The House of Representatives Committee on Financial Crimes has given the Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Ola Olukoyede, till July 30, 2024, to appear before it over budgetary allocation issues.

The committee said Olukoyede, alongside his management team, should appear to answer questions relating to the EFCC’s budget performance and its challenges.

The chairman of the committee, Obinna Onwusibe, disclosed this at an oversight of the commission’s office in Abuja on Friday, July 26.

The committee condemned what it described as the snobbish attitude of the EFCC chairman and the denial of the committee’s members access to the commission’s headquarters in Abuja.

Following the denial of access to the EFCC’s office, the committee members headed back to their bus and returned to the National Assembly.

The committee visited the EFCC headquarters after communicating with the anti-graft agency and agreeing on a date for an oversight visit.

The committee members were, however, told that Olukoyede was called for an emergency development at the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).

EFCC chairman: $88.6bn lost to illicit financial flows annually in Africa

Reacting, the committee chairman said: “In performing our constitutional functions, we had written to the EFCC for this oversight visit.

“The latest letter to EFCC was last week and we all agreed that the oversight is going to be today.

“The essence of the oversight is for the committee to know the budget performance of the EFCC as appropriated by this National Assembly.

“That was exactly why we went and to also see other things, including the challenges being faced by the EFCC.”

Onwusibe noted that the committee had requested that the EFCC chairman and all the zonal commanders of the anti-graft agency be invited today for the lawmakers to interface with them.

“But the committee also saw that they were not on ground,” he said.

The committee, however, resolved that it would not continue with the oversight summon the EFCC chairman and his team to appear before it.

Onwusibe added: “As far as we’re concerned, the functions and integrity of this 10th National Assembly cannot be taken for granted.

“We’ve written severally to the commission, requesting information and documents and we are yet to get them.”

The Star