Ongoing Reorganization of EFCC Under New Leadership with Fresh Appointments

Under the leadership of Ola Olukoyede, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has embarked on a process of restructuring the anti-graft agency.

Mr. Michael Nzekwe has been designated as the Chief of Staff by Olukoyede.

For each of the 14 zonal commands of the commission, zonal directors have been appointed as well.

In a statement on the EFCC website, it was revealed that Nzekwe, a proficient investigator and lawyer, previously served as a commander at the Ilorin Zonal Command and holds the rank of a course-one officer within the commission.

The statement highlighted Nzekwe’s diverse experience across various departments within the Commission, including Legal and Prosecution, Department of Operations (formerly known as Department of Investigations), Department of Internal Affairs (now named Department of Ethics and Integrity), Servicom, and Asset Forfeiture Department.

With numerous domestic and international training experiences, such as the Advance Defence Intelligence Officers Course organized by the Defence Intelligence Agency (DIA), Nzekwe’s appointment is effective immediately.

As part of the overall restructuring and repositioning initiative of the EFCC, all Zonal Commands have been elevated to the Departmental level, with each being overseen by a Director. Accordingly, 14 new directors have been appointed to lead the Zonal Commands.

Furthermore, to enhance the security framework of the Commission, the Security Unit of the EFCC has been advanced to departmental status, and an adept officer has been appointed as the Director of Security and Chief Security Officer.

Another newly established department within the Executive Chairman’s office, led by former Makurdi Zonal Commander of the EFCC, Mr. Friday Ebelo, has been created. Ebelo also serves as the Director and Coordinator of Special Duties at the Commission’s corporate headquarters. Additionally, the former Department of Internal Affairs has been renamed as the Department of Ethics and Integrity, with minor restructuring in some headquarters departments.

An integral part of the restructuring is the formation of a new department to oversee the preventive mandate of the EFCC. In a significant move, the Fraud Risk Assessment and Control Department has been instituted by Olukoyede to fulfill this critical function, with operations already in progress and set to make an impact nationwide in the near future.

Olukoyede emphasized that the ongoing restructuring aims to reposition and strengthen the EFCC for more effective delivery of its assigned mandate.