'I have fired 40 of my agents for being corrupt', says Nigeria's anti-corruption chief

What the report says

Nigeria’s anti-corruption agency has said it dismissed more than 40 staff members over the past two to three years for alleged corruption and financial misconduct, according to BBC Africa. The remarks came from Ola Olukoyede, chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), at a briefing in Abuja reviewing the agency’s performance since he took office in October 2023.

Olukoyede said more than five of the dismissed employees are already being prosecuted, with case files being prepared for others. He also described internal reforms aimed at tightening ethics rules, including renaming the EFCC’s Internal Affairs department as the Department of Ethics and Integrity and introducing a policy requiring officers to declare certain gifts and hospitality. The BBC reported that the agency did not provide further details about the alleged misconduct involving former staff.

The EFCC is Nigeria’s main financial crimes body and investigates fraud, money laundering and corruption cases involving politicians, officials and business figures. Olukoyede said the commission had recovered 1.23 trillion naira and recorded a conviction rate of more than 75% during his tenure, while also handling a large volume of petitions and court filings. The agency said its work has increasingly centered on cybercrime and fraud, highlighting both the scale of financial crime in Nigeria and the pressure on the EFCC to maintain credibility while pursuing high-profile cases.