Financial crimes detection bill splits Senate

Members of the Senate on Thursday expressed divided opinions on a bill  which sought to create a centre for the independent conduct of intelligence investigations into financial crimes in the country.

The bill aims at the establishment of the Financial Intelligence Agency as the central body in Nigeria. It will be responsible for receiving,  requesting, analysing and diseminating financial Intelligence reports and other information to the law enforcement,  security and intelligence agencies and other relevant authorities and for related matters.

It was presented separately as an Executive and a Private member bill by  the duo of the  Senate Leader, Victor Ndoma -Egba and Senator Victor Lar.

The separare presentations were however harmonised because they both seek to achieve similar objectives, which is to enhance financial intelligence in the country.

Ndoma-Egba, explained that the need to establish the agency was part of the efforts of the Federal Government to combat money laundering and financing of terrorist activities in the country.

He said,  “It will also meet the precondition for the removal of Nigeria from the Financial Action Task Force list of non-cooperative countries and territories”

Lar in his own submission, said the bill would provide necessary confidentiality required in the relationship between financial intelligence unit and security agencies.

Senators who reacted to the submissions of both Ndoma – Egba and Lar, expressed divergent views on the bill. While some embraced it, others described it as the duplication of functions of the existing graft agencies in the country.

For instance, Senator Ita Enang opposed to the passage of the bill on the grounds that the provisions therein were already domiciled in Economic and Financial Crimes Commission.

If passed into law, Enang said it would amount to duplication of laws and might result in unnecessary  conflict among agencies performing similar functions.

Senator Femi Lanlehin also expressed similar views with Enang and pointed out that the EFCC was already performing the functions of  gathering intelligence on financial crimes.

Senators Wilson Ake,  Ganiyu Solomon, Hope Uzodinma, Abdul Ningi and Smart Adeyemi among others, disagreed with Enang and  Lanlehin.

They noted that Nigerians needed the proposed agency which must be independent and should work with other agencies without any problems.

Copyright PUNCH.