The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has dismissed more than 40 members of its staff over allegations of corruption and financial malpractice in the last three years.
The EFCC Chairman, Ola Olukoyede, disclosed this on Monday, August 31, 2026, during a media interactive session held at the commission’s headquarters in Abuja to mark his three years in office.
Olukoyede also revealed that about five other EFCC personnel are currently facing prosecution for alleged corrupt practices.
According to him, the disciplinary measures are part of efforts to ensure that officers of the anti-graft agency are held to the same standards of accountability that the commission demands from members of the public.
“In the past two and a half to three years of my service, I have asked them to dismiss over 40 staff on account of corruption and financial malpractice. More than five of them are being prosecuted at the moment,” Olukoyede said.
He explained that while some of the affected officers were already facing prosecution in court, case files involving others were being prepared for legal action.
“You can follow those cases in court; they are public knowledge,” he said.
The EFCC chairman questioned why the commission should prosecute individuals outside the agency for corruption while merely dismissing its own personnel when they commit similar offences.
“If that is what people do in other agencies and I arrest them, I investigate them, I prosecute them, why must I just dismiss you if you do it within our own system and I’m not prosecuting you?” he asked.
Olukoyede stressed that EFCC officials must maintain a high level of personal integrity because of the nature of their responsibilities.
“You must be sure that your hands are clean. You can’t be fighting corruption when your hands are soiled with corrupt practices,” he said.
EFCC Renames Internal Affairs Department
As part of the commission’s efforts to strengthen internal accountability, Olukoyede announced the renaming of the former Internal Affairs Department to the Department of Ethics and Integrity.
He said the move was part of what he described as the commission’s drive for “internal cleansing” and a stronger ethical culture among its personnel.
The EFCC has also introduced a new gift policy designed to improve transparency and prevent conflicts of interest among its officers.
Under the policy, staff members will be required to declare gifts above a specified value, including gifts received from friends and relatives both within Nigeria and abroad.
Olukoyede said the commission would also establish categories of gifts that personnel could accept and require officers to account for their sources of income and standards of living.
Institutional Reforms Needed to Fight Corruption
The EFCC chairman further argued that law enforcement alone could not successfully eliminate financial crimes and corruption in Nigeria.
He called for stronger institutional reforms and policy changes aimed at closing loopholes that allow public resources to be diverted.
“The most effective system that fights financial crime is not law enforcement. It is the policy regime, institutional reforms that close leakages,” Olukoyede said.
He also urged the media and civil society organisations to strengthen their watchdog roles by holding public institutions and officials accountable.
Olukoyede’s remarks come as the EFCC continues to highlight its enforcement and recovery efforts, including convictions and the recovery of proceeds linked to financial crimes.
The chairman’s disclosure that more than 40 EFCC employees have been dismissed over corruption allegations underscores the commission’s position that its anti-corruption mandate must also apply to its own personnel.
