The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has disclosed that it has arrested over 17,000 suspects for various financial crimes since its establishment 22 years ago.

EFCC spokesperson, DCE Dele Oyewale, made this known on Thursday during a one-day sensitization workshop for Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) and journalists held at the commission?s Kano Zonal Office in Kano State.

Oyewale said that despite the number of arrests and convictions recorded over the years, financial crimes continued to rise due to existing loopholes in the system that must be blocked to protect the nation?s economy.

He revealed that the EFCC, under the leadership of Ola Olukoyede, has adopted a preventive strategy across Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) of government to monitor and track financial leakages, noting that ?about 90 per cent of corruption cases in Nigeria occur through the procurement process.?

With only about 5,000 personnel nationwide, Oyewole emphasized that the anti-graft Commission alone cannot effectively combat financial crimes and, therefore, called for active collaboration from journalists and CSOs.

?We have a shared mandate to ensure that what needs to be done is done. The media and civil society must be deliberate and vigilant in interrogating issues of corruption,? he stated.

Earlier, the Acting Zonal Director of EFCC in Kano, DCE Sa?ad Hanafi, described CSOs and journalists as critical drivers of change and indispensable allies in the fight against corruption, cybercrime, and cryptocurrency fraud.

Sa?ad warned that crime is increasingly evolving from traditional schemes to sophisticated, cyber-enabled fraud that destroys livelihoods and undermines public confidence in the financial system.

He urged participants to see the workshop as a platform for partnership and dialogue, stressing that ?the fight against corruption is not a solo mission but a collective national endeavour.?

The workshop featured sessions on cryptocurrency-related crimes, investigation, prosecution, and preventive mechanisms in tackling financial offences. (LEADERSHIP)

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