PDP Chieftain Eze has called for scrapping of EFCC, NDLEA, and ICPC over Tinubu’s pardon of convicts.
NaijaOnPoint Nigeria reports that a chieftain of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Eze Chukwuemeka Eze, has called for the abolition of key federal anti-crime agencies; including the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), and Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) following President Bola Tinubu’s controversial presidential pardon of several convicted criminals.
Eze, in a strongly worded statement on Sunday, said the pardon granted to drug traffickers, illegal miners, and murderers has eroded public trust in Nigeria’s justice system, describing it as “a national embarrassment.”
He accused the Tinubu administration of undermining the rule of law and rendering statutory institutions “worthless” through political interference.
“Institutions like the NDLEA, EFCC, and ICPC have become irrelevant and worthless. All the public resources deployed to prosecute and convict some of these hardened criminals have gone down the drain simply because the President decided to exercise misplaced compassion,” Eze said.
He further warned that the release of such offenders would embolden criminality in the country, saying:
“The release of these criminals who will likely return to crime is uncalled for. Both the police officers and judges who convicted them are now endangered species.”
Eze, who once served as the Publicity Secretary of the defunct APC faction in the South-South, declared that Tinubu’s decision has brought “shame and reproach” to the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), making it “unelectable” in future elections.
“As long as I remain a member of the APC, it must be said categorically that President Tinubu, by his action, has made the party unelectable in any election in this country,” he added.
Background of the Controversy
The outrage follows a statement by Bayo Onanuga, the President’s Special Adviser on Media and Public Information, who revealed that out of 175 beneficiaries of the recent presidential pardon, there were 41 illegal miners, 28 drug traffickers, and 22 convicted murderers.
Prominent names on the list include Farouk Lawan, former House of Representatives member; Maj. Gen. Mamman Vatsa, executed in 1986 for alleged treason; Maryam Sanda, sentenced to death in 2017 for killing her husband; and even Herbert Macaulay, one of Nigeria’s nationalist icons.
Reactions Trail Presidential Pardon
The President’s action has drawn sharp criticism from across the country. The Obi of Onitsha, His Majesty Igwe Nnaemeka Achebe, said:
“If the President can pardon drug convicts, then there’s no need for NDLEA. No need to arrest thieves or punish anyone again.”
Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar also condemned the decision, calling it “a dangerous precedent that undermines the moral authority of the Nigerian state.”
Eze echoed human rights lawyer Femi Falana’s position, urging the President to retrieve and review the list of pardoned individuals to prevent further damage to Nigeria’s global image.
He also advised that instead of granting a pardon to the Ogoni Nine, the government should issue a full exoneration to correct historical injustices.
“The President should formally apologise to Nigerians for this blunder and immediately review the list if he doesn’t want to send the wrong signal to criminals,” Eze stated.