CLOSE-UP: Ola Olukoyede, pastor and first southerner appointed EFCC chairman

President Bola Tinubu has ushered in a new leadership era for the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) with Ola Olukoyede’s appointment as the executive chairman of the anti-graft agency.

Olukoyode’s appointment, pending confirmation by the senate, was announced on Thursday in a statement by Ajuri Ngelale, special adviser to the president on media and publicity.

Olukoyede is not new to the agency. He served as the commission’s secretary between 2018 and 2020.

He also served as chief of staff to Ibrahim Magu, ex-EFCC chair, between 2016 and 2018.

LAWYER AND PASTOR

Olukoyede was born on October 14, 1969 in Ikere-Ekiti, Ekiti state. He attended Lagos State University, University of Lagos, Institute of Arbitration ICC – Paris, France, and the University of Harvard (Kennedy School of Executive Education). He is a lawyer with over 22 years of experience as a regulatory compliance consultant and specialist in fraud management and corporate intelligence.

In 2008, he established Global Compliance GRC, a governance, risk and legal consulting outfit, where he served as an attorney for investigation and civil litigations of fraud and corruption in international aid projects.

He worked at Ecodev Investment, a finance and investment company, for about five years before moving to Legal Research and Corporate Development Projects (LRCDP Consulting).

In 2008, he established his law firm, Ola Olukoyede & Co., from where he joined the EFCC.

He was a member of the Fraud Advisory Panel, in the United Kingdom, and also a member of the federal government technical committee on the repositioning of the Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit (NFIU).

The 54-year-old is a pastor of the Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG).

FIRST SOUTHERNER TO HEAD EFCC

All EFCC chairpersons before Olukoyode — Nuhu Ribadu, Farida Waziri, Ibrahim Lamorde, Abdulrasheed Bawa — were northern Muslims, which makes him the first southerner and Christian, a pastor at that, to lead the agency.

Even Magu, Abdulkarim Chukkol, and Mohammed Umar, who served in acting capacities, were northerners and Muslims.

‘SUSPENSION’ AND QUALIFICATION SAGA

In July 2021, Olukoyode was said to have been suspended alongside 21 directors of the commission during Magu’s probe.

When news that he was set to be appointed as EFCC chairman began making the rounds, there were claims that he was not qualified to head the agency over his suspension and working experience with the commission.

Section 2(3) of the EFCC Act demands that the chairman of the commission “must be a serving or retired member of any government security or law enforcement agency not below the rank of Assistant Commissioner of Police or equivalent; possess not less than 15 years experience.”

On Wednesday, Tony Idoko, his lawyer, said Olukoyode was suspended as part of administrative protocol and not because of any wrongdoing.

Idoko also said that Olukoyede’s credentials surpass the “15 years cognate experience” needed to qualify for the commission’s chairmanship position.

In the statement announcing the appointment, Ngelale also said Olukoyede has “extensive experience in the operations of the EFCC, having previously served as chief of staff to the executive chairman (2016-2018) and secretary to the commission (2018-2023)”.

“As such, he fulfills the statutory requirement for appointment as chairman of the EFCC,” the statement reads.