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EFCC and when law enforcement becomes the terror 25 Feb 2025

It’s still in the dead of night, but a man jumps out of sleep, awaken by the sound of shattering glass and heavy boots thudding against his front door. His wife clutches their children, trembling in a corner while he scrambles to make sense of the chaos erupting in front of their apartment. Voices shout commands, threatening to break down the door if it isn’t opened immediately. Without warning or explanation, he can only assume that armed robbers or bandits are attacking his home.

This is not a fiction. It is a horrifying lived experience for many Nigerians whose homes have been violently raided by armed robbers. I have experienced it as a victim. But thankfully, it was before I was married with children. The whole experience left me deeply traumatised for months, such that for a while I considered owning a gun.

But a state security agency has also been carrying out some of its operations using arm robbers’ tactics. The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), a body meant to uphold the law, has become infamous for midnight home invasions that eerily resemble the modus operandi of armed robbers. These EFCC raids are often carried out without search warrants or plausible evidence of wrongdoing against their victims. Families are left violated as their homes are ransacked and shattered on knowing the perpetrators are supposed law enforcement personnel.

Unsurprisingly, these lawless and unprofessional acts have culminated in tragedies. In one recent case last month, a scared and unsuspecting citizen, believing his home was under attack by criminals, shot at the EFCC agents conducting one of such raids at his home. As of the time of writing, EFCC has yet to produce a warrant for the supposedly home search or arrest. Hence, the perception that its operatives acted as outlaws has stuck, despite the tragic loss of one of them to the fatal shooting by the homeowner.

The shooting of two EFCC operatives during this incident in Anambra State is a stark illustration of how lawless tactics can lead to tragedies. While the specifics of the incident remain murky, reports suggest that the operatives were engaged in an unannounced operation under the cover of darkness. However, public attention should now turn to how the agency will handle the aftermath of the disastrous effect. Given its history of overreach and lack of accountability, the EFCC is likely to be hostile and biased in its investigation into the shooting. Instead of acknowledging their role in provoking such a dangerous situation, it may focus on building a case against the residents involved, portraying them as aggressors rather than terrified citizens reacting to a perceived threat.

The EFCC’s poor operational approach has long been criticised for its disregard for legal and ethical standards. But rather than reflect on the systemic flaws, like other security agencies do, the EFCC often double down on authority narratives. The hapless citizens they abused are further subjected to intimidation, physical violence, torture during illegal detention, and criminal prosecution.

It is understandable that criminals would like to evade arrest. But the EFCC's operational approach of badging into people’s homes in the dead of night is problematic. The operations typically target homes in affluent areas, thereby unwittingly criminalising financial success. Many Nigerians have spoken of an insidious economic and financial crimes in the country which entails “re-looting” of recovered loots by law enforcement agents or government officials. The EFCC is even allowed to auction properties confiscated during its operations without full disclosures on the proceeds and their utilisation. These could mean the targeting of affluent neighbourhoods is meant to increase the financial or asset haul of the agency – especially as virtually all government agencies are now revenue generating.

Public outrage against the EFCC’s midnight raids had reached such high levels that its leadership announced a ban on them. But as it is usual for Nigerian law enforcement officers to break their own code of conduct, the ban has been observed merely in words and not in actual change of action. The midnight raids, like the illegal police check points, have continued.

Financial misconduct is quite popular amongst the unprofessional practices in Nigeria’s law enforcement. The ignoble sights of police officers collecting bribes from motorists have refused to go away. Many believe such illegal acts actually augment the very poor remuneration of the police officers, many of whom earn roughly $30 monthly, which is less than half the UN's international poverty line. Many EFCC operatives face similar financial constraints despite wielding enormous power over wealthy citizens. Arming individuals with tremendous law enforcement powers while denying them basic financial security makes abuse inevitable.

Many jurisdictions are by far more disciplined and serious than the EFCC and similar agencies make Nigeria appear to be in fighting corruption and economic and financial crimes. The institutions that make their countries exemplary include Singapore’s Corrupt Practices Investigation Bureau, and Hong Kong’s Independent Commission Against Corruption. In these jurisdictions, it is fundamentally understood that fighting corruption requires incorruptible fighters. To bolster their moral capacity, the officers receive competitive salaries that reflect their responsibilities, professional training that emphasises integrity, and institutional independence that reduces political pressure for selective enforcement. None of these is taken seriously in Nigeria.

Rather than working to ensure the poor remunerations of law enforcement agents are addressed by the government, the leaderships of the Nigerian institutions tend to weaponised the financial predicament of their operatives and staff. The hapless but willing agents are sent on operations for unofficial 'income generation.'

The EFCC – like the police – often fail to conduct proper investigation before attempting to carry out arrests. But their counterparts in the advanced law enforcement jurisdictions carry out meticulous investigations into alleged crimes and adhere to legal procedures and professional conduct in carrying out arrests as their investigation dictates.

The impact of the institutional and operational dysfunctions in fighting corruption and economic and financial crimes in Nigeria should not be underestimated. Many Nigerians have emigrated because of their experience with the sheer terror of the country’s law enforcement on innocent citizens. Others have also left the country because of the random arrests of private individuals for extortion, like the police does to young Nigerians in possession of a laptop computer walking down the street. Many of the migrants didn’t even wait for them to personally have this untoward experience: they acted based on the experiences of other people, including family members, friends, or colleagues.

Apart from contributing to brain drain in the country, the unprofessional conducts of the law enforcement agents also drain the country of foreign investments. Instead of offering assurance of protection, Nigeria’s law enforcement tends to offer fear to citizens and foreigners alike.

The government must address this unfortunate situation. It needs to effectively reform the EFCC, enhancing its institutional independence and accountability frameworks. The leadership of the institution must be held responsible not only for its performance but also its public perception. While modern trainings are recommended for the operatives, the EFCC must also systematically purge the agency of untrainable officials – or professional misfits.

Cheta Nwanze is Lead Partner at SBM Intelligence.