EFCC, DSS, NIA at war: Magu vows to arrest Ita, Oke

Last Tuesday’s botched attempt to arrest former Director General of the Directorate of State Security(DSS), Mr Ekpenyong Ita and ex counterpart at the National Intelligence Agency(NIA), Mr Ayodele Oke, by officials of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission(EFCC), as well as Mr Ibrahim Magu, the Commission’s acting Chairman’s determination to apprehend the duo, has rekindled the inter-agency rivalry between the three security agencies as IBRAHEEM MUSA and ABDULRAHMAN ZAKARIYAU highlight in this report.

Perhaps, the seed of the inter-agency rivalry and general lack of coordination of government activities, the defining features of this administration, is most manifest among the internal security agencies. Specifically, there is no love lost between the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission(EFCC) and the Office of the National Security Adviser(ONSA) on one hand, and the Department of State Security Service(DSS). Last Tuesday, the animosity came to the fore when EFCC officials stormed Mr Ekpenyong Ita, the former Director General of DSS’s residence, trying to effect his arrest. According to reports, EFCC had invited the ex DG for questioning but Mr Ita had spurned the anti graft agency’s request. Similarly, the commission had written to Mr Ayodele Oke, the immediate past DG of National Intelligence Agency(NIA), regarding the N15 billion loot. Like Ita, Oke also refused to honour the invitation.

Last Tuesday, things came to a head as EFCC officials stormed Ita’s #46, Mamman Nasir street residence, armed with search and arrest warrants, determined to take in the former DSS head around 6.30 am.

Similarly, the officials went to Oke’s house, a few blocks away, on the same mission. However, the EFCC operatives met as stiff resistance as DSS officers, in record numbers, had surrounded both residences. Specifically, tension rose as the stand off charged the serene neighborhood. After arguing back and forth, the EFCC officials retreated from the mission and once more, calm returned to the highbrow Asokoro District.

Magu’s vow
Significantly, the withdrawal of EFCC officials, from the look of things, was a mere tactical retreat as the war is far from being over. Last Wednesday, a day after the stand off, Mr Ibrahim Mustapha Magu, the EFFC Chairman, was at the Presidential Villa for the swearing in of the Committee on the Recovery and Management of Stolen Assets by President Muhammadu Buhari.

Afterwards, House Correspondents cornered to anti graft czar for an interview regarding the previous day’s incident. Categorically, Magu said that there is no going back on the arrest of the duo. EFCC, according to him, has concrete evidence against Ita and Oke and the law will take its course since they don’t have immunity against prosecution. Ita, according to reports, is being investigated over offences bordering on alleged theft and diversion of public funds in the arms deal saga, involving former National Security Adviser, retired Col Sambo Dasuki and other service chiefs.

Oke, on the other hand, was recently sacked by the president for allegedly stashing away N13 billion in an apartment in Ikoyi, a highbrow area in Lagos. Specifically, Buhari had asked EFCC to investigate both Oke and Mr Babachir David Lawal, the immediate past Secretary to the Government of the Federation.

Genesis of inter-agency rivalry
In particular, the relationship among Magu, the EFCC Chairman and National Security Adviser, retired Major General Mohammed Monguno on the one hand, and Alhaji Lawal Daura, the current DG of DSSon the other hand, is anything but rosy. According to reports, the row started when the president directed the NSA to set up a committee to probe military procurement from 2007 to 2015. The DSS thought it ought to be represented on the committee but Monguno didn’t give the secret police any slot.

The NSA, sources had said, wanted the panel to comprise mainly retired military officers and a representative EFCC in order to avoid leakage of confidential information. Daura took exception to this explanation and from then, his relationship with Monguno deteriorated. So, Daura allegedly teamed up with Malam Abba Kyari and the duo has been engaging in a battle of wits with the NSA and Magu. In addition, the arrest of retired Air Commodore Mohammed Umar, a member of the arms probe committee and Monguno’s friend, exacerbated the sour relationship. Similarly, Monguno accuses Daura of encroaching into his turf, which include the coordination of internal security and counter insurgency.

The internal feud blows open
Similarily, the simmering feud amongst the security chiefs boiled over during Magu’s confirmation as substantive Chairman of EFCC. Ideally, the DSS screens and clears candidates before their names are submitted to the senate for confirmation. However, in the case of Magu, the carte was put before the horse. Specifically, the DSS ambushed the acting EFCC Chairman at the senate, by submitting a damning report on him. In a letter signed by Folashade Bello for the DG, dated 4th March, 2017, DSS leveled severall allegations against Magu.

In particular, the security service alleged that the EFCC boss uses only his police cronies to execute operations. ‘’This, coupled with discoveries that such police cronies have acquired a lot of landed property, lends credence to the questions about his integrity,’’ the DSS wrote to the senate. ‘’In the light of the foregoing, Magu has failed the integrity test and will eventually constitute a liability to the anti-corruption drive of the present administration”, the letter had concluded.

On his part, the EFCC boss took pot shots at the DSS when he appeared before the senate. Specifically, he described the DSS as an institution that lacks credibility.

According to him “what does it say of an agency that submitted two varying reports on the same person, the same day? Up till now, the DSS has not given me a chance to hear from me. I have not been given fair hearing by the DSS. It is a fundamental issue, it is a constitutional matter. There are two reports, and that tells you about the credibility of the institution.” Significantly, the DSS wrote two letters with the same allegations but different prayers. In one of them, it gave Magu a clean bill of health in spite of the charges against him. In the other one, its asked the senate not to clear Magu because he has failed the integrity test and the upper legislative chamber chose the latter recommendation.

Thereafter, the President asked Attorney General of the Federation, Alhaji Abubakar Malami, to query Magu. According to reports, Magu responded to the allegations and his reponse was transmuted to the President. Satisfied, Buhari sent Magu’s name again to the senate on January 20, 2017 but for the second time, the DSS torpedoed the confirmation, using the same report to do so. Yet again, the senate refused to confirm Magu as substantive EFCC Chairman.

EFCC’s attempted interrogation
Moreover, there was a lull in the open altercation between EFCC and DSS but reports of a ‘silent war’ keep filtering every now and then. However, about two weeks ago, EFCC had cried out over the inability of the DSS to release some of its personnel for questioning over investigation into the arms procurement saga. In a statement issued by Mr Wilson Uwujaren, the commission’s spokesman, EFCC had revealed the various steps it had taken to ensure the release of the DSS personnel .

According to him “part of that protocol is to write to the heads of such agencies, requesting that the officer(s) in question be released to be interviewed.’’ The statement said that it had written to the Army, Air force, and Navy as well as the DSS, requesting the release of some of their personnel for questioning and all but the DSS have acceded to this request. ‘’For the avoidance of doubt, the arms procurement investigation is national in outlook with alleged culprits cutting across the military, security establishments as well as the political class. It is not targeted at any institution,’’ Uwujaren.

In addition, the spokesman dispelled the rumour that the invitation was ‘’about a revenge-instigated investigation of the DSS by the EFCC over its role in the senate refusal to confirm Ibrahim Magu as substantive chairman of the EFCC.’’

SERAP kicks
Expectedly, the failed bid to arrest Ita and Oke has attracted a welter of criticisms, especially from activists and lawyers. Specifically, the Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP), also condemned the face-off. In a press statement signed by Timothy Adewale, its Deputy Director, SERAP asked Buhari to ‘’instruct the leadership of the SSS and NIA to allow anti-corruption agencies to carry out their mandate without any interference whatsoever.’’

According to the group, preventing Ita and Oke’s arrests amounted to abuse of power and obstruction of justice, which is contrary to Nigerian law and United Nation’s convention. In addition, the resisting of arrest ‘’undermines public confidence in the fight against grand corruption and trust in government.’’ According to SERAP, ‘’obstructing the work of anti-corruption agencies is a text-book case of interference with the orderly administration of law and justice, which can send a particularly damaging message that the government may not be truly committed to the fight against corruption.’’ The group pointed out this attitude may in turn affect the government’s whistle-blower policy and discourage the public from coming forward and providing the authorities with useful evidence of grand corruption.

Sagay points the way forward
The Chairman of Presidential Advisory Committee Against Corruption, Prof. Itse Sagay (SAN), asked Magu to report what transpired between the EFCC and officials of the DSS to the President. According to him “I think the EFCC should refer the matter to the President so that he can take action because the President is the overall boss and if people are misbehaving like that, preventing agencies from doing their work, then there should be a penalty for misconduct.”

Prof. Sagay further explained that “we all know that the law empowers the EFCC to investigate arrest and prosecute and they have the right to interrogate and invite you and if you refuse to come, they can arrest you. So, anybody, who refuses, that is engaging in lawlessness and is trying to turn the country into a chaotic state of lawlessness which is certainly not good. No one is immune from arrest, except the President, Vice-President, governor and deputy governor. The DSS procedures do not supersede the laws of the land. The EFCC Act does not require the agency writing to anybody first. They cannot make a law that supersedes that of the National Assembly. The excuses of the DSS are just a way of covering up sheer lawlessness.”

Clash between impunity and rule of law-Falana
The human rights lawyer, Mr. Femi Falana (SAN), also castigated DSS for obstructing EFCC officials from doing their work. According to him, the incident should not be treated as a mere ‘inter-agency face-off’ but a flagrant disregard for court orders. “It is wrong to view what occurred as an inter-agency face-off. Since warrants of arrest and search were validly issued by a Magistrate Court, the prevention of the arrest was a clash between impunity and rule of law.

The security personnel who shielded the suspects from arrest committed the offence of obstruction of justice punishable under the EFCC Act,’’ the senior lawyer had counseled.

Senate wades in
As usual senators have waded into the issue, when Senator Dino Melaye raised it on the floor of the upper legislative chamber.

Specifically, he called the attention of his colleagues via Order 42 of the senate standing rules, describing the stand off as a calamity and a recipe for national disaster. Similarly, Deputy Minority Whip, Senator Biodun Olujimi described the incident as President Buhari’s inability to control the three security agencies which report to him. In defence of President Buhari, Senate Leader Ahmed Lawan argued that Buhari is in full control of the government of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. In the end, Senate President Bukola Saraki set up an adhoc committee to investigate the matter and gave it two weeks to report back to the Senate.

…President backs arrest bid
According reports, President Buhari has enormous confidence in Magu and the way and manner he is waging the war against corruption. A highly placed source told Blueprint Weekend that he backed last Tuesday’s failed attempt to arrest Ita and Oke.

‘’In fact, the president would have dispensed with him if Magu was found wanting. All sorts of obstacles are being put in his way to frustrate the acting chairman of EFCC but he has not wavered. Remember that he had to cry out when he got wind that some people were planning to buy houses abroad in his name, in order to blackmail him,’’ the source added. However, another source told one of our correspondents that ‘’Magu is a paper tiger. All his so called achievements is being over blown by you guys in the media. The war against corruption is not a one-man-show. It’s a collective effort and not a solo effort as your(media) man wants to present. Anytime there is a little disagreement on matters of procedure, he leaks it to the press and you people and so called human rights lawyers will just jump at it.’’

On Friday, reports indicated that the presidency has opened discussions with the senate on Magu’s confirmation as substantive chairman. Specifically, a meeting for an amicable resolution on the issue was allegedly held last Monday, where about 50 confirmations are still pending at the upper legislative chamber.

In particular, Buhari’s Senior Special Assistant on National Assembly Matters, Senator Ita Enang confirmed the new move towards a rapprochement. ‘’We have started talking again; we have changed the tone of our speaking. We are arriving at something like a middle ground that would be satisfactory to all parties,’’ he reportedly said. Nigerians hope that this middle ground will end the inter-agency rivalry that is portraying the administration in bad light.

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