Eshioromeh Sebastian in Abuja
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has turned the tables on Bauchi State Governor, Bala Mohammed, challenging him to explain who allegedly influenced the Commission to investigate and prosecute him for money laundering in 2016, years before his current political rivalry with the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike.
The Commission’s sharp retort followed the Governor’s recent claims that the EFCC was being weaponised by Wike and other political opponents to persecute him and his aides in Bauchi State.
The EFCC, in a statement released on Friday, did not just described the Governor’s allegations as “wild” and “far-fetched,” but mounted a forensic counter-offensive anchored on his own legal history.
The Commission pointedly reminded the public that Governor Mohammed was already standing trial for money laundering in 2016, a case that was only suspended due to the constitutional immunity he acquired upon winning the governorship in 2019.
“If Bala Mohammed wants to be honest, he would have revealed to Nigerians that he was standing trial for money laundering at the time he won election as governor of Bauchi State. Only the constitutional immunity from prosecution, which his current office attracts, has put that case in abeyance. Who also influenced the Commission to investigate him in 2016 and charge him to court?”, the EFCC statement reads.
Addressing the ongoing prosecution of some Bauchi State officials, the EFCC maintained that the case is a product of “painstaking investigation,” not vendetta. The Commission invited the public to scrutinize the charges already filed in court, noting that Governor Mohammed is mentioned in the charge sheets in his capacity as “the approving authority” for the state’s finances.
The statement further criticised the Governor’s attempt to frame the charges related to terrorism financing as clutching at straws. “The Commission did not invent the law,” it declared, asserting its statutory duty to prosecute any breaches of extant financial regulations.
Expanding its critique, the EFCC accused the Governor and similar politicians of “height of hypocrisy.” It noted the tendency for opposition figures to “scream persecution” when investigated, while remaining silent when members of the ruling party face the same legal scrutiny.
As evidence, the Commission cited its recent arraignment of a prominent ranking member of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), which it said elicited no claims of political witch-hunt from any quarter.
The EFCC concluded with a terse counsel to the Governor, urging him to redirect his energy. “Governor Mohammed should face the governance of Bauchi State and allow the EFCC focus more on cleaning the financial space of the nation, in line with its assigned mandate.”
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