The presidential candidate of the Accord Party, Isaac Ositelu, on Saturday, promised to scrap the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and the Independent Corrupt Practices Commission (ICPC) if elected in 2019.He said he would collapse the operations of the commissions into the Nigeria Police under a reform programme of his administration.
Ositelu made the promise in a statement made available to journalists.
He said, “The radical restructuring of the internal security apparatus of the country would give birth to an efficient and effective police service that would be technology-driven and people oriented.
“The reformed police service would be made accountable, decent, responsive and responsible to the Nigerian nation and not to the few elites who seemed to undermine the discipline required in the police as an institution of the state.”
Justifying the need for the harmonisation of the work of the EFCC and ICPC with that of the Police, Ositelu said the creation of these agencies had led to needless envy, corruption and even insubordination among the rank and file deployed from the Police to EFCC and ICPC which are considered ‘juicy’ agency to work for because of the special incentives available to the operatives.
Rather than create room for animosity among the security operatives, the presidential candidate a reformed police would live up to its responsibility of curbing criminalities across the country.
He wondered if the Special Fraud Unit of the Nigeria Police cannot effectively and efficiently carry out its legal mandates if properly mobilised.