Former Executive Secretary of the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS), Professor Usman Yusuf, has leveled serious accusations against President Bola Tinubu’s administration, alleging the weaponization of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to suppress dissenting voices.
Yusuf claims he was treated like a common criminal in an attempt to silence his criticisms of the government.
In an interview aired on Arise Television on Sunday, Yusuf detailed his recent detention by the EFCC, stating, “This government deliberately denied me bail to shake me up… all to try and silence me. But I am not someone who can be silenced.”
The EFCC had arraigned Yusuf before the Federal Capital Territory High Court in February on a five-count charge of alleged fraud, to which he pleaded not guilty.
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Recounting the events leading to his detention, Yusuf alleged that EFCC operatives stormed his residence on January 29th without a warrant. “They walked into the house and said they wanted to see me, claiming I was expecting them. They only later showed their badges,” he said.
He described the operatives’ conduct as unnecessarily harsh, claiming they prevented him from changing clothes and blocked his wife from providing him with alternative attire. Yusuf also recounted the transport to detention, stating officers treated him “as if they had captured a notorious criminal like Kachalla Bello Turji,” a notorious bandit leader.
Yusuf spent six days in EFCC custody before his court appearance, and was subsequently denied bail. He argued this denial was unconstitutional. “Bail is a constitutionally guaranteed right for any accused person, except in cases of capital offences or terrorism, and my case was neither,” he stated.
As a result of the denied bail, Yusuf spent an additional 24 days in Kuje Prison. He described his imprisonment as a period of “retreat for rest, prayers, and reflection,” and asserted that the experience only strengthened his resolve.
“The whole purpose was for the government of President Bola Tinubu to try to silence any form of dissent,” Yusuf alleged. “This is coming from a president who himself was once a NADECO activist — someone who fought against the military dictatorship.” He warned that the current administration is attempting to stifle democratic criticism and establish a “one-party dictatorial state.”
Yusuf’s tenure as executive secretary of the NHIS, which began in 2016 under former President Muhammadu Buhari, was marred by controversy. He was suspended in 2017 and again in 2018 by the health minister and the NHIS board over allegations of corruption, and was ultimately removed from office in 2019.
Timothy Enietan-Matthews
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