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Tag: Bawa

  • Clarify status of allegations against ex-chairman Bawa, Coalition urges EFCC

    Clarify status of allegations against ex-chairman Bawa, Coalition urges EFCC

    A civil society group, the Coalition of Activists Against Corruption in Nigeria (CAACIN), has urged the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to provide clarity on the status of investigations involving its former chairman, Abdulrasheed Bawa, and to take appropriate legal action if the allegations against him are substantiated.

    In a statement issued in Kaduna on Thursday and signed by its spokesperson, Comrade Ahmed Aliyu, the coalition also called on the Department of State Services (DSS) to release the findings of its investigation into Bawa’s 2023 detention, stressing the importance of public accountability.

    “It is important that Nigerians are informed about the outcome of the DSS investigation, especially considering the duration of Mr. Bawa’s detention,” the statement read. “Transparency in such matters reinforces public trust in anti-corruption institutions.”

    CAACIN emphasized that its call was not a presumption of guilt or innocence but a demand for due process and openness in matters of public interest.

    The coalition’s statement follows recent concerns raised by the Citizens Forum for Transparency and Integrity (CFTI), which had also advocated for institutional transparency and adherence to anti-corruption principles.

    CAACIN further recommended that the EFCC review appointments made during Bawa’s tenure to ensure alignment with ongoing reforms and to safeguard the integrity of the Commission’s operations.

    Read Also: EFCC arraigns businessman for alleged $680,622.65 fraud

    “For the sake of institutional credibility, it would be prudent to assess the influence of past leadership on current operations,” Aliyu noted.

    The coalition further expressed its support for President Bola Tinubu’s anti-corruption agenda and encouraged federal agencies to strengthen their frameworks through openness and accountability.

     Bawa was suspended by President Tinubu in June 2023, just two weeks into the new administration. He was later detained by the DSS for over four months, during which no formal charges were publicly filed.

    CAACIN reaffirmed its respect for the rule of law and urging all stakeholders to allow due process to prevail.

  • Ghana High Commissioner to Nigeria Bawa is dead

    Ghana High Commissioner to Nigeria Bawa is dead

    Ghana High Commissioner to Nigeria, Amb. Rawhide Bawa is dead.

    He died in Abuja on Thursday according to informationation gathered by The Nation.

    The remains of the late 65-year-old envoy has been flown back to Ghana for burial in accordance with Islamic rites.

    Read Also: Ghana High Commissioner Bawa dies in Abuja

    Though there was no official comment from Nigeria’s Ministry of of Foreign Affairs, a source confirmed that the ministry had been notified of his death.

  • After Bawa’s release

    After Bawa’s release

    Interestingly, the release of the immediate past chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Abdulrasheed Bawa, on October 25, after more than four months in detention, was not as dramatic as his arrest. The Department of State Services (DSS) simply said it “confirms release of former EFCC chairman, Abdulrasheed Bawa, a few hours ago.”

    His detention since June 14, without charge, did not help the anti-corruption war. About two weeks after President Bola Tinubu’s inauguration on May 29, he sent a strong anti-corruption signal by approving the “indefinite suspension” of the then EFCC boss, Bawa, “to allow for proper investigation into his conduct while in office.” The move, according to the federal government, was prompted by “weighty allegations of abuse of office levelled against him.”  The said allegations were not stated. He was later arrested and detained.    

    Just before Tinubu’s inauguration, there had been corruption-related allegations against Bawa that dented the agency’s credibility. For instance, the then governor of Zamfara State, Bello Matawalle, had dropped a bombshell, alleging that Bawa “requested a bribe of $2 million from me and I have evidence of this.”

    Read Also: Afenifere leader Fasoranti congratulates Tinubu

    Also, anti-corruption crusaders in the country led by the chairman, Centre for Anti-Corruption and Open Leadership (CACOL), Debo Adeniran, had called for an in-depth investigation of the anti-graft agency under Bawa by “a technical Commission of Inquiry,” which would “dig into the modus operandi of EFCC investigations in the last three years by thoroughly analysing records of arrests, investigations, outcomes and final closure of each incident and individual suspects and how the matters were eventually dispensed with.”

    On the performance of the EFCC under Bawa, they faulted his claims that the agency had secured 98.93 percent of convictions in 2022, losing only 1.07 percent, and noted that most of the convictions involved online fraudsters, and that high-profile political players were treated as sacred cows.

    When the president’s spokesperson, Ajuri Ngelale, announced the appointment of Ola Olukoyede as the new EFCC chairman last month, he said it “follows the resignation” of Bawa. He notably described Olukoyede’s new role as an “important national assignment,” adding, “a newly invigorated war on corruption undertaken through a reformed institutional architecture in the anti-corruption sector remains a central pillar of the President’s Renewed Hope agenda.”

     Why was Bawa arrested and arbitrarily detained? How has that treatment helped the war on corruption?  What is the outcome of the investigation of the “weighty allegations of abuse of office levelled against him”?

  • DSS releases Bawa 134 days after

    DSS releases Bawa 134 days after

    The State Security Service (SSS) has released the immediate-past Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Abdulrasheed Bawa, 134 days after taking him into custody.

    The agency, which calls itself the Department of State Services (DSS), said in a statement: “DSS confirms release of former EFCC chairman, Abdulrasheed Bawa, a few hours ago (today 25th October 2023).”

    The secret police did not state why it held Bawa for so long without charge, nor did it say charges would be filed.

    Bawa was arrested on June 14 but was not arraigned.

    The SSS’ post on the social media platform X generated various reactions.

    A user asked: “Why was he held so long without charging him to court?”

    Another said: “You’ve now been used as a political tool, shame.”

    Read Also: How college workers, students attacked our operatives, by EFCC

    Another user wrote in pidgin: “He steal abi him no steal?”

    Activist lawyers Mike Ozekhome (SAN) and Prof Chidi Odinkalu were among those who slammed the DSS for abuse of power regarding Bawa’s detention.

    “Can the DSS continue to be the accuser, arrester, detainer, investigator, prosecutor and judge?” Ozekhome had asked.

    Odinkalu had said: “An administration led by those who claim to have resisted the abuses of military rule should not be caught now replaying the playbook that they reviled.”

  • 124 days after, Bawa still in DSS custody

    124 days after, Bawa still in DSS custody

    Immediate-past Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Abdulrasheed Bawa, is still in the custody of the State Security Service (SSS), otherwise known as the Department of State Services (DSS), 124 days after he was arrested.

    Bawa was arrested June 14 but he is yet to be arraigned before any court.

    There have been calls on the Federal Government to charge him as required by the Constitution or free him.

    All eyes are on the Attorney-General of the Federation, Lateef Fagbemi (SAN), to match his words with action regarding Bawa.

    During the AGF’s screening, he spoke against the practice of arresting and detaining suspects indefinitely without charge.

    For him, investigations ought to be concluded before arrests are made, to prevent the violation of rights, as appears to be the case with Bawa.

    Fagbemi also vowed to uphold the rule of law and protect rights, and with Bawa still in detention 56 days after the AGF was sworn in, observers will be keen to see whether the new administration will operate by those tenets.

    Activists have urged President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to intervene in Bawa’s case.

    A human rights expert and professor of law, Chidi Odinkalu, stressed that the 1999 Constitution prohibits administrative detention, “which is exactly what has become Mr Bawa’s fate”.

    Read Also: Suit challenging Bawa’s detention to continue October 9

    In an article entitled: The disappearance of Abdulrasheed Bawa, Odinkalu writes: “A government that claims democratic legitimacy should not be in the business of disappearing citizens, irrespective of what they are accused of.

    “Whatever allegations against Mr Bawa are, they cannot justify putting him beneath the constitution…

    “An administration led by those who claim to have resisted the abuses of military rule should not be caught now replaying the playbook that they reviled.

    “If there are serious allegations against Mr Bawa, he deserves to be brought to account administratively in line with the service regulations of his employers or before a court of law.

    “Neither option warrants his indefinite disappearance.”

    Human rights lawyer, Chief Mike Ozekhome (SAN), urged the SSS to charge Bawa or free him.

    He said: “I thought Section 35 of the 1999 Constitution, as amended, provides for only one day (24 hours) of incarceration when there is a court of competent jurisdiction within a radius of 40 kilometres from the police station; and where there is no court within a 40-kilometer radius of the station, 48 hours; or any longer period which the court considers reasonable given the particular circumstances of the case.

    “The DSS, through its Director of Information, Willie Bassey, cited ‘weighty allegations of abuse of office levelled against him’, as the reason for Bawa’s continued captivity.

    “This continued detention without trial is barbaric, atrocious and unconscionable, to say the least. Are we still living in the early caveman Australopithecus era? I do not know. Or, do you?

    “Till date, the DSS has not told Nigerians what Bawa’s specific offences are (if any), or the level of ‘investigation’.

    “Even if he committed some infractions of the law, can illegality beget legality? Can two wrongs make a right? Can the DSS continue to be the accuser, arrester, detainer, investigator, prosecutor and judge? What is going on here?

    “The last time I checked, even amongst mad people, there was orderliness. DSS, for God’s sake, and the sake of decency and our constitutional democracy, release Bawa immediately and forthwith.”

    A Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), Dayo Akinlaja, noted that Bawa may have been detained pursuant to ex-parte court orders obtained on the basis that investigation is ongoing, but he believes his indefinite detention goes against the spirit Constitution.

    “There is no disputing the fact that any long detention without arraignment in court is against the spirit of the constitution,” a report quotes him as saying.

    Observers have also wondered whether some of those Bawa investigated, among whom are those now in government, are behind his travails.

    There is the fear that the war against corruption will fail if those leading it are victimised for stepping on powerful toes.

  • Family hopeful Bawa will be released soon

    Family hopeful Bawa will be released soon

    There were indications at the weekend that suspended Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Abdulrasheed Bawa, may be released soon. 

    The Federal Government had directed that Bawa should be allowed access to his lawyers and family members.

    The Nation learnt that his lawyers and family members have been having access to him in the custody of the State Security Service (SSS) in the past few weeks.

    Read Also: FG grants ex-EFCC boss Bawa access to lawyers, family members

    It was gathered that the challenge has been his alleged refusal to cooperate with investigators by answering questions and volunteering statements, as required.

    “The young man has refused to cooperate with investigators. He has refused to answer questions. He has also declined to make a statement. We understand it is within his right to either volunteer statement or decline. I think options are currently being weighed on what next measures to be adopted,” a source said.

    Also, a lawyer, who confided with The Nation, said Bawa’s legal team had been constrained from seeking legal option to enforce his freedom because of a directive from his father.

  • FG grants ex-EFCC boss Bawa access to lawyers, family members

    FG grants ex-EFCC boss Bawa access to lawyers, family members

    The federal fovernment has directed that suspended chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Abdulrasheed Bawa, should be allowed access to his lawyers and family members.

    The Nation learnt that his lawyers and family members have been having access to him in the custody of the State Security Service (SSS) for some weeks now.

    It was gathered that the challenge has been his alleged refusal to cooperate with investigators by answering questions and volunteering statements as required.

    A source who pleaded anonymity said: “The young man has refused to cooperate with investigators. He has refused to answer questions. He has also declined to make statement. We understand it is within his right to either volunteer statement or decline. I think options are currently being weighed on what next measures to be adopted.”

    Also, a senior lawyer, who confided with The Nation, said Bawa’s legal team has been constrained from seeking legal option to enforce his freedom because of a directive from his father.

    “We would have filed a fundamental rights enforcement suit by now. You recall that the young man has been in custody for months now, with the government failing to charge him to court.

    The source said: “We have been handicapped by the directive of his father who asked us not to go to court on his behalf.

    “The father said he believes his son will be released when God dictates and that there was no need suing the government.”

     Meanwhile, some Senior Advocates of Nigeria have continued to asked for Bawa’s release, the latest being Rotimi Jacobs.

    Read Also: Bawa’s 70-day detention illegal, lawyer tells AGF

    Jacobs described Bawa’s continued detention since June 14 as unconstitutional and unlawful.

    In a statement, he cited relevant provisions of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act (ACJA) 2015 relating to the power of the state to remand a suspect, and argued that  remand order to show that the detention of Bawa could no longer be justified in law.

    Jacobs argued that the maximum time of custody for a suspect in Nigeria under a remand order is 56 days, noting that Bawa has been held beyond the allowed under the law, which is against the rule of law and must be opposed by all lovers of democracy.

    Two other Senior Advocates,  Femi Falana and Kemi Pinheiro have also advanced similar arguments in danding for Bawa’s release.

  • Bawa’s 70-day detention illegal, lawyer tells AGF

    Bawa’s 70-day detention illegal, lawyer tells AGF

    A Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), Dr. ‘Kemi Pinheiro, has urged the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Prince Lateef Fagbemi (SAN), to ensure the immediate release of erstwhile Chairman of the Economic And Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Abdulrahseed Bawa.

    Pinheiro noted that Bawa’s continued detention by the Department of State Services (DSS) for 70 days (as of yesterday) “without any known charge” was unconstitutional and unlawful.  He warned that by illegally holding Bawa, the government risked sending the wrong signal to the international community on human rights violations in Nigeria.

    In a letter, titled: The Continuous and Unlawful Detention of the Erstwhile Executive Chairman of the Economic And Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Mr. Abdulrahseed Bawa, and dated August 21 sent to the AGF, the lawyer noted that Bawa was suspended from office by President Bola Tinubu on June 14, arrested by the DSS, and has been in the custody of the secret police since then.

     Pinheiro said: “Sometime ago, when the public’s curiosity arose on the cause of the purported ‘unlawful’ detention of the erstwhile EFCC chairman, the officers of the DSS were said to have purportedly stated that the detention of the erstwhile EFCC chairman was lawful and pursuant to a court order.

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     “As at the date of writing this letter, Mr. Abdulrasheed Bawa has been in the detention of the DSS for 68 days now (as of Monday) with no statement issued to the public on the cause of his detention or any known charge filed against him before any competent court of record.

     “Even while we might believe that his detention may be based on a remand order issued by a court of competent record, it is of utmost importance to draw your attention to the unjustifiable extended duration of this remand order.

     “Granted that the said remand order may have been obtained pursuant to Section 293 of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act 2015, which provides succinctly on the procedures to be followed in obtaining a remand order, Section 295 of the said Act also provides an opportunity for a suspect to apply for bail during the course of the said remand proceedings or in an entirely independent action.”

     The SAN expressed concern that the continued detention of the erstwhile EFCC boss may also be construed as a violation of Section 35(4) & (5) of the Constitution (as amended.)

    The section guarantees the right of every person, where arrested or detained, to be charged before a competent court of law within a reasonable time.

    Pinheiro noted that Section 35(5) of the Constitution further defines “reasonable time” to be a period not exceeding 48 hours, depending on the accessibility to a court of competent jurisdiction from the place of arrest.

     The lawyer noted that in the event that the detention of Bawa “was effected in order to provide ample time for the officers of the DSS to complete any investigation, it is pertinent to state that the period of 68 days is unreasonable”.

  • Bawa’s 70-day detention illegal, unconstitutional, SAN tells AGF Fagbemi

    Bawa’s 70-day detention illegal, unconstitutional, SAN tells AGF Fagbemi

    A Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), ‘Kemi Pinheiro, has urged Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Lateef Fagbemi (SAN) to effect the immediate release of the former chairman of the Economic And Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Abdulrahseed Bawa.

    Pinheiro noted that Bawa’s continued detention by the Department of State Services (DSS) for 70 days (as of Wednesday) “without any known charge” was unconstitutional and unlawful.

    He warned that by holding Bawa, the government risked sending the wrong signal to the international community concerning human rights violations in Nigeria.

    The senior lawyer’s August 21 letter to the AGF was titled “The continuous and unlawful detention of the erstwhile Executive Chairman of the Economic And Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Mr. Abdulrahseed Bawa”.

    He noted that Bawa was suspended from office by President Bola Tinubu on June 14 and arrested by the DSS in whose custody he has been since the time of his arrest.

    Pinheiro said: “Sometime ago, when the public’s curiosity arose on the cause of the purported ‘unlawful’ detention of the erstwhile EFCC chairman, the officers of the DSS were said to have purportedly stated that the detention of the erstwhile EFCC Chairman was lawful and pursuant to a court order.

    “As at the date of writing this letter, Mr. Abdulrasheed Bawa has been in the detention of the DSS for 68 days now (as of Monday), with no press statement issued to the public as to the cause of his detention, or any known charge filed against him before any competent court of record.

    “Even while we might believe that his detention may be based on a remand order issued by a court of competent record, it is of utmost importance to draw your attention to the unjustifiable extended duration of this remand order.

    Read Also: Falana urges Fed Govt to release ex-EFCC Chairman Bawa

    “Granted that the said remand order may have been obtained pursuant to section 293 of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act 2015 which provides succinctly on the procedures to be followed in obtaining a remand order, Section 295 of the said Act also provides an opportunity for a suspect to apply for bail during the course of the said remand proceedings or in an entirely independent action.”

    He noted that his present concern is that the continued detention may also be construed as violating Section 35(4) & (5) of the Constitution (as Amended.)

    According to him, the section guarantees the right of every person, where arrested or detained, to be charged before a competent court of law within a reasonable time.

    Pinheiro noted that Section 35(5)of the Constitution further defines “reasonable time” to be a period not exceeding 48 hours, depending on the accessibility to a court of competent jurisdiction from the place of arrest.

    He added that in the event that the detention of Bawa “was effected in order to provide ample time for the officers of the DSS to complete any investigation, it is pertinent to state that the period of 68 days is unreasonable.

    “What is more, the said investigation by the DSS may be carried out contemporaneously with the erstwhile EFCC Chairman being admitted to bail.

    “It is considerably urged by this letter that the rule of law and the interest of justice should prevail and Mr. Abdulrasheed Bawa be released immediately so as not to send the wrong signal to the international Community as it relates to human rights violations in Nigeria.”