In the last three weeks, Nigeria and Nigerians have been held spell-bound by the spectacle at the National Assembly, as the upper legislative chamber screened President Muhammadu Buhari’s ministerial nominees. In all the fuss about the confirmation hearing, one issue appeared to have escaped the attention of the media: the tenure of the ministers being screened by the Senate. These questions are germane especially for a society such as ours which is highly sentimental about the tenure of public office holders.
This is why I found media reports suggesting that the tenure of the incumbent chair of the EFCC, Ibrahim Lamorde, ends in November really shocking.
I say so because, I was privileged to have witnessed the confirmation screening of Lamorde by the Senate on February 15, 2012. Even though he had been occupying the office of chairman of the EFCC, albeit in acting capacity before the confirmation, he became the substantive chairman of the EFCC on February 15, 2012, which invariably means that his four-year tenure terminates on February 15, 2016. Except, President Buhari renews his appointment for another term of four years, Lamorde should by February 15, 2016, be returning to the Nigeria Police to continue with his career as a senior police officer or retire.
Until that happens, it does a section of the media no good to twist facts and confuse the people.
I have never met the EFCC boss and have no incentive to speak for him but truth be told, the recent spate of media attacks on his person clearly indicate that there are people who are not comfortable with him as chairman of EFCC and have launched a media campaign to discredit and run him out of the place.
It is important that persons with tenure appointments are accorded protection from mischief makers, with a clearly statement regarding their tenure. Of course, not many people bother when it comes to obscure agencies. In this country we have had not a few cases where public officers outstayed their tenures because public attention is not turned to such agencies. But when you head the Central Bank of Nigeria, the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, the Federal Inland Revenue Service, the EFCC, Nigeria Communications Commission or Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency, people count every minute you spend and aspirants are let on the loose once they sense that a vacancy is imminent. It should not be so. Nigerians should cultivate the culture of not stampeding public office holders out of office, especially those who have diligently served the nation.
Alabi Evonney,
Abuja