The rejection of the acting Chairman, Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, Ibrahim Magu, by the Senate was not based on any opposition party’s protest or complaint. It was a product of a report by the Department of State Services, which is also an agency of the Federal Government. There was no trace of any opposition party trying to prevent or sabotage the confirmation of Magu. It was purely an administrative matter, purely a government matter. I want to believe that the senators have done the right thing by taking a prompt action by turning the bill down.
We just hope that all the allegations and the report by the DSS would be complied with by the executive. We are less bordered about it. It is an affair of the government of the All Progressives Congress. It is a normal governmental routine which should be applauded.
We just hope the President will do the needful by responding positively to the DSS report and the Senate decision. The anti-graft war in Nigeria is not peculiar to the Buhari government alone. It is an ongoing thing. The government of the Peoples Democratic Party fought corruption also. People should not feel that the anti-graft war is this government’s creation or that there is something spectacular in terms of the implementation of what the government is doing. This government’s anti-graft war has been selective. It does not have respect for the rule of law in terms of obeying the various courts’ judgments.
Corruption is unbiblical and condemnable. But it is also corruption when you are being selective and being unjust. This is what I have seen that is fundamentally wrong with the way and manner the anti-graft agency is going performing its duties under this government. •(A former Minister of National Planning, Prof. Abubakar Sulaiman)
Even though the Senate did not confirm him, the President has the right to ask him to continue his job in acting capacity. From what we read in the papers, the DSS wrote about him (Magu) to the Senate. The DSS is another security apparatus of the President. That is what the Senate told us that they acted on. The whole thing is surprising. The DSS is supposed to take the interest of the President into account, now they seem to oppose the interest of the President, whose interest they are supposed to protect always. There is a lot of confusion there.
The EFCC under Magu has been performing well in the sense that there have been lots of recovered funds. But people are of the opinion that the fight is one-sided – that the EFCC is prosecuting people who are in other political parties but they have not prosecuted a single person from the All Progressives Congress. Most of the people (alleged corrupt people) who ran from the Peoples Democratic Party to join the APC are left untouched. In my own assessment, that is what has happened. Magu’s non-confirmation by the Senate has not weakened his power and it will not weaken the anti-graft war. By not confirming him, it has not removed his powers to investigate or prosecute alleged corrupt people.
But he should ensure that the fight is holistic. He should be able to pick one or two people from among the APC too. You cannot say all of them are honest. Many of those people who ran from the PDP to join the APC have a lot of skeletons in their cupboards. He should go the whole hog. Anybody that is alleged to be corrupt should be investigated and prosecuted according to the law. Even if the President has allegation of corruption against him, they can only defer his prosecution. There must not be untouchable people in the country. Anybody that does not have immunity but has allegations of corruption against him should be prosecuted whether on the other side or the government’s side. Even ordinary people who are culpable of corruption should be prosecuted. •Alhaji Ayinla Folurunsho, (ex-representative, Asa federal constituency of Kwara State, House of Representatives)
It (rejection of Magu) is a major drawback and it is a shame on the senators, who have shown clearly that they are completely disconnected from the people they purport to represent.
It is devastating that they have acted so just to save themselves from the clear onslaught that the personality of Magu being the EFCC acting chairman can unleash on them as corrupt Nigerians. It is, therefore, a discretion that was nurtured in perfidy and delivered with mischief. We as Nigerians who have been victims of these corrupt tendencies will respond appropriately.
The kind of constitutional democracy that we practise is such that Nigeria leaves the appointment of such a high-profile office in the hands of the executive, who needs a corresponding support of the Senate to endorse the appointment by way of confirmation. •Malachy Ugummadu (President, Committee for the Defence of Human Rights)
When I read the news report that the Senate refused to confirm the acting chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, all I could say was that it was unfortunate. It is quite unfortunate that the Senate rejected the acting EFCC chairman, Ibrahim Magu, because the anti-graft agency has shown that it is capable of performing.
Since Magu came on board, the anti-graft agency has moved from being a toothless bulldog to being a bulldog that can bark and bite.
The EFCC has arrested many high-ranking politicians and government officials for alleged corruption, and they are being tried in the law courts. When one looks at the rejection of Magu by the Senate critically, one can only conclude that the rejection portends danger for the country and President Muhammadu Buhari administration’s anti-corruption war.
The rejection of Magu has only taken us back to those days when the EFCC could only bark and not bite. Why did the senators have to wait till when Magu was performing before they moved against him? •Muyiwa Oladipo, (A former Speaker, Ogun State House of Assembly)
I must confess that I am yet to lay my hands on a detailed document that the Senate based its rejection of Magu on. We only know that the reasons were based on security report. However, against the background of the general perception that many members of the National Assembly are mostly corrupt, someone like Magu who wants to fight corruption will definitely not find it easy. They might have found out that he was uncompromising.
Another thing is that over the years, corruption has been systemised. There are groups who do not want someone like Magu to be the boss at the EFCC for personal reasons. On the basis of this, I think the rejection of Magu is dangerous for the anti-corruption fight. But if what the Senate said about Magu is true, then we should blame President Muhammadu Buhari for not running a check on Magu before forwarding his name to the Senate. It means he (Buhari) is not diligent enough. We may have to applaud the Senate and thank our legislators for exposing Magu and saving Nigeria from him because the position of the EFCC chairman is a sensitive one. • Kehinde Ayoola, (A former Speaker, Oyo State House of Assembly)
Is there any fight against corruption? Currently, my answer is no! All I have been seeing is more of a selective fight and I strongly believe that the fight against corruption should cut across all political parties. I have not been comfortable with the fight against corruption under Magu’s watch.
But the Senate, as currently constituted, rejected Magu not because they love Nigeria. They (Senate) only felt that the EFCC under Magu has been used against them. The Senate only wanted to hit back at the Presidency for coming after them. This portends danger for the development of the country.
The current Senate has not demonstrated sufficient love and commitment to Nigeria in all the lawmakers are doing because he who pays the piper calls the tune. The way forward is that a body of retired judges should be put together to determine who the next EFCC chairman should be. There is a need to amend our laws to ensure that the responsibility of appointing the chairman of the EFCC does not rest with the President or the Presidency.
The truth is that the EFCC under Magu has been selective in the fight against corruption while the Senate’s action of not confirming his (Magu) appointment is an act of vengeance. This is not proper for the growth of our nation. • Mr. Leyii Kwanee, (A former Deputy Speaker of Rivers State House of Assembly)
Compiled by Chukwudi Akasike, Samuel Awoyinfa, Olufemi Atoyemi, Success Nwogu and Afeez Hanafi
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