HURIWA salutes EFCC’s courtroom victories, demands radical transparency, citizen oversight
CHIGOZIE AMADI
The Human Rights Writers Association of Nigeria (HURIWA) has commended the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) for its remarkable string of courtroom victories that have culminated in the permanent forfeiture of billions of naira worth of assets found by competent courts to be proceeds of unlawful activities.
In a statement signed by its National Cordinator, Emmanurl Onwubiko, the he association said the recent judicial decisions including the final forfeiture of over ₦4.6 billion worth of jewellery, ₦4.293 billion in exotic vehicles, cash recovered from businesswoman Aisha Achimugu, the Supreme Court’s restoration of the forfeiture of vast assets linked to former Central Bank Governor Godwin Emefiele, the forfeiture of 52 luxury housing units in Lagos and other landmark recoveries—have reinforced public confidence that the judiciary remains a formidable pillar in the national war against corruption.
But HURIWA sounds a note of warning:
“Forfeiture cases is only one half of the anti-corruption war. The other and perhaps more important half is ensuring that every recovered asset is transparently accounted for and deployed exclusively for the benefit of Nigerians.”
The association declared that the anti-corruption campaign will lose its moral authority the very day recovered assets disappear into another opaque government vault from which Nigerians hear nothing except occasional political rhetoric.
HURIWA said for years, citizens have watched spectacular announcements of recoveries running into hundreds of billions of naira, thousands of properties, luxury automobiles, cash, jewellery and other valuables. Yet millions of Nigerians still ask one simple question”
“Where are these recovered assets today, who manages them, who benefits from them and how exactly have they improved the lives of ordinary Nigerians?”
“These are legitimate questions in a constitutional democracy and they deserve honest answers not official silence”.
HURIWA therefore calls on the EFCC to immediately institutionalise a comprehensive public accountability framework by publishing periodic reports detailing every forfeited asset, its estimated value, location, current status, mode of disposal where applicable, and the specific public projects or programmes benefiting from the proceeds.
HURIWA noted the era of asking Nigerians to celebrate recoveries without telling them what eventually becomes of those assets must come to an end.
The association also urges the Federal Government to resist every temptation to treat forfeited assets as another patronage pool to be quietly redistributed among politically connected interests. Assets recovered from corruption belong to the Nigerian people not to governments, politicians or bureaucrats.
HURIWA further demands that the EFCC formally invite respected civil society organisations, anti-corruption coalitions, professional bodies, the Nigerian Bar Association, accountants, auditors and independent media organisations to monitor and observe every stage of the valuation, preservation, auction and disposal of forfeited assets.
“Transparency is never weakened by public scrutiny; it is strengthened by it”.
The association maintains that corruption remains the single greatest architect of Nigeria’s multidimensional poverty. Every mansion purchased with stolen funds represents hospitals never built. Every luxury vehicle acquired through illicit wealth symbolises classrooms left without roofs. Every illicit bank account translates into unemployed graduates, dying industries, abandoned roads, insecurity, hunger and millions of citizens condemned to needless suffering.
The association noted that corruption is therefore not merely an economic offence. It is a monumental violation of the fundamental human rights of millions of Nigerians.
HURIWA called on Nigerians to support a human rights-based anti-corruption revolution founded on the rule of law, institutional independence, fairness, transparency and equal justice. The fight against corruption must never be selective, politically manipulated, or reduced to media sensationalism. It must remain evidence-driven, court-tested and faithfully executed within the framework of the Constitution.
The association equally calls for a tightening of Nigeria’s anti-corruption architecture. Existing laws should be strengthened, enforcement made more rigorous and sanctions rendered sufficiently severe to deter both public officials and private individuals from engaging in economic crimes that rob the nation of resources desperately needed for development.
“Nigeria cannot continue to produce a handful of billionaires through questionable wealth while over a hundred million citizens battle multidimensional poverty. Such a contradiction is morally indefensible and economically unsustainable”.
HURIWA concludes by reminding all institutions of government that the ultimate measure of the anti-corruption war is not the number of dramatic arrests or forfeiture orders secured in court. The true measure is whether recovered wealth is transformed into quality schools, modern hospitals, potable water, secure communities, reliable electricity, functional infrastructure and economic opportunities for the ordinary Nigerian.
“The Nigerian people are no longer interested in headline-grabbing recoveries alone”.
“They want accountability after recovery. They want transparency after forfeiture. They want justice that they can see and development that they can feel”.
“That is the standard by which history will judge Nigeria’s anti-corruption”.
