The acting Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, Mr Ibrahim Magu, has expressed concern about the way some members of staff of banks are sabotaging the commission’s anti-corruption fight.
He, therefore, called on banks to ensure a proper monitoring of their staff in order to prevent “insider abuse,” saying they are critical stakeholders in EFCC’s operations.

Magu said this on Friday at an interactive session with regional compliance officers of commercial banks in Gombe, Gombe State capital.
Represented at the event by the Gombe Zonal Head of the EFCC, Mr Michael Wetkas, Magu stated that banks were important to the anti-corruption war, noting that it was for this reason that the EFCC Establishment Act, 2004 reserved some sections for financial institutions.
He said, “Within the banking industry, there are actions which deliberately sabotage our efforts and such are unacceptable to the commission.
“Some banks’ staff are in the habit of going behind the commission to notify customers whose accounts are placed on Post-No-Debit Order (frozen), aiding and abetting crime and obstructing the wheel of justice, instead of assisting the commission as stipulated by law.”
The EFCC boss advised banks to always do proper background checks before employing their staff in order to avoid employing people of questionable character.
“Banks must endeavour to always activate the ‘Know Your Customer’ requirement by verifying the addresses of their customers before opening any account in order not to give room for fraudsters to open accounts for illicit or fraudulent transactions,” he said.
He appealed to banks to report any suspicious transactions as required by law, especially now when the tenure of some public office holders are about to end.