The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), has identified financial crimes, governance gaps and weak accountability structures as key enablers of the operations of violent non-state actors in Nigeria, with grave implications for national security and economic development.
Chairman of the EFCC, Mr Ola Olukoyede, stated this on Tuesday in a lecture to members of the Executive Intelligence Management Course 18 of the Institute National Institute of Security Studies, Abuja.
In his paper “Violent Non-State Actors in Security Management: Issues, Challenges and Prospects for Peace and Development in Africa: EFCC Perspective,” Olukoyede warned that violent non-state actors, ranging from insurgents, bandits, kidnappers, separatist agitators, and cyber criminals, pose a significant threat to Nigeria’s territorial integrity, political stability, economic prosperity, and social cohesion.
EFCC spokesperson Dele Oyewale said in a statement last night that the EFCC boss, who the director of public affairs represented, Wilson Uwujaren, lamented that the activities of these groups have not only led to mass killings and destruction of public infrastructure but also triggered massive economic losses, rising food inflation and displacement of rural communities.
He states, “To say that the activities of violent non-state actors have disrupted the rhythm of our national security strategy and undermined the nation’s economic equilibrium, political and social order, is to state the obvious.”
The anti-graft czar noted that while the kinetic response by the military and other security agencies remains central to the counter-terrorism strategy, the non-kinetic aspects, particularly financial surveillance and regulation, are crucial in choking the funding lifelines of violent actors.
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