Breaking: Tinubu appoints Bakari as head of NFIU

President Bola Tinubu on Tuesday approved the appointment of Hafsat Bakari as the Director/Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit, pending her confirmation by the Senate.

Bakari replaces Modibbo Tukur who was relieved of his job by Tinubu in June 2023.

The appointment was contained in a statement by Tinubu’s Special Adviser to the President (Media and Publicity), Ajuri Ngelale.

Bakari was described as a lawyer and financial intelligence expert with years of experience in anti-money laundering, counter-terrorism financing, and counter-proliferation financing.

Before her appointment as the Chief Executive Officer of the NFIU, she served as Deputy Director at the Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit, and was at different times the Head of the General Services Unit; Head of the Strategy and Reorientation Unit, and Head of the Board Secretariat of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission.

The statement added that Tinubu, “anticipates that Ms. Bakare will bring her wealth of experience and expertise to full discharge in this critical role, especially in view of his administration’s war against illicit financial flows and other sharp practices currently prevalent in segments of the nation’s foreign exchange markets”