved into an official residence provided by the FCDA”

The question here is, is it legal for FCDA to edorse the payment of N83,000,000 for renting and furnishiing the resident of the EFCC acting chairman Mr Magu Ibrahim?
According to the monetization policy it is illegal for the Federal Capital Development Authority,
FCDA or any executive arm of the government to use tax payers funds for personal purposes.
The monetization policy was passed into law vis-a-vas passage of the certain political and judicial office holder acts 2002, it is legally stated that monetization of the salaries and allowances of all categories of Federal public servants that were formally paid in kinds be converted to cash by the salary and wage commission. The fundamental aim of the policy is to prevent and thwart government officials from using the public or tax-payers money for personal gain.

So it is very glaring that the monetization policy was expressly defiled when the FCDA funded the accommodation of an executive, it is illegal for the FCDA to pay rent and furnish a house for even the minister let alone heads of government agencies.
With the evidence above it is crystal clear that Mr Magu Ibrahim is not fit to still occupy the position of Acting chairman of the EFCC.
So Nigerians are demanding the following from the Presidency and Senate
The EFCC acting chairman should evacute the property and tax payers funds should be refunded to the FCDA accounts
The attoney general of the fedration should investigate the FCTA involvement in this illegal act of paying and furnishing the resident of Mr Ibrahim Magu with N83,000,000 of tax payers funds
Ibrahim Magu should be fired and investigated if found guilty of these alligations, he should face prosecution like every one else

The present administration has been consistently accused of being bias and partisan in the fight against corruption. A number of highly corrupt politicians who pledge last minute allegiance to the ruling party APC have been clearly excluded from the probing list. I would say it is corrupt to selectively fight corruption, it is corrupt to fight corruption for personal gain and it is corrupt for corrupt officials to be used to fight corruption. So how do we eliminate this parasitic disease sucking our economy and giving Nigeria a bad image around the world as a fantastically corrupt country? The fight against corruption has to begin from within.

The president owes the nation a duty to flush out all the well-known corrupt elements in the government and their cronies without any further delay.

The manner in which corruption is fought is more important than the fight against corruption itself. If corruption is fought with mean, impure, callous and sadistic measures, we run the risk of creating tin-gods and the fight itself will be in breach of citizens fundamental rights as guaranteed by 1999 constitution.

Adamu U. Sani