NANS Blasts EFCC Over Illegal Arrests, Witch-Hunting Of Students

The leadership of the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) South West have decried the alleged bullying and harassment of students by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).

In a statement made available to AllNews Nigeria, NANS coordinator, Comrade Adegboye Emmanuel Olatunji (aka TEEJAY) noted that the plight of Nigerians in the hand of security agencies is like that of the hunter and the hunted.

"The supposed protector who has now taken up the role of the hunter have so much pulverised and decimated the public that they are now more afraid of security agencies than the criminals.

"This illustration is lucidly true in the case of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).

"The hitherto highly-respected EFCC has sadly metamorphosed into a money-spinning, profit-oriented, deal cutting, victimisation and witch-hunting outfit where every relatively successful young person is a suspect and potential victim.

"Earlier today, some law-abiding and legitimately engaged students were illegally harassed and arrested by men of EFCC along Itamaga road to Ota Ona Road, Ikorodu, Lagos State and all efforts to reach the EFCC Lagos branch have proven abortive so far as the agency is deliberately frustrating every attempt by NANS to engage them."

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According to NANS, the illegal arrest is one out of many unfortunate and needless occurrences happening across South West Nigeria.

Meanwhile, the leadership of the National Association of Nigerian Students Southwest visited the EFCC Ibadan Zonal Head office on Monday, April 4, 2022, and it was said that EFCC doesn’t do stop and search.

"Extensively, any EFCC staff found on the road involved in a stop and search is a criminal offence.

"Seeing men of the EFCC Lagos branch involved in stop and search makes us doubt the integrity and core values of EFCC and of such a LACUNA in the organisation. 

"In times past, EFCC and NANS have a strongly symbiotic relationship wherein collaborative efforts are conceived and implemented towards combating crimes holistically.

"However, things took an unfortunate turn when the agency started victimizing innocent citizens.

"It is now common to see EFCC officers engaging in stop and search when they're not Policemen. This is alien to the normal practices of a sane and developed society.

"There are strong indications that the current spate of arrests is targeted at Students leaders so as to demoralize, subdue and undermine the Students Constituency.

"We admonish the EFCC to strictly obey the laws of God and law of the land in conscientiously carrying out their duties.

"We also want to emphatically affirm that going forward, all of forms of illegitimacy meted to the students sector shall be stiffly resisted via every legal tools available to us including petitions, protests, rallies and peaceful demonstrations.

"It is imperative that all forms of stop and search or roadblocks on the main roads and students environments especially, be ended immediately.

"This is of utmost importance to avoid mob action against EFCC officers.

"NANS, therefore, urged all Nigerian students in the Southwest and all Southwestern students in Nigeria to remain law-abiding in concordance with our culture and also report any form of infringement on their constitutional rights to the leadership of NANS in their respective states.