Ngozi James
The Human Rights Writers Association of Nigeria (HURIWA) have alleged that the Economic and financial crimes commission (EFCC) is deliberately targeting persons who have ambitions to succeed the president from the southeast of Nigeria.
The Agency in a statement on Thursday signed by its National Coordinator Emmanuel Onwubiko alleged that the new leadershipEFCC is lending itself to being used for political witch hunt against the 2023 political Interest of the Igbo or the South East through a rash of clearly biased arrests or invitations like that of Senator Orji uzor Kalu, Osita Okechukwu, the filing of charges against Rochas Okorocha on the day he declared that he wants to succeed President Muhammadu Buhari.
According to the statement, Osita Okechukwu has been in office for five years plus and EFCC neither invited him or arrested him for any allegation of fraud in office but “EFCC suddenly woke up few days ago to arrest him when he is the most vocal voice canvassing for Igbo presidency 2023 and had even asked Tinubu the God Father of Lai Muhammed the minister of information to step down for an Igbo candidate.”
“He also asked the President to free Nnamdi Kanu who is hated viciously by Minister of Justice. That seems to be his offence and he has been kept in detention for over three days while most northern politicians who are invited by EFCC spend just 30minutes but anybody from South East especially those connected to 2023 Igbo presidency campaign may even spend eternity inside EFCC cell,” the statement read.
“The case of Senator Orji Uzor Kalu is particularly heart-rending and is clearly a political witch hunt in which the EFCC is spending humongous amount of public fund, to maliciously continue to prosecute Orji Uzor Kalu even when the supreme court of Nigeria has quashed his 6 months illegal detention in Kuje prison where he was sent to that prison by northern Moslem judge of a Federal High Court who although was promoted to appeal court bench but he stayed on as a federal high court judge just to execute a northern agenda of nullifying Orji Uzor Kalu chances of running for presidency in 2023. This is preposterous, irrational, primitive and tendentious. The EFCC must be called to order immediately,” the statement further read.