The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) Chairman, Ola Olukoyede, has called on the judiciary to tackle the contentious issue of senior lawyers receiving substantial legal fees from political officeholders.
Speaking at the 6th annual criminal law review conference in Abuja on Monday, Olukoyede emphasized that the manner in which these fees are collected conflicts with existing statutes.
Olukoyede stressed that lawyers must be mindful of the source of funds used to pay their fees, particularly when dealing with public servants. “If a lawyer doesn’t care about the source of millions of naira paid by a sitting governor or public servant to defend them in an electoral tribunal, they should at least ensure that the payment is made through the financial system,” he said. This, he argued, would prevent violations of money laundering regulations and tax evasion.
“Aside from violating money laundering regulations, hauling millions of naira of professional fees from public office holders in liquid cash as senior lawyers do is only aimed at tax evasion.
“It is needless to stress that the best act of mentoring from leaders of the bar to the younger generation of lawyers is by living out the ethical demands of the profession.”
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The EFCC chairman also alleged that lawyers are facilitating illicit financial flows into offshore accounts. He cited notable cases, including the P&ID scam, the Mambilla power project, and Sunrise issues, as examples of how lawyers have prioritized personal interests over national well-being.
“The most traumatic discovery of the EFCC in recent years was the subjugation of national interest and wellbeing to personal interest by lawyers who aided briefcase foreign investors to fleece the nation in dubious transactions,” he added.
“The P&ID scam, the Mambilla power project, and Sunrise issues are cases in point.”
He said while the anti-graft agency had had cause to prosecute judicial officers and senior lawyers and earned conviction, his respect for the bench and senior members of the bar remained undiminished.
“However, based on the unique experiences of the EFCC in the prosecution of corruption cases, I am particularly interested in systemic reforms in our justice delivery system that capture the process for the discipline and regulation of judicial officers.
“The regulation and discipline of legal practitioners. Ethics, values, and standards of legal practice.
“These are essential to me because the job of the EFCC is ensuring that the corrupt does not find space in our national life. And when they do, to make them pay for their deeds.”
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