Precious Obogo
The Executive Secretary of the National Commission for Almajiri and Out of School Children, Muhammad Sani Idris, on Friday, June 20, 2025 gave plaudits to the Executive Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, Mr. Ola Olukoyede for fostering a culture of openness and inter-agency collaboration, describing the development as unprecedented in the Commission’s history.
He gave the plaudit when he led the top management team of the Commission on a courtesy visit to Olukoyede at EFCC’s corporate headquarters in Jabi, Abuja. “I want to start by commending you for keeping your doors widely open for other agencies to interface with you. This is unprecedented in the history of the EFCC. Before now, when people hear that anyone is coming to the EFCC, they would be scared, especially when it has to do with account auditing,” he said.
Highlighting the plight of almajiri children, Idris disclosed that his Commission was in advocacy for over 50 million vulnerable Nigerians who face extreme deprivation, identity loss, and ideological exploitation.
“In Maiduguri alone, we have over 20,000 almajiri children with no link to their families. Some were brought at age three and are now 25 with no knowledge of their origin. Their malams are dead, and they have no identity. These children are vulnerable to every kind of ideology, including those propagated by groups like Boko Haram. Their lack of Arabic literacy, and even basic numeracy, makes them easy targets,” he said.
While extolling the EFCC for its anti-corruption efforts, Idris appealed for support from the anti-graft agency including in the area of food supplies.
“If the EFCC has any food items to spare, we would be grateful, as our beneficiaries are vulnerable children who need every help they can get,” he said.
In his response, Olukoyede expressed a deep concern over the statistics of the deprived as disclosed by Idris and pledged to support the Commission in the modest ways the EFCC can afford, particularly in initiatives that would help address the root causes of financial and organised crimes, such as lack of formal education and crime awareness.
“We are ready to work with you and support you in every modest way we can. The issue of Almajiri is one that concerns me personally. Without education, many of us wouldn’t be sitting here today. It’s mind-boggling to hear that over 50 million Nigerians are vulnerable. That means one in every five Nigerians is at risk. It’s a serious issue that goes beyond your Commission. It affects national security and by extension, our mandate at the EFCC. However, for food items, we don’t store them because they’re perishable” he said.
He urged the Almajiri Commission to be vigilant and report any individual or group that attempts to steal from the Commission’s budget or tries to be fraudulent with procurement.