The chairman of Nigeria’s Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has warned that Canada is emerging as a new axis for laundering illicit wealth from Nigeria, urging diaspora lawyers to help combat the trend.
Ola Olukoyede issued the alert while speaking at the Canada-Nigeria Legal Exchange during the International Bar Association conference in Toronto.
He told attendees that the anti-graft agency had prosecuted several senior lawyers found complicit in the crime, describing their conduct as unethical.
“Equally disturbing is the disposition of some in our ranks who have become complicit in money laundering by schooling corrupt Nigerian officials to launder ill-got wealth abroad. The Commission has had cause to prosecute very senior lawyers for being accessory to money laundering,” he said.
Mr Olukoyede questioned the professional ethics of such actions, stating, “We cannot, in one breath, bemoan corruption in our nation and, in another, make our skills available to the corrupt to pillage our common patrimony. Is there no ethics or conscience in practice?”
He directed a specific appeal to the Nigerian diaspora in Canada, urging vigilance and cooperation.
“The diaspora community, especially members of the bar, have crucial roles to play in helping Nigeria overcome the corruption challenge,” he said.
“For those of you in Canada, I recommend vigilance. The increasing number of Nigerians migrating to this country points ominously to Canada emerging as another axis for the laundering of ill-got wealth from Nigeria. You will help us prevent this by providing information to law enforcement agencies.”
The EFCC chairman emphasised that corruption is enabled not just by public officials but by the professionals who help to move and hide the proceeds.
He also used the occasion to detail the commission’s recent performance, announcing that it had secured 7,503 convictions and recovered N566.3bn, $411.6m, and 1,502 properties in the last two years.
Mr Olukoyede outlined sweeping institutional reforms under his leadership, including new policies on gift handling and a restructured bail process. He announced that some recovered funds, specifically N100bn, have been channelled into national social investment programmes such as the Students Loan Scheme.
In his closing remarks, the EFCC boss urged the diaspora to help protect Nigeria’s international reputation.
“Ultimately, we must work together to ensure that the good reputation which our country currently enjoys in your host country is not tarnished by the actions of a thieving few,” he said.
“Only we can build a nation that the rest of the world will respect. No one else will do that for us.”
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