BEVERLY HILLS, February 16, (THEWILL) – “Jack Bauer of the EFCC,” some have fondly pinned the name of America’s king of action-packed espionage to Abdulrasheed Bawa, the man whose name Nigeria’s President Muhammadu Buhari Tuesday forwarded to the Senate for screening and confirmation as the newest Czar of Nigeria’s anti-corruption agency, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission. Bawa rhymes with Bauer, hero of the American blockbuster movie, 24.
At 40 years old, Bawa will be weighing in as the youngest person to steer affairs at EFCC. His appointment will also represent the generational shift that many have clamoured for from a government headed by a 78-year old Civil War veteran. When it was founded in 2003 by President Olusegun Obasanjo, EFCC came under the wings of Nuhu Ribadu, its pioneer Chairman, aged 43. Ribadu’s successor, Mrs. Farida Waziri, stepped into his shoes in 2008 at the age of 59, to be replaced by Ibrahim Lamorde in 2011 aged 47 and in 2015 by Ibrahim Magu at the middle age of 53.
Bawa may appear youthful, but this is one EFCC operative that totes a wide array of experience in the investigation and prosecution of Advance Fee Fraud cases, official corruption, bank fraud, money laundering, and other economic crimes. The Presidency said he had participated in myriads of specialised training locally and internationally.
In 2005, just two years after the commission’s establishment when this strapping young man first stepped foot into EFCC, he was 24 years old. He joined the commission as one of its pioneer Cadet Officers as a graduate of Economics from the Usmanu Danfodio University, Sokoto, where he graduated with a Second Class Upper degree. He later returned to his Alma Mater to read for a Master’s degree in International Affairs and Diplomacy that he obtained in 2012.
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However, controversy tails Bawa. No sooner had his name surfaced as the President’s nominee than social media went awash with a 2020 report of how despite his being enmeshed in allegations of depleting confiscated assets, Bawa received elevation to the post of Head of the EFCC’s prestigious Lagos Zonal Office, where he remains up till this moment coordinating a hydra-headed operational branch with 604 officers.
But far from being a neophyte in leading people, Bawa has a track record of managing men and matters. Previously, he headed the Capacity Development Division of the EFCC Academy at Abuja (December 2019 to August 2020). That was after heading the Port Harcourt Zonal Office (overseeing Rivers, Bayelsa and Abia states operations –January to December 2019), Ibadan Zonal Office (covering Oyo, Osun, Ekiti, Ondo and Kwara states –June 2018 to January 2019) and the Counter-Terrorism and General Investigation/Pension Unit, of the Lagos Zonal Office from March to 2017 to May 2018.
He has achieved outstanding success investigating several fraud cases and testifying when such cases found their way to court. Several of these high profile cases led to convictions and recovery of looted monetary and assets across the world. He coordinated the EFCC investigation of former Petroleum Minister Mrs. Diezani Allison-Madueke since 2015 till date, leading to the recovery of millions of dollars worth of property in Nigeria, UK, US and Dubai. He was also involved in the Petroleum Subsidy Fraud investigations from 2012 to 2015, during which untoward and fraudulent deals of over N70 billion surfaced, got traced and funds recovered. Many companies were prosecuted over the celebrated subsidy scam. He is also on the case of the former Governor of Niger State, Alhaji Muazu Babangida Aliyu, currently facing trial.
Bawa’s diligence and forthrightness have been recognized with many honours both at home and abroad. He is a recipient of the EFCC Merit Award 2020, the US Federal Bureau of Investigation (US Department of Justice) Recognition Award 2019 for the collaborative role he played between the EFCC and the FBI against an international-scale corruption, and US Federal Bureau of Investigation (Criminal Investigative Division) Appreciation (2019) for being part of an FBI operation harvesting about 209 arrests worldwide.
How does Bawa see himself?
He tells us: “I am a trained Economic and Financial Crimes investigator with vast experience in the investigation and being part of prosecution of Advance Fee Fraud, Official Corruption, Bank Fraud, Money Laundering and other Economic and Financial Crimes related offences. I am a Certified Fraud Examiner (CFE), Certified Anti-Money Laundering Specialist (CAMS) and trained by the United States Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), United States Financial Crime Enforcement Network (FINCEN), The World Bank, The United Nations Office of Drug and Crimes, The Nigeria Police Force, the Nigeria State Security Services, the EFCC Academy and United Kingdom’s Global Training Consulting….
“I have successfully investigated and testified in prosecution of several cases leading to convictions and recovery of billions of naira and millions of US dollars in cash and properties across the world. I am presently Deputy Chief Detective Superintendent-DCDS (since 2016).”
Like Professor Attahiru Jega, the last INEC Chairman, Bawa hails from Jega town, headquarters of the Jega Local Government Area of Kebbi State.
Magu, Bawa’s predecessor and boss left the way he came –highly controversial. Those who made him ended up unmaking him in an appointment that muddied the relationship between the Executive and the Legislature.
Bawa represents another chance for EFCC to put the right foot forward. With the Executive and the Legislature currently enjoying a smooth relationship, the President’s nominee should have an easy ride receiving endorsement.
Upon his confirmation by the Senate, expectedly a routine formality, Abdulrasheed Bawa will become the first substantive EFCC Chairman since 2015.
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