Professor Chidi Odinkalu, former chair of the National Human Rights Commission, has raised concerns about the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission’s (EFCC) authority to prosecute those who abuse the Nigerian currency.
Odinkalu has stated that the EFCC lacks the necessary powers to prosecute individuals who violate laws related to the abuse of the Naira.
Odinkalu also criticized the EFCC for arresting and sentencing Bobrisky, a prominent cross-dresser, to six months in jail for violating Naira-related laws. Odinkalu argued that Bobrisky’s arrest and conviction by the EFCC was outside the agency’s jurisdiction and potentially illegal, questioning whether the EFCC was acting beyond its constitutional powers.
He said, “The law that establishes the EFCC defines ‘economic and financial crimes’ to mean ‘non-violent criminal and illicit activity committed with the objectives of earning wealth illegally either individually or in a group or organized manner thereby violating existing legislation governing the economic activities of government and its administration,” Odinkalu stated.