A startling disclosure has surfaced as the Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Ola Olukoyede, confirmed that no fewer than 18 serving Nigerian governors are currently under active investigation for alleged corruption. Speaking at a public event in Lagos on Friday, Olukoyede stressed that the Commission does not wait for political tenures to end before launching its probes, revealing that investigations are already ongoing against several sitting governors.
According to him, “We don’t wait till they leave office. What we do is to investigate sitting governors and once they leave office, we go after them. As I speak, we are investigating about 18 governors. So, we have to have a meeting point between the law that covers public officers while in office and the operations of the EFCC.”
The EFCC boss narrated a jaw-dropping incident involving a former governor who fled to the United Kingdom immediately after handing over power. During a birthday celebration at a UK hotel, the former governor reportedly threw bundles of £10 and £50 notes at staff, causing alarm. The hotel manager, suspecting mental instability, called emergency services, prompting police and paramedics to storm the venue. It took the intervention of two other Nigerian governors to convince British authorities that the man was mentally sound and merely celebrating in a flamboyant fashion.
Olukoyede warned that the Commission’s strategy is deliberate and meticulous, stating that action is taken only after enough evidence has been gathered. He reaffirmed EFCC’s commitment to pursuing justice, declaring that the Commission is prepared to move in against those under watch the moment their immunity ends.