Dare Babalola
The African Democratic Congress (ADC) on Monday warned the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) not to make itself a political hit squad for the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC).
In a statement signed by Bolaji Abdullahi, the party’s National Publicity Secretary, it accused the agency of witch-hunting opposition figures while suspected corrupt individuals in the ruling party receive a pat on their backs.
ADC warned the anti-graft agency of the dangers of selective justice, saying it will erode public trust in the institution and undermine the real fight against corruption.
The party further noted that the EFCC has been reopening closed cases and digging up files from the past in a bid to target opposition politicians.
“In recent days, several senior members of the Opposition Coalition have received EFCC summons that are clearly politically motivated. These are not fresh cases arising from new evidence but new files opened in reaction to emergent political affiliations to intimidate key opposition figures.
“The EFCC was created to be a fearless defender of the Nigerian people’s trust, applying the law evenly to all, friend or foe, ruling party or opposition. Today, that vision appears to have been compromised. The Commission now operates like a department of the APC, deployed to fight government critics and opposition figures thereby achieving what the government cannot achieve through public debate.”
The statement also claimed that investigations into ruling party allies quietly fade away while opposition figures are dragged before the court of public opinion with allegations that are over a decade old.
“This is selective prosecution, and selective prosecution is the death of justice,” the party declared. ¹
Abdullahi alleged further that since an unnamed former governor defected to the APC with his state’s entire political machinery, “the EFCC’s investigations into his administration have vanished from public view. Not a question has been asked. Not a document leaked. Not a single update.”
The statement continued, “It does not augur well for the EFCC if people think that all you need to point the accusing hands of the Commission in your direction is to stand opposed to the ruling party and all that it takes for protection is to align with the government. Unfortunately, this is the widely established perception in Nigeria today, which the commission by its recent actions, including the ongoing surreptitious harassment of opposition leaders, has given credence to.
“The ADC hereby calls on all Nigerians, civil society organisations, and the independent media to resist this dangerous slide into dictatorship and misuse of public institutions to achieve partisan objectives. The EFCC does not belong to the APC. It belongs to the Nigerian people. It is funded by taxpayers, not the ruling party.”
