Again, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has insisted that its acting Chairman, Ibrahim Magu, did not say corruption caused Coronavirus otherwise known as Covid19.
The denial is contained in a statement signed by the EFCC’s Spokesman, Tony Orilade, on Sunday.
Magu became a subject of internet trolling since last week following his speech at the Passing Out Parade of its Detective Inspector Course 5 cadets at the Nigerian Defence Academy in Kaduna last Tuesday.
In a video which has since gone viral, Magu said,
“Corruption is the biggest strategy to human kind. Your Excellency, corruption is worse than all the diseases now running about. And I strongly believe, Your Excellency, that even the coronavirus is caused by corruption.”
However, in a statement titled, ‘Covid 19: Understanding what Magu said’, the EFCC said Magu only claimed that corruption is worse than cancer and coronavirus.
The EFCC instead, quoted Magu as saying,
“Regarding the evil of corruption and the need for Nigerians to join hands in tackling the menace, Magu said, ‘your Excellency, corruption is worse than cancer, Ebola-virus, Corona-virus and all other deadly diseases put together.
“Fighting corruption is thus a crusade against the evils of our society that are deeply-rooted and threatening to consume us.
“We are aware that the task is not easy and the path can be very thorny and lonely, but with determination and a high sense of mission, we are making progress towards rooting out this evil from our society. We all appreciate you as the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, for embarking on this mission.”
The EFCC said it was unfortunate that both the traditional and social media were trying to take the shine off the statement delivered by its acting chairman.
The commission took issue with an article published in Thisday wherein an editor talked down on the EFCC boss over the statement.
The anti-graft agency described the issue as irritating.
The statement further read,
“However, the commission is appalled by the fact that a section of the traditional and the new media has been obsessed with a campaign to impugn and irritate the commission’s boss.
“In the light of this, the Commission particularly wishes to express disgust at the pettiness and ill-will in the editor’s piece on Thisday on Sunday, February 23, 2020 titled: “Magu’s Curious Postulation on Covid 19.”
“To say the least, we find the editor’s verdict on Magu regrettable and to borrow his own word, curious. Our position would not have been so if the editor had called for Magu’s head on account of poor outcomes in the anti-corruption fight, integrity questions on his personality, or for not practising what he preaches.”
The commission said it wished to reiterate that the war against corruption is on course and it would not be distracted in eliminating corruption from Nigeria.
