Tinubu suspends Bawa as EFCC boss

NIGERIAN President Bola Tinubu has suspended Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) Abdulrasheed Bawa, indefinitely.

Director of Information, Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation Willie Bassey disclosed this in a statement on Wednesday, June 14.

“President Bola Ahmed Tinubu,GCFR, has approved the indefinite suspension from office of Mr AbdulRasheed Bawa, CON,  as the Chairman, Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to allow for proper investigation into his conduct while in office.

“This follows weighty allegations of abuse of office levelled against him. Mr Bawa has been directed to immediately handover the affairs of his office to the Director, Operations in the Commission, who will oversee the affairs of the Office of the Chairman of the Commission pending the conclusion of the investigation,” the statement read.

In May, it was reported that Bawa sent out invitations to all outgoing governors in the country as part of steps to probe their activities and question commissioners who served under them.

The invitation generated some reactions, especially from former Zamfara state governor Bello Matawalle, who was then preparing to leave office, having lost his re-election bid.

Matawalle called for Bawa’s resignation and probe, accusing him of corruption and abuse of power.

He also challenged the EFCC boss to extend its investigations to the presidency and cabinet members in the fight against corruption, adding that he had evidence of corrupt practices against Bawa.

“He needs to explain, among others, how seized assets by the EFCC are being sold without adherence to due process.

“He should explain, for instance, how he has assumed the role of the plaintiff, prosecutor and jury and how he has executed his brand of plea bargaining with suspected criminals and saboteurs of the Nigerian economy and agenda who, instead of being put on trial, are walking freely all over Nigeria,” Matawalle noted in a statement.

Weeks after his outburst, Matawalle was accused by his successor of stealing government property, and more than 40 state-owned vehicles were recovered from his residence during a police raid.

Ijeoma Opara is a journalist with The ICIR. Reach her via [email protected] or @ije_le on Twitter.