… It’s mere speculation, we are not interested in political party — EFCC Spokesperson
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has been called out by Delta State’s oil-producing communities over what they describe as a “disturbing silence” and “apparent reluctance” to conclude investigations into the alleged diversion of ₦1.3 trillion 13% oil derivation funds by former Governor Senator (Dr.) Ifeanyi Okowa.
In an open letter addressed to the EFCC Chairman, Mr. Ola Olukoyede, and signed by Chief (Comrade) Mulade B. Sheriff, PhD, the Ibe-Sorimowei of Ancient Gbaramatu Kingdom, the communities accused the anti-graft agency of “playing politics with justice” and warned that continued inaction could erode public confidence in Nigeria’s fight against corruption.
“This open letter arises from the continued silence of the EFCC on the ₦1.3 trillion belonging to DESOPADEC that was unlawfully diverted by former Governor Okowa during his eight-year tenure,” the statement read.
“The money was meant for the rehabilitation and development of oil-bearing communities, yet it was allegedly misused to the detriment of the people.”
The petition recalled that the EFCC had in November 2024 arrested the former governor through its Port Harcourt Directorate over the alleged diversion but lamented that “nothing has been heard about the outcome nearly a year later.”
“Deltans and Nigerians are asking: what happened to the investigation? Why has the EFCC gone silent?” Chief Mulade queried.
“Is it because the sitting governor has now joined the ruling party? Is that the reason this monumental fraud is being swept under the carpet?”
The petitioners further alleged political compromise, expressing fears that the case may have been deliberately stalled due to partisan considerations.
“It seems there’s a new slogan in Nigeria’s politics, when you join the APC, your sins are forgiven,” the statement added.
“If this is true, then it is a dangerous precedent for our democracy and a direct encouragement for looters to escape justice.”
Chief Mulade also recalled that representatives of Delta’s oil and gas producing communities, including Ijaw, Itsekiri, Ndokwa, Urhobo, and Isoko ethnic groups, had protested at EFCC headquarters in Abuja on June 22, 2023, submitting a formal petition signed by their leaders, among whom were:
Chief Sheriff Mulade (Ijaw Ethnic Nationality), Matthew Itsekure (Itsekiri), Osita Ijoma and Patience A. Ego (Ndokwa), Mark Ikpuri (Urhobo) and Chief John Etenero (Isoko).
The open letter alleged that Okowa’s “premeditated diversion” of DESOPADEC funds began when he pressured the Delta State House of Assembly to hurriedly amend the Commission’s establishment law in August 2018, “in a single day,” to include his own community among the oil-producing beneficiaries.
“That singular move was the first red flag,” the petition stated. “It was designed to create a loophole for financial manipulation and self-serving control of DESOPADEC’s allocations.”
The letter cited Olorogun Stephen K. Dieseruvwe, a Delta-born policy advocate based in the United Kingdom, who reinforced the legal and moral basis of the communities’ claims.
“The 13% derivation fund is meant exclusively for the development of oil-producing communities,” Dieseruvwe said.
“Governors do not have the right or discretion to use it as they deem fit. Doing so amounts to misappropriation.
“Without the sacrifices of these communities, there would be no 13% derivation for Delta State at all.”
Chief Mulade urged the EFCC Chairman to emulate Mallam Nuhu Ribadu, Nigeria’s pioneering anti-graft czar and now National Security Adviser (NSA), describing him as “a man who fought corruption fearlessly and won the trust of Nigerians.”
“We are calling on Mr. Olukoyede to wake up and act in the spirit of justice,” the letter demanded.
“He should prove to Nigerians that EFCC is not a barking dog without teeth to bite, as once lamented by former President Olusegun Obasanjo.”
The petition concluded with a passionate appeal to the Commission: “This is a wake-up call. Deltans are watching. Nigerians are watching. The international community is watching. The EFCC must act now, because a stitch in time, they say, saves nine.”
Observers note that this open letter adds fresh pressure on the EFCC to clarify the status of the high-profile case, which has generated intense public debate on transparency, accountability, and selective justice in Nigeria’s anti-corruption drive.
But reacting, the EFCC Spokesperson, Dele Oyewale, in a phone conversation with journalists in Asaba on Wednesday October 22, 2025, said: “Let me explain, you know the investigation of any criminal matter, is not a press button thing.
“It is not something that you say, okay when I press this button, this is the response that I am going to get. It takes time. You know for the former governor, there are many angles to the investigation that has to be explored.
“We write letters to agencies, and also some of these agents are international agencies and we will need responses. We cannot compare them so that when we write a letter to you today, you must respond to the letter tomorrow.
“So, this is one of the issues that is making criminal investigations take time and we always want to do a very thorough, very diligent investigation. So that by the time we go to court, we will have enough strength to prosecute the matter.
“So, criminal investigations take time, sometimes an investigation will take as much as five years or more than that for you to do a thorough job. All the angles that are to be explored, you will explore it and every single individual that is involved, you will make sure that you get inputs from them before you decide to find time to arrange
“So, we are still investigating and we are doing so because of the need for diligence, the need for professional coverage of all of the entities and individuals that are involved so that by the time you come forward with any charge against him, it will be a watertight charge that cannot be thrown away and that cannot be played down upon in the Court. So, that is what happens”.
Responding to allegations that the investigation was being stalled because Okowa had aligned himself with the APC, the EFCC spokesperson dismissed the claims as baseless, describing them as “mere uninformed speculation.”
“We are not interested in a political party, what is our business with a political party? We are interested in the substance of the crime. We don’t bother that you are in this party or you are not in this part.
“They just told me yesterday that the president said that he is not interfering with what the commission is doing. So, we are independent to the extent of investigating whatever we want to investigate and to do whatever we want to do to ensure that justice is served”.
