Alleged Attempt By Unscruplous Individuals In Efcc To Publish False Information Against The Chairman Of The Presidential Committee On FATF, Mr. Oronsaye—HURIWA Raises Alarm

The democracy inclined Non-Governmental organization-HUMAN RIGHTS WRITERS ASSOCIATION OF NIGERIA [HURIWA] has raised alarm that it has been informed of some sinister measures by the hierarchy of anti-graft agency-Economic and Financial Crimes Commission[EFCC] to use a well known online medium to syndicate some fabricated allegations against the Chairman of the Financial Action Task Force established by the Nigerian Government.

In a media release jointly authorized by the National Coordinator Comrade Emmanuel Onwubiko and the National Media Affairs Director Miss. Zainab Yusuf, the Rights organization also warned the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission to desist from allegedly witch hunting Nigerians with good and noble intentions canvassing the establishment by an Act of the National Assembly of the Nigerian Financial Intelligence Center [NFIC] which has sailed through in the Senate and will feature in the House on resumption from recess this week.

"The National Assembly and all individuals must not be arm-twisted or psychologically harassed to abandon the good intention to grant autonomy to the Nigerian Financial Intelligence Center in line with global best practices".

HURIWA stated thus; " We have received information from reliable sources that the EFCC in their alleged desperate bid to stop the passage of the financial intelligence center Bill by the House as they commence sitting on Tuesday has once again allegedly reached out to AN ONLINE media [names withheld] to publish false information against the Chairman of the presidential committee on FATF- Chief Steve Oronsanye. This is against the background that the Bill has been passed in the Senate and will be presented for passage in the House of Representatives this week".

"Our informant indicated that the reporter who was allegedly given this fabricated falsehood to publish

informed him of how the hierarchy of the EFCC has allegedly been trying to compel and threaten the civil servants who are under prosecution for their involvement in the pension fraud to implicate the Chairman of FATF despite the

fact that the Chairman was the person who reported the case of missing pension funds to EFCC and ICPC for investigation since 2010.

EFCC has in its previous alleged false publication attempted to link him to the fraud but when they did not succeed, they allegedly threatened the civil servants that they will remain in detention even though the court had already

granted them bail. If this damaging allegation is true then it is a gross violation of chapter four of the Nigerian Constitution and must be checked by higher authority".

HURIWA also stated thus; "It may be recalled that the Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit is currently under the EFCC but the President has forwarded an executive bill to the National Assembly since June 2013 to make the NFIU independent and effective in tackling financing of terrorism, however, the EFCC has resisted every attempt by this administration and the National Assembly to pass the Bill. The Senate passed the Bill in July, 2014".

HURIWA has also urged the Head of State, the Federal Attorney General and Honourable Minister of Justice and the office of the National Security Adviser to call the hierarchy of the EFCC to order to abide by constitutional provisions by following the principles and practice of the Rule of Law and allow the law courts to decide the culpability or otherwise of any Nigerian in any alleged financial crime and not hide under the cover of investigating the alleged pension thieves to implicate an innocent Nigerian only because he is actively working to achieve the realization of the establishment of the NFIC which will mean removing it from the control of the EFCC.