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Don’t Scrap the EFCC, Fix It, Fintiri Slams Calls For Abolition

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1 month ago

Oct 12, 2024.

The Governor of Adamawa State, Ahmadu Fintiri, has voiced his support for strengthening the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) rather than abolishing it, following a legal challenge by 16 state governors questioning the commission’s legality.

During an interview on Channels TV’s Hard Copy program, Fintiri emphasized the importance of the EFCC, stating, “For me, it is not the right time to abolish the EFCC, whether it was established rightly or wrongly. We need to make it work better. We need to remove the politics that sometimes leads to claims of witch-hunting.”

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EKO HOT BLOG reports that the governor also criticized the federal government’s handling of funds recovered from cases of state fund embezzlement, calling it a “wrong practice.”

He noted that funds shared among federal, state, and local governments often lead to federal overreach, with the Federal Government questioning how these funds are spent.

“I heard the Attorney General of Oyo State complaining after a court session that, even though funds are shared among the three tiers of government—federal, state, and local—the Federal Government often oversteps by questioning how states and local governments spend their money,” he said.

Don’t Scrap the EFCC, Fix It, Fintiri Slams Calls For Abolition

“Even when funds are appropriated, the Federal Government takes them into their treasury.

I believe this practice should be discontinued.”

Fintiri further added that he would review the ongoing suit with his Attorney General before deciding whether to join the legal challenge against the EFCC’s authority.