Senate set to pass NFIU bill

By Ezrel Tabiowo Abuja

Th e Senate in a historic move yesterday passed for second reading, a bill seeking to give full autonomy to the Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit (NFIU), less than one week after its introduction. Th e Bill was referred to the Committee on Anti-Corruption, which is chaired by Senator Chukwuka Utazi (Enugu North). With the likely passage of the bill this week, same would make it the fastest since the Eight Senate was inaugurated on June 9, 2015. Adopting a motion on Wednesday, last week, the Senate resolved to pass a law creating a substantive and autonomous NFlU and make the unit legally and operationally autonomous with powers for the employment, reward training, promotion and discipline of its workforce independently.

Senate’s spokesman, Senator Aliu Sabi, had while briefi ng newsmen explained that the move by the Senate to fast-track passage of the bill was intended to boost the anti-corruption fi ght of the Federal Government. Sabi said when properly reorganised, the agencies that will benefi t from the activities of the EGMONT Group would include the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), the Independent Corrupt Practices and other related off ences Commission (ICPC), the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), the Nigeria Immigration Service ( NIS), the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS), the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and many other relevant governmental agencies.

Th e Senate had noted that “the EGMONT Group suspended Nigeria for a number of reasons including the fact that the NFIU which is the body that represents Nigeria in the Group has not been granted operational autonomy as well as the fact the Unit is still domiciled within the EFCC, a situation the Group has objected to over the years.” Another reason for the suspension according to the Senate is the alleged “meddlesomeness of the Acting Chairman of the EFCC in the aff airs of the NFIU by his interference in the operations and staffi ng of the Unit leading to the departure of many competent hands.” Th e EGMONT Group is a network of 152 Member Countries that share information relating to criminal intelligence and fi nancial investigations that deal with money laundering, terrorism fi nancing, and proliferation of arms, corruption, fi nancial and economic crimes. Nigeria was suspended from this group for not having an independent Financial Intelligence Unit.

 

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