Olukoyede Seeks Stronger Incentives, Protection For Whistleblowers

The chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Ola Olukoyede, has called for enhanced incentives and safeguards for whistleblowers, insisting that those who provide information leading to the recovery of stolen assets should be sufficiently rewarded.

Olukoyede, who made this appeal on Wednesday during a lecture at the Cambridge International Symposium on Economic Crime in the United Kingdom, also highlighted the importance of credible intelligence in the fight against corruption and financial crimes.

The EFCC boss further disclosed that the Commission currently provides whistleblowers with between 2.5 per cent and five per cent of recovered assets if their information results in the successful retrieval of illicit funds or properties.

Olukoyede also encouraged individuals with knowledge of Nigerian assets allegedly stolen and taken abroad to come forward.

“If any of you is privy to where Nigerian asset is stolen or taken to anywhere in the world, we have an incentive for you. Between 2.5 and 5 per cent is going to go back to you upon recovery,” he said.

The EFCC chairman argued that stronger whistleblower incentives would help the government acquire vital intelligence needed to trace assets concealed through intricate financial arrangements, especially outside Nigeria.

Olukoyede also told participants at the event that the Commission had secured the forfeiture of cash and assets worth over $500 million for the federal government in the past three years.

He attributed these recoveries to a combination of credible intelligence, EFCC investigators’ capacity to trace assets, and judicial cooperation.

Olukoyede further stated that Nigeria’s legal framework also empowers the EFCC to pursue non-conviction-based forfeiture of assets suspected to result from crime, without waiting for criminal trials to conclude.

He explained that the Commission can approach a High Court ex parte where there is a probable suspicion that an asset is proceeds of crime, noting similar mechanisms exist in countries like Australia and Canada.

Providing insights into some recent recoveries, Olukoyede mentioned the forfeiture of an aircraft allegedly linked to an individual slated to serve on the monitoring committee of a power project.

He alleged that the individual received around $30 million in bribes, and that the EFCC secured the aircraft’s forfeiture within two months of court proceedings. The aircraft has since been incorporated into the Presidential Air Fleet.

The EFCC chief also revealed the forfeiture of a property comprising approximately 753 housing units, allegedly connected to a former Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, who is currently facing criminal charges in three courts.

He further disclosed that investigators traced 57 properties to former Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami, following an investigation into alleged criminal abuse of office.

Olukoyede stated that about 48 of these properties had been forfeited after the commission initiated investigations based on what it described as reasonable suspicion.

He also cited the forfeiture of a private university linked to a director in the Federal Ministry of Health, noting that the official voluntarily surrendered the property following an EFCC investigation.

Olukoyede concluded that the agency’s asset recovery capabilities would be enhanced through improved intelligence, international collaboration, and a proactive judiciary, with many investigators having undergone specialised training at leading institutions worldwide.