Washington, D.C. — Since the creation of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission in 2003 the spotlight on corruption in Nigeria has been bright. The commission has reportedly secured more than 150 convictions - compared with none previously - and reclaimed some $5 billion in stolen public funds.
Under the leadership of Nuhu Ribadu, a lawyer and former prosecutor who served in several senior police posts, the commission has investigated senior government ministers and state governors, along with top law enforcement officers and business executives, and has aggressively pursued the scammers whose infamous '419' letters have contributed to Nigeria's worldwide notoriety. This week, Ribadu came to Washington, where his discussions of the anti-corruption efforts received an enthusiastic reception at the World Bank and an even more fervent endorsement from his compatriots at a Nigeria embassy reception. He was interviewed by AllAfrica's Katy Gabel and Francois Gouahinga, along with intern Hassatou Diallo. Excerpts:
How does the commission function? How do investigations get launched and can a private citizen bring a case?
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission's responsibility is enforcement of economic and financial crimes in Nigeria, including fraud and embezzlement and money laundering. The law does not restrict the manner by which we can take complaints. Individuals can bring a complaint. We receive complaints from government agencies and international organizations. We have a strong, vibrant website, through which we receive information and complaints. We also have offices within Nigeria - in Port Harcourt, Lagos, Kanu, Enugu, and Gombe, where we receive petitions and formal complaints.
Sometimes we initiate our own investigations on the basis of intelligence we've gathered. We set up a Financial Intelligence Unit that receives reports on transactions from the finance sector in Nigeria. For example, any transaction above one million naira today will be referred to the Financial Intelligence Unit, and we will follow up. If we see anything suspicious, it can trigger an investigation. We gather intelligence, and we also relate with other government enforcement agencies, international organizations, and law enforcement agencies all over the world.
And in Washington, you are talking about the Commission?
I've been meeting with different agencies - government, private sector and non-governmental organizations. I'm also meeting with Nigerians, partly to explain what we are doing in Nigeria and allow people to ask questions. What we are doing is has generated a lot of interest.
Do you believe that public punishment of high-level officials helps to defer crime and ameliorate Nigeria's culture of corruption, or is public education a more important tool?
If you are to address corruption, especially where it has become a way of life, you have to approach it from all angles, including bringing people to justice and undertaking formal education. We must go through all channels; we must employ all the means. Although we do educational training, we are most concerned with trying to bring people to justice. That's a strong way of sending the message that there are sanctions for this behavior.
Maybe this also is the best form of education - sending a clear message that laws must be enforced. If you go against them, you will be punished. We've developed a culture of impunity, and, to reverse it, you must punish those who are responsible. If you educate without showing that bad behavior deserves punishment, you may actually be legitimizing it. By showing that there are serious sanctions, it sends a strong signal. At the same time, we must educate to ensure that we have a society that is law-abiding. You cannot just do one and abandon the other.
How many cases have you prosecuted so far and what is the conviction rate?
We have today well over 400 cases that we are prosecuting. We have recorded over 150 convictions. Our success record is very high - maybe as high as any law enforcement agency in the world. Within a short period of time, we have recorded an unprecedented number of convictions in a country that never had one before. Most of the cases that have been taken to court, we have been able to achieve convictions. Not that we win all our cases, but our percentage is very high. We work hard. We prepare well. We show that whatever case we are bringing to investigate will be able to stand the test of prosecution.
We have recovered billions and billions of dollars, returning it to victims of fraud all over the world and monies belonging to the government of Nigeria. This is where we are today.
What about the international dimension of your work? What happens when you prosecute crime that crosses national boundaries? Have you been able to recover money from international cases?
Most of the crimes that we are addressing are transnational in nature. They do not respect boundaries. Money can usually cross borders without any notice. Unless we work together, we will not be able to see any meaningful result. We have been working with other law enforcement agencies in the world - with the UK [United Kingdom] authorities, with the FBI [Federal Bureau of Investigation] with Interpol, and others. They assist us greatly.
Most of the grand corruption that takes place in a country like Nigeria goes out of the country, so we must follow it. We have recovered so much money and returned it back home. We are also linking back money outside Nigeria to victims of fraud – '419' and the like. We have shown that it can work. We have law enforcement from outside coming to Nigeria to testify and participate in investigations. We are doing the same thing outside Nigeria.
We are also trying to bring West African countries together to work in a collective manner, trying to address our own problems together. We formed an association called West African Anti-Money Laundering Group (GIABA), and it's beginning to show results. We share information; we share know-how. We want to operate collectively. That is the only way we can address the problem.
How can you operate transparently when there is such an entrenched bureaucracy and the political system is, shall we say, chaotic?
It is extremely important to be transparent. You must be open. You must be accountable to the people. That has been our guiding principle. Every case that we take we make public. We do not hide anything. The cases we investigate go to the court. The courts are totally independent and separate from the executive. We defend our cases and the courts determine [the outcome] for either side.
We invite the public to share with us, and we also invite criticism. But we recognize the fact that the work we're doing has a direct impact on institutions and individuals. There definitely has to be a response. We have no problem with that. We defend ourselves. For every case that we have taken, we have reasons why we have taken it and we have reasons why we are doing what we are doing.
What we are doing has never happened before in our country. So there are a lot of misconceptions, misunderstandings, and lies about what we are doing. It's understandable. We are not used to bringing out powerful people to justice. We've never asked the big people in society to come and account for their actions and their own misdeeds.
Critics say the EFCC has been used to punish President Olusegun Obasanjo's opponents. How do you respond to these allegations?
Let me be very clear. It is criminal activity that attracts punishment. Most of the cases, if not all of them, involve members of the ruling party and those who are in charge and in control. Most of the people brought to justice are members of the PDP [Peoples' Democratic Party]. We have not taken any big person from the opposition. There are people who, because maybe they are facing the heat or are at the receiving end of the investigation, want to claim that they are in the opposition and that's why it is happening to them.
We need our opposition in Nigeria, and nothing has happened to them at all. But that does not mean that they will not be [subject to the law]. For now, most of our work relates to those in the ruling party; those in control of the government - Cabinet ministers, members of the national assembly who are members of the ruling party, governors of the ruling party, businessmen who are close to the government, members of the government like the chief law officer, the inspector general of police.
There are those who want to stop our work. There has been blackmail and fraud. They can't stop us. They cannot bribe us. There is nothing that will stop us from this work.
Maybe [they think] that if they say bad things and lie, people will start believing that is the truth [and] through that they will be able to escape justice. It's basically "give a dog a bad name for you to harm it." Because it's a new thing in Nigeria, it will take some time for people to understand that this is how things are done.
Sign up for free AllAfrica Newsletters
Get the latest in African news delivered straight to your inbox
In March, the Senate amended the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) Establishment Act of 2004 to require that the president's removal of the chairman or any commission member would require the support of a two-thirds majority in the senate. If this passes the National Assembly and becomes law, will it affect the commission's work?
It is true that the Senate amendment, which has to have the consent of the National Assembly, removes the authority to remove the leadership of the EFCC from the president. I have no problem with that. I don't think it will make much difference or impact our work. They set up the commission. The law was passed by them. They can amend it any time.
But I have read a lot of misinterpretations trying to make it look as if the work that we've done was done in the interest of the president. That is not the case. Everything that we have done, we are able to defend it. Everything that I have done has been done open and transparently. I don't believe it is right for anyone to take it that the work that has been done so far had any influence or interference from the executive.
You have been described as wildly popular among the younger generations. Would you consider running for president some day?
I'm not political. No, absolutely not. I'm very comfortable with what I'm doing, and I don't have any ambition to be more than what I am today. I am happy with my work.
We are doing what is right for our own country. We're doing what must be done to improve our system.
Most Nigerians, especially the younger generation, share this belief. They challenge what is going on. They're not happy with the current state of affairs. A lot of them are angry. They agree with the work we are doing and believe it is something we must continue. This attempt to do things properly - to establish the rule of law and order, to start getting value from our own resources - has given them hope.
We have to change our country. Most of us believe that we have the potential to be great. It's [up to] us to work hard and behave properly, like [in] the rest of the world where things are working. You don't have to be a politician to do that. In any capacity you find yourself in, you can do it.
