The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has dismissed more than 40 members of its workforce over alleged corruption and financial malpractice in the past two and a half years, Chairman Ola Olukoyede has disclosed.
Olukoyede made the disclosure in Abuja while meeting media executives and journalists, saying the disciplinary action was part of efforts to protect the integrity of the agency responsible for investigating and prosecuting financial crimes.
The EFCC chairman said more than five of the dismissed personnel are currently facing prosecution, while case files involving others are being prepared for possible prosecution. “In the past two and a half years or three years of my service, I have asked them to dismiss over 40 staff on account of corruption and financial malpractice,” he said.
Olukoyede said the commission had introduced additional safeguards to improve accountability among its personnel. These include a new gift policy that will regulate what staff can receive and require the declaration of gifts above a specified value, including items received from relatives outside Nigeria.
He warned that EFCC officers cannot credibly investigate corruption while engaging in similar conduct themselves. As part of the internal reforms, the commission has also renamed its former Department of Internal Affairs as the Department of Ethics and Integrity.
Beyond disciplinary measures, Olukoyede said the EFCC’s enforcement activities had helped recover significant public revenue. He put federal and state tax recoveries during the period under review at about N288.1 billion, comprising N173.2 billion in federal recoveries and N114.9 billion linked to state internal revenue services.
The chairman added that approximately N257.2 billion had been recovered for federal ministries, departments and agencies. He stressed that the revenue figures represented enforcement of existing obligations rather than the introduction of new taxes.
Olukoyede further disclosed that the EFCC recovered N1.23 trillion, $684.48 million, £373,905.78 and €9.34 million between October 1, 2023, and June 30, 2026. Of the naira recoveries, N397.26 billion was described as direct recovery for the Federal Government, while N836.34 billion represented indirect recoveries made for MDAs, state revenue services, companies, individuals and foreign victims.
On the use of recovered funds, Olukoyede said N661.32 billion and $492.37 million had been released to beneficiaries during the period. The naira payments included N325.35 billion released directly to individuals and corporate bodies and N335.97 billion distributed to MDAs, the Nigerian Revenue Service, state internal revenue services and other beneficiaries.
