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Economic Confidential,
July 2008
PROFILE
Farida Waziri: Crime fighting Amazon in EFCC
By Labaran Saleh
Every new appointment especially to a sensitive public office always
comes with controversy. The controversies that trailed the
announcement and subsequent approval by National Assembly on the
nomination of retired Assistant Inspector General of Police (AIG),
Farida Mzamber Waziri (Mrs.) did not come to many as a surprise. In
fact in the heat of the debate over her nomination, the Senate
president, David Mark, had stated that the Senate would not be
deterred or distracted by external views. He was quoted to have
said: "Those who want to talk to the press on their views can do so,
but the Senate would not be distracted. We will do our work at our
own pace. This is not the first confirmation we are handling."
The
attributes that could not be denied on the person of the boss of the
Economic and Financial Crime Commission (EFCC) is that she is
thorough, principled and focused on any assignment she undertakes.
Her
name in the police force where she served for over three decades is
synonymous with law, investigation, crime detection and prosecution.
She has been a crime-fighter all her life, having been saddled with
the responsibility of dealing with cases of bribery and corruption
within the Force and other cases of fraud reported to CID Alagbon,
Lagos. She is credited with recording the first ever conviction for
Advance Fee Fraud in Nigeria. Even her predecessors in the Office,
Mallam Nuhu Ribadu and Mr. Ibrahim Lamorde, Assistant Inspector
General (AIG) and Assistant Commissioner of Police respectively, who
had worked under her in the police, had tremendous respect for her
outstanding disposition, especially in the area of crime detection.
Born on July 7, 1946, the EFCC Executive Chairman had her primary
school education in Gboko, Benue State and was also at Queen of Holy
Rosary Convent, Gboko, from 1960 – 1963. She had a stint at the
Federal Training Centre, Kaduna in 1967. A trained lawyer, she
obtained her law degree from the University of Lagos, 1992 before
proceeding to the Nigerian Law School in 1992. Mrs. Waziri also
holds a Masters degree in Law from the Lagos State University. In
1996, she graduated with a Masters Degree in Strategic Studies from
the University of Ibadan.
Mrs. Waziri joined the Nigeria Police Force as a recruit in
1965/1966 and rose through the ranks to the position of Assistant
Inspector General of Police (AIG) as a result of diligence, hardwork
and by continuous training. An officer with vast crime fighting
experience, she was Assistant Commissioner of Police (Operations),
screening and selection, Assistant/Deputy Commissioner of Police
Force C.I.D Alagbon, Lagos, Commissioner of Police, General
Investigation; Commissioner of Police in charge of X-Squad and also
served as Commissioner of Police (special fraud unit).
Some of the professional courses and training she attended in her
illustrious career in the Nigeria Police, included the Special
Branch Course (Basic) Advance Courses (1976); Detective
Counter-Espionage Courses 1968; Subversion and Sabotage Courses,
(1969); Detective Courses, Covert/Overt Investigations 1970;
Administrative Staff College of Nigeria (ASCON) Advance Management
Course, (1984); ASCON Higher Management Course (1988); Staff
College, Jos for the Advance Course C (1992), among several others.
She also attended the prestigious War College Abuja where she
researched the Advance Fee Fraud phenomenon in Nigeria.
Author of Advance Fee Fraud, National Security and the Law, Mrs.
Waziri is a member of several organizations, including Chief of
Police Association, USA, International Association of Women Police,
Soroptismist of Nigeria, Life member, Federation of Women Lawyers
and is Vice President, Alumni Association of the National Defence
College.
A
highly resourceful Police officer, Waziri was highly sought after at
intellectual gatherings within and outside the country, where she
presented papers and led discussions on crime detection and control
measures. Among other assignments, she led the West African
delegation on Advance Fee Fraud to Lyons, France in 1996 and was
also the leader of Nigeria delegation to Dallas , Texas for a
seminar organized by the United State Secret Service in 1998.
The
retired Assistant Inspector General of Police (AIG) brings to her
new appointment strong qualifications and impeccable professional
competencies spanning 35 years of work and experience in the Nigeria
Police. She is married with five children |
