The Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, Ola Olukoyede, has revealed that the anti-graft agency is planning to rehabilitate convicted internet fraudsters known as ‘Yahoo Boys’.

This was according to a statement by the commission on Friday of Olukoyede speaking on Thursday when a delegation of the National Association of University Students led by its President, Obadi Marshal, paid him a courtesy visit in Abuja.

Olukoyede said that the rehabilitation would be useful in reorienting the minds of the convicts and redirecting their productive energies to positive endeavours.

Olukoyede said, “We have a plan to rehabilitate convicted internet fraudsters with lesser sentences. The plan is to work with the correctional centre to make them useful and more productive in society.

The EFCC boss cautioned youths against indulging in internet crimes, stressing that the implications of such an act are grave.

He added, “When you think deeply, that tag ‘ex-convict’ is not a good thing. You can never tell where you will find yourself tomorrow, and they will want to profile you and discover that you are an ex-convict.

“The issue of dichotomies of associations is disturbing. Regulate yourselves and the society will take you more seriously.”

On his part, Marshal said the visit was to build synergy with the EFCC in its fight against cybercrimes across Nigerian university campuses.

“The aim of our visit today is to see how we can synergize and partner with the EFCC in eradicating cybercrime in all the higher institutions of learning in the country,” he said.

“NAUS has never been part of it and will never support it, that is why we are at the EFCC to see how we can collaborate to end it. The onus is on us all to save our youths from taking part in it and to save our country.”

The Ijaw Patriotic League has dismissed desperate attempts by some people to link the heinous murder of 16 military personnel at Okuama to High Chief Government Ekpemupolo (Tompolo) as ridiculous and laughable.

The National Coordinator of the IPL, Jasper Eritei, said in a statement on Friday that those behind the recent campaign against Tompolo are oil thieves and their cohorts who did not get the pipeline contract of the NNPCL.

The IPL said that Tantita Security Services Limited should not relent in the pursuit of oil thieves in the Niger Delta region as clearly specified in the mandate given to it by Mr. President.

Eritei said that the security services in the country are aware of the details of what transpired and those who carried out the grave assault on Nigeria, the nation’s Armed Forces and the citizens.

The IPL said that those struggling wildly and ludicrously to link the abominable murder of the 16 members of the Armed Forces are only exposing their desperate attempt to subvert the economy of this country.

The IPL said that those who murdered the 16 Army personnel comprising
a commanding Officer, two Majors, a captain and 12 soldiers are terrorist who have sold their hearts to the devil.

Eritei noted that the desperate attempt to drag the name of High Chief Government Ekpemupolo to the horrendous act cannot succeed.

They called on Tompolo and his team to put up more efforts to intensify the campaign against oil theft in pursuit of the critical mandate given to them by the President to rid the nation of oil thieves.

The IPL called on security agencies to remain focused to assess the crime against humanity by bringing those behind the crime to justice.

The IPL said that Tompolo and his partners in the fight against oil thieves cannot afford the price of distraction at this critical point.

They noted that those who are fleeing after the gruesome murder of the soldiers are being pursued by their guilt noting that they should be strong enough to face the aftermath of their dastardly act.

“We have watched with shock an orchestrated desperate bid to link the gruesome murder of 16 soldiers of the Nigerian Army by a criminal group at Okuoma in Ughelli South Local Government Area.

“We are not in doubt that those struggling pitifully to link High Chief Tompolo to this heinous crime are oil thieves and their cohorts who are angry with Tompolo.

“We are not surprised as people who keenly followed the campaign of calumny that preceded the renewal of the Tantita Pipeline Contract that these people will stop at nothing to discredit the campaign against oil related crimes in the region.

“The IPL is of the view that our country’s security outfit have enough information about those who carried out this heinous assault on our collective sanity, peace and security and have taken steps to assess it.

“This nation is bigger than the pecuniary pursuits of oil thieves and criminals. We therefore call on High Chief Government Ekpemupolo (Tompolo) and his team to intensify the productive efforts against the unpatriotic characters determined to destroy the nation’s economy.

“As a firm that has gained the confidence of the President, Tantita cannot afford to be distracted. The firm’s collaborative relation with the security agencies had yielded reassuring results such as reduction in oil theft and increased daily oil production in the country.

“We call on the Armed Forces to ensure that this matter is holistically investigated and those behind the crime are brought to justice.

“Lastly, our sympathies are with the military whose brave and patriotic personnel were gruesomely murdered by the criminals. Justice should be served. We call on the military and the government not to be distracted by the ploy of the suspects to change the conversation by pointing fingers at innocent people.”

The Ijaw Youths Network on Friday faulted a former Minister of Communication, Maj Gen Tajudeen Olarenwaju, on the grisly murder of 16 personnel of the Nigerian Army by Okuama youths on March 14, 2024 over land dispute.

In reacting to the killings which shocked the entire country, the retired general fought hard to create a non existent link between this crime against humanity and the collaborative protection of the nation’s oil pipeline between private security outfits, the military and security agencies.

The Ijaw Youth Network said that Gen Olarenwaju’s claim that it is unsafe for non state actors to protect oil installations in the country at this critical time is curious and wrong.

The IYN in a statement by its Coordinator, Frank Ebikabo and Secretary, Federal Ebiaridor, said the general’s statement only reechoed the same misguided and false narrative being peddled by frustrated oil thieves and their cohorts who did not get the pipeline contract of the NNPCL.

The group said that the utterances of a man who rose to the rank of general and one time minister of Defence should not bear semblance with those exploiting the disturbing death of our military personnel to push an obvious economic interest.

Frank Ebikabo and Secretary, Federal Ebiaridor, said that Gen Olarenwaju should be condoling the institution that produced him , the Nigerian Army, at its moment of grief and not to dabble into, or steer needless controversy.

The IYN leadership said that the General should be concerned about how to track down and arrest those who brazenly assaulted the collective peace, safety and security of this country.

The group said that the General cannot claim ignorance of massive theft of the nation’s oil resources by a virulent cabal comprising Nigerians and their evil foreign collaborators which made Presidents Jonathan, Buhari and the NNPC to explore the use of capable private security outfits to complement the efforts of the military and security outfits.

According to the IYN, the General is aware of the relentless pursuit of the oil thieves in the coastal waters and creeks of the Niger Delta with several arrest of rogue vessels in the region by Tantita Security Services Limited.

The group urged President Tinubu and the NNPCL to continue with the decisive policy against oil theft which has increased oil production and has been applauded all over the country, noting that no distraction deserves attention.

“The military assets of the country are already over stretched. Successive Presidents have engaged Private security outfits to fight the lethal scourge of oil theft in Nigeria. It is not unusual and it is a trend that is commonplace around the world.

“Even developed countries such as the US and the Uk also employ the services of private security consultants to maximize security of critical assets and facilities.

“Prior to the renewal of the contract of Tantita Security Services, the general had not found it necessary to besiege the media space about the purported inappropriateness of engaging private security outfit to fight oil theft.

“Perhaps, the various feats accomplished by Tantita and the widespread recognition accorded to the company should convince the General that private security outfit does not constitute any danger to the security of the nation’s critical oil pipelines.

“What should be of concern to the General is the sad story of oil theft that made the President and the NNPCL to seek proactive response to the problem that threatened the nation’s existence.

“It is shocking that the General is reducing the cold blooded murder of soldiers as a fall out of gang violence in the region. This is an attempt to twist the facts of the matter.

“There is no link between the private security outfits and the gruesome murder of soldiers on lawful duty. This rush to throw curious, unsolicited advice should be beneath him.

“His suggestion is personal opinion inspired by lack of understanding of the story of the nation’s oil sector or a classic case of selective amnesia.

“Such hurried viewpoints seem to suggest that some ingrained interest who are jolted by the gains of the campaigns of oil theft are at work.

“A General’s statement shouldn’t be in that direction,” the group said.