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Olisa Agbakoba, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, has raised constitutional concerns before the National Assembly, pointing to fundamental issues within law enforcement agencies.
He highlighted that these challenges are obstructing the Government’s pursuit of its anti-corruption agenda, as enshrined in Section 13 of the Constitution, calling for legislative intervention to resolve the bottlenecks.
Olisa Agbakoba, a distinguished Senior Advocate of Nigeria, addressed two letters to the Senate and the House of Representatives on October 14, 2024, in which he declared that the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) was unlawfully constituted. Agbakoba argued that the commission’s establishment was unconstitutional, sparking a debate over the legal validity of its mandate.
“I very strongly believe the EFCC is unconstitutionally established. The powers under which it was established go beyond the powers of the National Assembly. The EFCC is an unlawful organization,” Agbakoba, the former President of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), said.
The letters, which were addressed to Deputy Senate President Senator Barau Jibrin and Deputy Speaker Hon. Benjamin Kalu, targeted the two lawmakers in their dual capacities. Senator Jibrin chairs the Senate Committee on Constitution Review, while Hon. Kalu, who also leads the House Committee on the same subject, holds pivotal roles in shaping legislative reforms.
Agbakoba expressed his approval of the growing trend among states to question the constitutional standing of the EFCC, stating, “I am pleased to see that this will finally put to rest the debate over the EFCC’s validity.” He viewed these legal actions as crucial steps toward resolving long-standing concerns about the commission’s legality.
The letter to the Deputy Senate President, titled, “Urgent Legislative Attention on Constitutional Reforms Relating to Law Enforcement Agencies and Anti-Corruption Efforts”, reads: “I commend you for the remarkable leadership you have demonstrated as Chairman, Senate Constitution Review Committee, particularly in advancing the government’s reform agenda through a robust constitutional framework. Your efforts to strengthen the legal infrastructure underpinning the nation’s development programs are indeed commendable.
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“I write to draw attention to certain constitutional issues on matters related to law enforcement agencies. As you are obviously aware, the fundamental objective of the government is to abolish corruption. But from my observation, there is no harmony amongst law enforcement agencies on corruption. They all appear to be working at cross purposes.
“This has been confirmed by the Supreme Court in so many cases. The Supreme Court has consistently sanctioned the EFCC for its conduct and questioned if the EFCC can in fact validly do what it does. I will go further to say that I very strongly believe the EFCC is unconstitutionally established. The powers under which it was established go beyond the powers of the National Assembly. The EFCC is an unlawful organization.
