EFCC Chair Exposes Public Officers’ Tactics In Fraudulent Asset Declarations

THE Executive Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Ola Olukoyede, has revealed how some public officers engage in “anticipatory declaration of assets” to mask future acts of corruption and justify the theft of public funds.

Speaking in Abuja on Tuesday, August 12, 2025, at the launch of the Virtual Tool on the Code of Conduct for Public Officers, organised by the Code of Conduct Bureau (CCB) in partnership with the Technical Unit on Good Governance and Anti-Corruption Reforms (TUGAR), Olukoyede described the scheme as a growing tactic among politically exposed persons.

Citing a recent EFCC investigation, he explained that a property valued at over ₦3 billion was listed in a CCB declaration form with a false address — and was declared before it even existed.

“We discovered that the individual declared the property when it was not in existence. This shows how criminally smart some public officers have become,” Olukoyede said.

He urged the CCB to pay closer attention to such fraudulent practices and adopt innovative investigative methods to curb corruption.

The Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Lateef Fagbemi, stressed that integrity and adherence to service ethics remain the foundation of public service. He hailed the new CCB virtual tool as a milestone in digitising the monitoring of public conduct, adding that it would strengthen preventive compliance and awareness.

Head of Service of the Federation, Didi Esther Walson-Jack, highlighted technology’s role in promoting transparency and accountability, noting that the platform is accessible, cost-effective, and enables efficient tracking of compliance.

“Without conduct and ethics, no reform will last. Ethical governance is not optional,” she said.

In his opening remarks, CCB Chairman Abdullahi Usman Bello said the tool would make public officers more accountable and educate them on rules guiding ethical conduct.