The Executive Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, Ola Olukoyede, has charged religious leaders across the country to preach the right doctrine against corruption and its ills.
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‎Olukoyede gave the charge in Abuja on Wednesday, September 23, 2026, at the 2026 second Council Meeting of the Nigeria Inter-Religious Council, NIREC, and the launch of the Anti-Corruption Interfaith Manual for religious leaders.
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‎In his paper, he said the theme of the event, “Shared Sacred Flourishing in Nigeria,” demands that stakeholders in the anti-corruption fight recognize that the wellbeing of Nigerians depends on the actions of individual citizens, and that acts of corruption create division in shared flourishing.
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‎According to him, one of the most consequential contributions religious leaders can make is to restore the moral dignity of honest living.
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‎”Corruption privatizes what is shared, converts the commonwealth into private advantage, and allows one person to flourish by making many others poorer. The unique role of the EFCC, therefore, is to defend the integrity of that commonwealth,” he said.
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‎He noted that by preaching the right doctrines, both Christianity and Islam can retain their distinctive beliefs while adherents work together for peace, justice, human dignity and the wellbeing of the nation.
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‎Olukoyede disclosed that the Commission has been tasking religious leaders to infuse anti-corruption content in their messages through the inter-faith framework.
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‎”We have specifically spelt out what should be the roles of religious leaders and the doctrine they need to pass down to their followers. No religion condones corruption and no faith entertains fraudulent engagements,” he stated.
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‎He said the EFCC engaged leaders of both faiths in producing the Inter-Faith Manual which captures doctrinal positions of the holy books on corruption, expressing hope that religious leaders will find it useful.
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‎On the non-discriminatory effects of corruption, the EFCC boss declared: “Financial crime has no religion. Corruption has no tribe. Fraud does not become Christian or Muslim because of the identity of the person accused. When public money is stolen, both Christians and Muslims suffer. A badly equipped hospital does not first ask a dying patient where he worships.”
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‎He urged pastors and imams to keep faith with the manual and actively engage members on why corruption is heinous.
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‎”Religious institutions have extraordinary responsibility in Nigeria’s anti-corruption struggle. The EFCC can investigate a person’s conduct. Faith communities can influence that person’s character. We can prosecute fraud. Religious teaching can cultivate honesty. We can confiscate illicit wealth. Churches and mosques can challenge the values that make society worship wealth without questioning its source,” Olukoyede added.
Corruption Has No Religion: EFCC Boss Charges Pastors, Imams To Preach Against Graft
