Terrorism Financing: EFCC Expresses Concerns Over Governor Bala Mohammed’s Claims, Vows To Explore Legal Means Against Mischief

<h4>Terrorism Financing&colon; EFCC Expresses Concerns Over Governor Bala<&sol;h4>&NewLine;<p><strong><a href&equals;"https&colon;&sol;&sol;openlife&period;ng&sol;">OpenLife Nigeria<&sol;a> <&sol;strong>reports that the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission&comma; EFCC&comma; views with great displeasure the claims of Bauchi State Governor&comma; His Excellency&comma; Bala Mohammed about the Commission being used by political opponents&comma; particularly the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory&comma; Nyesom Wike&comma; to persecute him and his aides&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p>These claims are as wild as they are far- fetched&period; The EFCC is an independent agency created to fight economic and financial crimes&period; The Commission is non- partisan and discharges its mandate without affection or ill will&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p>The attempt to portray it as a pliable agency that panders to the demands of certain political interests is therefore mischievous and condemnable&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p>It is derogatory for Mohammed to ascribe the Commission’s activities in Bauchi State to the Influence of Mr&period; Wike&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p>It is important to state that no political office holder is in a position to influence the investigative activities of the Commission&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p>If Bala Mohammed wants to be honest&comma; he would have revealed to Nigerians that he was standing trial for money laundering at the time he won election as governor of Bauchi State&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p>Only the constitutional Immunity from prosecution&comma; which his current office attracts&comma; has put that case in abeyance&period; Who also influenced the Commission to investigate him in 2016 and charge him to court&quest;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p>In the instant case&comma; the facts against some officials of Bauchi State government are already placed before the court&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p>Members of the public can access the charges and decide for themselves whether the case is borne out of vendetta or is a product of painstaking investigation by the EFCC&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p>They will also understand why Bala Mohammed as the approving authority in Bauchi State is mentioned in the charge&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p>Crying wolf over issues of terrorism financing is like clutching at straws&period; The Commission did not invent the law&comma; and where there are offences punishable by extant laws&comma; EFCC will be failing in its responsibility to do otherwise&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p>Public accountability should be the priority of politicians of all persuasions&period; It is the height of hypocrisy for opposition politicians to be quick to scream persecution each time an opposition figure is called to account but are mute when a member of the ruling party faces the same ordeal&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p>Recently the Commission arraigned a ranking member of the ruling party in court for alleged corruption&comma; and not a whimper of persecution was heard from any of the political divide&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p>Governor Mohammed should face the governance of Bauchi State and allow the EFCC focus more on cleaning the financial space of the nation&comma; in line with its assigned mandate&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;