By ADENIKE AYODELE

The Executive Chairman, Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Mr Ola Olukoyede, has again warned Nigerians against the abuse of the Naira.

Olukoyede gave the warning during a stakeholders? sensitisation programme described naira as ?a symbol of sovereignty? on Friday in Lagos.

According to him, spraying and stamping on the national currency is a criminal offence.

He noted that such practices were not the country?s culture.

Olukoyede expressed concern over the persistent abuse of the country?s currency at social events, particularly through spraying, mutilation and stamping.

?Nobody who works hard to earn money will go out and start throwing their hard-earned salary in the air,? he said.

He said the commission, in partnership with the Central Bank of Nigeria, had set up a Task Force on Dollarisation and Naira Abuse, to enforce the law against unlicensed foreign exchange dealers and currency abusers.

?There is nothing cultural about destroying our national currency,? he said.

Olukoyede said arguments suggesting the commission should focus only on high-profile financial crimes were misplaced.

?An offence is an offence. Ignorance of the law is never an excuse,? he said.

He noted that several celebrities facing prosecution could attest to the consequences.

Olukoyede added that the EFCC had adopted a new approach beyond enforcement, to protect jobs and investments, while promoting economic recovery.

According to him, the commission no longer shuts down companies under investigation arbitrarily, but now follows operational protocols that safeguard legitimate businesses.

He said over N100 billion in recovered proceeds of crime had been redirected into social intervention projects under the current administration including the Nigerian Education Loan Fund and the CrediCorp consumer credit scheme.

?These are not just headlines; they are real interventions funded by money recovered from corrupt individuals and organisations,? he said.

Olukoyede disclosed that a landmark recovery from the Niger Delta Development Commission enabled the establishment of a skill acquisition centre and a liaison office in Bayelsa.

He also noted that a property recovered from a former civil servant in Kaduna had been converted into the newly established Federal University of Applied Sciences, Kachia, in the state.

The EFCC chairman revealed that the commission was collaborating with foreign governments to recover and restitute stolen assets.

He added that the commission had repaid fraud victims in the U.S., Spain and Canada.

He said a recent sting operations in Lagos and Abuja had led to the arrest of 792 suspects, involved in an international criminal ring, with over 150 Chinese nationals among those prosecuted.

Olukoyede assured Nigerians that politically exposed persons were not exempted from prosecution, noting that four former governors and three ex-ministers, were currently being tried for corruption-related offences.

To strengthen prevention mechanisms, he announced the creation of a Department of Fraud Risk Assessment and Control within the EFCC.

He added that the commission ran an EFCC Radio 97.3FM and held weekly sensitisation programmes on radio, television and social media platforms.

?We all must lend our voices to this national campaign to restore the integrity of the naira. This fight is not for the EFCC alone; it is a collective duty,? Olukoyede said. (NAN)

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