Bauchi Govt Alleges Political Witch-Hunt As EFCC Arrests Officials

The government of Bauchi State has accused the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) of engaging in “politically-motivated persecution, abuse of prosecutorial powers and actions capable of endangering public safety”., following the arrest, detention and prosecution of senior officials of the state government.

The Bauchi State Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice stated this in a petition dated December 31, 2025, and addressed to the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice.

The state, in the petition, accused the EFCC of weaponising federal law-enforcement machinery to intimidate the state government and “unlawfully rope in Governor Bala Mohammed without evidence or jurisdiction”.

The petition, marked “secret”, demanded the immediate intervention of the Attorney-General of the Federation to restrain what it described as an “escalating abuse of prosecutorial powers” by the EFCC. The state warned that the agency’s conduct “now poses a clear and present danger” to constitutional order, democratic stability and personal safety in Bauchi State.

The state claimed that EFCC arrested and detained the state Commissioner of Finance and Economic Development alongside senior civil servants over actions taken strictly in the discharge of their official duties, backed by valid financial approvals and regulations.

Despite full cooperation, the officials were allegedly detained beyond constitutionally permissible timelines on matters described as administrative and bailable, the petition claimed.

It added that when the case came before the Federal High Court, the presiding judge expressed displeasure at the EFCC’s conduct, “particularly the prolonged detention without charges, disregard for bail principles, and repeated failure to produce the defendants in court despite several adjournments”.

The Bauchi government alleged that the EFCC escalated the matter by “introducing fresh and far-reaching allegations of terrorism financing and money laundering—charges that were conspicuously absent at the point of arrest and detention”.

Quoting the petition, “No terrorist organisation has been identified, no terrorist act linked, and no evidentiary trail disclosed,” adding that the timing of the allegations strongly suggested they were introduced as an afterthought “to intimidate, scandalise, and destroy reputations rather than to advance justice.”

The state also accused EFCC of making false claims in its charge sheet, “including the assertion that the Accountant-General of Bauchi State was at large”. The state government described this as “a blatant misrepresentation”, stressing that the Accountant-General honoured EFCC invitations, was detained, and later released on bail after meeting all conditions.

The state also accused EFCC of dragging Governor Bala Mohammed into the criminal narrative, despite the governor not being an accused person.

According to the petition, the governor’s name was repeatedly and “gratuitously mentioned in the charge sheet—sometimes more prominently than those actually standing trial”—in what it described as “an attempt to try him in the court of public opinion, criminalise political opposition by insinuation, and violate his constitutional immunity”.

The state government described the terrorism-financing allegation as a “bogus hatchet job” aimed solely at politically destroying the governor’s image.

The petition highlighted Mohammed’s public service record, noting that he served Nigeria as a civil servant to the rank of Director, Senator, Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, and now Governor of Bauchi State, “without any criminal conviction or abuse of constitutional immunity”.

It stated, “No amount of political persecution will diminish the respect he enjoys.”

The Bauchi government also raised concerns that the EFCC’s actions “are increasingly perceived as posing threats to the safety and wellbeing of the governor, his staff, and even his family”, citing the manner of arrests, escalation of allegations and sustained public insinuations.

Quoting it, “This trajectory is dangerous and unacceptable in a constitutional democracy.”

In its petition, the Bauchi State Government demanded immediate federal intervention, including strict supervision of the EFCC, restraint from retaliatory and media-driven prosecutions, assurances that terrorism allegations would not be pursued without credible evidence, and measures to prevent actions capable of inflaming political tensions or endangering lives.

The state warned that selective justice and prosecutorial recklessness undermine public confidence, weaken institutions and threaten national cohesion.

“Nigeria must not drift toward a system where opposition is criminalised and dissent punished through intimidation,” the petition concluded.

Recall that Governor Bala Mohammed recently accused the Federal Government of using EFCC to persecute him and officials of his administration over his refusal to defect to the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC).

The governor made the allegation on Wednesday at the Government House, Bauchi, while receiving an Ambassadorial Award for Safety from the Institute of Safety Professionals in Nigeria.

Mohammed, who also serves as Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Governors’ Forum, disclosed that one of his commissioners was being detained by the EFCC, describing the action as politically motivated and intended to intimidate his government.

In his words, “This is not about fighting corruption; it is about political coercion.”