The Chairman – designate, Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Abdulrasheed Bawa has denied ever selling fuel tanker trucks or any other asset when he served as Zonal Head in Port Harcourt, Rivers State.
Bawa made the clarification over one of the allegations hanging around him when he appeared before the Senate for the confirmation screening as substantive Chairman of EFCC.
Fielding questions from Federal lawmakers, Bawa said, the EFCC Headquarters handled the sales of the trucks.
He said the then Secretary of the Commission and three Directors flew in to seal the sales of the trucks forfeited to the Federal Government.
“I never for one sold a single asset. The then Secretary and three directors flew into Port Harcourt and sold the trucks forfeited to the federal government”.
“We never sold any asset. The head office did, we don’t know who bought”.
He said assuming he did, the commission would have been the first to punish him, and not reward him with bigger tasks and responsibilities.
According to the FBI-trained detective, the EFCC Zonal Office in Port Harcourt had just 33 convictions before he took charge of the place, but was able to secure 216 convictions within a year.
On the allegations that he was not qualified for the job and that he was only last week granted accelerated promotion, the anti-graft top brass said, he is eminently qualified for the position, based on the provisions of the EFCC Act, and other extant laws.
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On his expectation, Bawa said he hopes to establish an EFCC that will work strictly by the rules and curtail the use of discretions.
He said the EFCC under his watch will fight corruption and corrupt people, even though there is a world of difference between the two.
Bawa told the Senate that the EFCC has the power to investigate how people acquire their wealth, even as he assured that he will focus extensively on asset management, and embrace technology.
At 40, Bawa vows to bring his sixteen years experience to bear, leading the pack by example.
But quite profound were words of advice from lawmakers, asking Bawa to learn from the mistakes of his predecessors.
(Editor: Ifeanyi Mark)
