Breaking: Tinubu Appoints RCCG Pastor, Ola Olukoyede As New EFCC Chairman; Appoints Hassan Hammajoda As Secretary

By Babatunde Solanke

President Bola Tinubu has appointed a pastor in the Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG), Mr Ola Olukoyede as the Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC.

Tinubu’s Special Adviser on Media & Publicity, Ajuri Ngelale made the announcement in a statement on Thursday.

Olukoyede’s appointment followed the resignation of the suspended Executive Chairman of the Commission, Mr Abdulrasheed Bawa.

Tinubu also approved the appointment of Mr Muhammad Hassan Hammajoda as the Secretary of the anti-graft agency for a renewable term of five years in the first instance, pending Senate confirmation.

”By the powers vested in President Bola Tinubu as established in section 2 (3) of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (Establishment) Act, 2004, that “the Chairman and members of the Commission, other than ex-officio members, shall be appointed by the President,” President Tinubu has approved the appointment of Mr. Ola Olukoyede to serve as the Executive Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) for a renewable term of four years in the first instance, pending Senate confirmation.

”Mr. Ola Olukoyede is a lawyer with over twenty-two (22) years of experience as a regulatory compliance consultant and specialist in fraud management and corporate intelligence. He has extensive experience in the operations of the EFCC, having previously served as Chief of Staff to the Executive Chairman (2016-2018) and Secretary to the Commission (2018-2023). As such, he fulfills the statutory requirement for appointment as Chairman of the EFCC.

”Mr. Muhammad Hassan Hammajoda is a public administrator with extensive experience in public finance management who holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Accounting from the University of Maiduguri and a Masters in Business Administration from the same university. He began his career as a lecturer at the Federal Polytechnic, Mubi. From there, he went into banking, including successful stints at the defunct Allied Bank and Standard Trust Bank,” the statement reads.

President Tinubu therefore tasked the new leadership of the Commission to justify the confidence reposed in them.