The former Commissioner of Police in Lagos State, Hakeem Odumosu, has come under fire over his reported appointment as the substantive Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
The reported appointment of Odumosu as the new EFCC boss is subject to confirmation by the Senate.
Odumosu, who retired as an Assistant Inspector General of Police (AIG), replaces Abdulrasheed Bawa who was recently suspended by President Bola Tinubu over allegations of gross abuse of office.
The fresh appointment is however yet to be officially confirmed.
However, some Nigerians have taken to social media to condemn the reported appointment of Odumosu as the new boss of the anti-graft agency following his role in the EndSARS riot in Lagos.
Some netizens said while he was the Commissioner of Police in Lagos, he was behind the arrest and prosecution of protesters, while others alleged that he ordered the shooting of protesters.
See some of the comments below.
@Shehusky wrote: “Tinubu appoints retired (AIG) of police. Hakeem Odumosu as EFCC chairman. Can someone from the corrupt Nigerian police fight corruption? The many blunders of Tinubu.”
@essentialbolu wrote: “Hakeem Odumosu as Head of EFCC. Is this a joke or something. You have guys like Fatai Owoseni and other fine officers and it is Odumosu. I also blame the EFCC, why is the agency so consciously Northernised, there must be a cadet trained by EFCC who can do a good job.”
@JBAdamu wrote: “Confusion! Odumosu is the 3rd appointment so far as Chairman of EFCC. This has to stop. Tinubu cannot continue to announce names as EFCC Chairman to deceive Nigerians. Who is the Chairman of EFCC? Are we in a military regime that appointments no longer go to NASS for confirmation?”
@chooaeb wrote: “I will not believe the appointment of Hakeem Odumosu as the EFCC chairman until @NTANewsNow breaks it.”
@olasekoni wrote: “Akeem Odumosu to EFCC is a NO. I take it as fake news.”
@ose_anenih wrote: “The STRONG reservation I hold over the nomination of Odumosu as EFCC head is that he was the Lagos State Commissioner of Police when the #EndSARS massacre occurred.
“I still remember that video of his men gunning down a young man in cold blood; and picking up the expended shell casing.”
@TheIOShowa wrote: “Hakeem Odumosu, the newly appointed EFCC Chair, was Commissioner of Police, Lagos State, in Lagos during the #Endsars protests in 2020, during which several youths were killed, as confirmed by the Lagos Judicial Panel Report. Hoodlums were transported on state-owned buses to attack protesters; none were arrested, but numerous #EndSARS protesters were arrested, incarcerated, punished harshly, and tortured. Expect more political persecution, victimization, and misuse of authority. They haven’t learned or forgotten anything throughout the years. #RevolutionNow”
@ManLikeBright wrote: “Odumosu to be EFCC chairman, Tinubu is really hell-bent on making sure that not one opposition will breathe. If you move anyhow they’ll open your file same thing OBJ did. Silencing oppositions.”
@FAGalileo wrote: “We knew BAT can’t fight corruption, it’s already written in the stars. But to be this BRAZEN with the appointment of Hakeem Odumosu, it’s a JOKE taken too far. I’m wishing that this is mere speculation. If they want to make NIGERIA an official banana Republic, let’s know, please.”
