Exactly three months after they declined to confirm Ibrahim Magu as the
\nsubstantive Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission
\n(EFCC), The Senate yesterday affirmed their December 15, last year\u2019s
\nposition on the EFCC\u2019s acting chairman. The Red Chamber relied on
\nthree-paragraph memo from the Department of State Services (DSS) dated
\nMarch 14, affirming the Services\u2019 earlier report on Magu. Below is the
\nReport:<\/p>\n
In August 2008, following a search at his residence during the tenure of
\nFarida Waziri (AIG\/rtd) as the commission\u2019s chairman, some sensitive EFCC
\ndocuments which were not supposed to be at his disposal were discovered.
\nHe was subsequently redeployed to the police after days of detention and
\nlater suspended from the Force.<\/p>\n
In December 2010, the Police Service Commission (PSC) found Magu guilty of
\n\u201cAction prejudicial to state security, withholding of EFCC files,
\nsabotage, unauthorised removal of EFCC files and acts unbecoming of a
\npolice officer,\u201d and awarded him severe reprimand as punishment.<\/p>\n
Notwithstanding, sequel to the appointment of Ibrahim Lamorde as Chairman
\nof the EFCC in 2011, he made the return of Magu to the EFCC a top
\npriority. Both men had worked together at the commission when Lamorde
\nserved as Head of Operations of the agency. Magu remained a top official
\nof the commission until he was appointed to succeed Lamorde.<\/p>\n
Magu is currently occupying a residence rented for N40 million, at N20
\nmillion per annum. This accommodation was not paid for from the
\ncommission\u2019s finances but by one Umar Mohammed (Air Commodore\/rtd), a
\nquestionable businessman and ally of subject who has subsequently been
\narrested by this service. For the furnishing of the residence, Mohammed
\nenlisted the Federal Capital Development Authority (FCDA) to award a
\ncontract to Africa Energy, a company owned by the same Mohammed to
\nlavishly furnish the residence at the cost of N43 million.<\/p>\n
Investigations show that the Acting EFCC chairman regularly embarks on
\nofficial and private trips through a private carrier, Easyjet, owned by
\nMohammed. In one of such trips, Magu flew to Maiduguri, alongside Mohammed
\nand a third generation bank chief, who was being investigated by the
\ncommission over complicity in funds allegedly stolen by the immediate past
\nPetroleum Minister, Mrs. Diezani Alison- Madueke.<\/p>\n
Furthermore, the EFCC boss has so far maintained a high profile lifestyle.
\nThis is exemplified by his preference for First Class air travels. On 24th
\nJune, 2016, he flew Emirate Airlines\u2019 First Class to Saudi Arabia to
\nperform the Lesser Hajj at the cost of N2, 990,196. This is in spite of
\nMr. President\u2019s directive to all public servants to fly Economy Class.<\/p>\n
Investigation also revealed that Magu parades a twin personality. At one
\nlevel, he is the czar who has no friends, no favourites and is ready to
\nfight corruption to a standstill. However, with a key friend in the person
\nof Umar Mohammed (Air Commodore\/rtd), a controversial businessman, he has
\nbetrayed the confidence reposed in him by the present administration.<\/p>\n
Whereas Magu portrays himself as very secretive, he has fostered a
\nmutually beneficial relationship with Mohammed who, by his confession,
\napproaches \u2018clients\u2019 for possible exploitation, favours and associated
\nreturns. This was facilitated with official secrets divulged by Magu and
\nfrom which dealings he is believed to have been drawing considerable
\nbenefits.<\/p>\n
This was evidenced by the number of official and classified documents he
\nmade available to his associates, especially Mohammed. After a search of
\nMohammed\u2019s premises, a forged letter of the Office of the Vice President,
\ndated 20th May, 2016, was recovered. The letter was a fictitious
\ninvestigation report from Vice President to Mr. President, requesting for
\napproval to commence further probe into a matter allegedly involving Hon.
\nMinister of State for Petroleum. Attached to the letter were two EFCC
\nletters dated 13th April, 2016, and another 24th March, 2016, addressed to
\nthe vice president being investigation reports on the activities of
\nEmmanuel Kachikwu and his brother Dumebi Kachikwu. Similarly recovered
\nduring the search were information on assets and personal details of
\nKachikwu.<\/p>\n
Also, following the arrest of three former Airforce chiefs by EFCC,
\nnamely, Alex Badeh, Umar and Adesola Amosu from whom huge sums of money
\nand property were recovered, Umar and Badeh were arraigned in court. It
\nwas only after the arrest of Mohammed by this service that the EFCC
\nhurriedly arraigned Amosu. Mohammed later confessed that he never wanted
\nAmosu tried, describing him as his former boss and he saw in Magu, a
\nwilling accomplice.<\/p>\n
Furthermore, findings revealed that in a bid to settle some personal
\nscores, subject placed one Stanley Inye Lawson on a Security Watch Action,
\nwhile in actual fact, Lawson was working in the interest of the Federal
\nGovernment. However, the action was later expunged following the discovery
\nthat Lawson was falsely accused by Magu for personal reasons.<\/p>\n
The circumstances surrounding Magu\u2019s return to EFCC at the instance of the
\nformer chairman, Lamorde, and their close working relationship ever since
\nis a clear indication of his culpability in the allegations of corrupt
\ntendencies of the Lamorde-led EFCC.<\/p>\n
To cover his tracks, Magu uses only his police cronies to execute
\noperations. This, coupled with discoveries that such police cronies have
\nacquired a lot of landed property, lends credence to the questions about
\nhis integrity.<\/p>\n
In the light of the foregoing, Magu has failed the integrity test and will
\neventually constitute a liability to the anti-corruption drive of the
\npresent administration.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Exactly three months after they declined to confirm Ibrahim Magu as the substantive Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), The Senate yesterday affirmed their December 15, last…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":56824,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"","_lmt_disable":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[17],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-56823","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-exclusive"],"yoast_head":"\n