BAWA: EFCC HAS LEGAL BACKING RO INVESTIGATE UNEXPLAINED WEALTH, SPEAKS ON RETAINING SECONDED POLICE OFFICERS

By Sanni Onogu, Abuja

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has the legal backing to investigate unexplained wealth, its new Chairman Abdulrasheed Bawa said on Wednesday.

Bawa spoke at the National Assembly in Abuja during his screening by the Senate in a Committee of the Whole during plenary presided over by Senate President Ahmad Lawan.

The Senate confirmed Bawa yesterday as the substantive chairman of the anti-grant agency.

The screening came barely a week after President Muhammadu Buhari sent a letter to the National Assembly requesting the Senate to confirm the Deputy Chief Detective Superintendent (DCDS) as EFCC chairman.

During the screening, Borno South Senator Ali Ndume asked the nominee about the powers of the EFCC to probe suspicious wealth.

Bawa said: “…Coincidentally, I am the Desk Officer of the Unexplained Wealth Order at the EFCC. This is because during the course of my career, particularly in the last five years, I am not aware of any detective at the EFCC that has worked closely with the National Crime Agency of the United Kingdom (UK).

“So, I am fully aware about the Unexplained Wealth Order. But there are certain provisions in the EFCC establishment Act that more or less gave us these powers.

“Section 7, subsection 1b of the Act says the ‘commission has the power to cause investigation to be conducted into the properties of any person that appears to the commission that the person’s lifestyle and the extent of the properties are not justified by his source of incomes’.

“This means without any complaint, if it comes to our knowledge that you have amassed so much properties that are not justified by your source of income, the EFCC can ask questions.

“That is what the simple definition of explanation regarding the Unexplained Wealth Order means. If you have this property, the U.K. will ask you what is this property for? If you explain that this is how you earned it; so be it. If you do not explain, then they can further their investigation to determine how you acquired it.

“So, I think that looking at this provision, we are covered for now until we see how other jurisdictions have carried on with this Unexplained Wealth Order.”

On whether he will retain police officers seconded to the commission or return all of them, he said: “The issue of secondment of or de-secondment of personnel in the public service from one agency to another is an issue of need.

“If the need arises, you second; if the need does not arise, you de-second or you will not second at all to your organisation. We are going to review the process. We are looking at a situation where we will have a very robust and articulate establishment.

“If the need arises for us to retain some of the police officers, we will retain them. If need allows us to return them, we will return them. After all, we are all serving the same government; we are all Nigerians and, of course, we all desire that we have a better Nigeria.”

Bawa promised to discharge his duties without fear or favour.