EFCC Promotes New Boss, Abdulrasheed Bawa, 88 Others

BY VICTOR BUORO, ABUJA – The newly designated Acting Chairman of Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Abdulrasheed Ahmed Bawa and 88 other officers have been promoted by the Commission.

In what insiders consider a strategic move aimed at giving Bawa the required leverage to mount the saddle as Nigeria’s new anti-graft Czar, the affected officers were promoted from Grade Level 13 as Principal Detective Superintendent (PDS) to Grade Level 14 as Deputy Chief Detective Superintendent (DCDS), effective from January 1, 2021.

The promotion exercise is coming less than two weeks after President Muhammadu Buhari nominated and sent Bawa’s name in a letter to the Senate President Ahmad Lawan seeking National Assembly confirmation of the 40-year-old officer to replace embattled former acting Chairman, Ibrahim Magu

According to an internal memo sighted by PRNigeria and signed by one, Femi Peter Gbarufu, the affected personnel are expected to receive their promotion letters from the Human Resources Unit as soon as possible.

The memo titled: “Release of Promotion List”, was reportedly issued on Friday, February 19, 2021 and a competent source in the EFCC averred that the development now puts Bawa at the same rank as an Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP), a prerequisite for becoming Chairman of the anti-graft agency.

PRNigeria quoted the source as saying; “Bawa was recruited into EFCC in 2005 as one of the pioneer cadets and has spent 16 years as an operative. By virtue of his new rank, he is now equivalent to Assistant Commissioner of Police and qualified to be a Chairman of EFCC.

“The EFCC Establishment Act, especially Section 2a (ii) stated that a candidate for appointment as the Chairman of the agency should be a serving or retired member of any security or law enforcement agency not below the rank of Assistant Commissioner of Police or equivalent.”

Offering further insights on the promotion exercise, the source stated thus; “The DCDS in EFCC is equivalent ACP in Police. For instance, the operative cadre entry-level in the police is Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP) equivalent to Assistant Detective of Superintendent (ADS); Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) is equivalent to Deputy Detective Superintendent (DDS); Superintendent of Police (SP) is equivalent to Senior Detective Superintendent (SDS); Chief Superintendent of Police (CSP) is equivalent to Principal Detective Superintendent (PDS) while Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP) is equivalent to Deputy Chief Detective Superintendent (DCDS).”

However, reacting to criticisms that high-ranking officials in the Commission were bypass by the Presidency in the current nomination process, the source said; “There are other senior officers in EFCC who are not detective operatives but with routine civil service ranks for administrative purposes.

“The Detective operatives currently in the service of EFCC are either course mates or juniors to Bawa, who has just been promoted to the qualifying level for the position of Chairman”.

The Federal Government had in July 2020 suspended Mr Magu and taken him before retired Justice Ayo Salami-led panel that probed allegations of insubordination and corruption levelled against him by the Minister of Justice and Attorney-General of the Federation (AGF), Abubakar Malami.

Thereafter, Mohammed Umar, EFCC Director of Operations, was named as Acting Chairman, pending the conclusion of investigations.

However, in a move that caught many by surprise, the Presidency on Tuesday, February 16, 2021 announced the 40-year-old Bawa as the new EFCC Chairman in accordance with the provisions Paragraph 2(3) of Part 1, CAP E1 of EFCC Act 2004.

Until his shocking nomination as the new Commission boss, Bawa Headed the EFCC’s Zonal office in Port Harcourt, under Mr Magu’s leadership. Also, following Magu’s suspension in July 2020, Bawa was in August redeployed to the Commission’s Lagos Zonal Office as its new head. – Additional reports by PRNigeria