EFCC To Go After Doctors Who Give Fake Medical Reports to Frustrate Corruption Trials

EFCC To Go After Doctors Who Give Fake Medical Reports to Frustrate Corruption Trials

The acting chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, Ibrahim Mustapha Magu, has disclosed that the Commission will henceforth arrest and prosecute medical practitioners who provide fake medical report to persons facing trial for corruption. He lamented that the spectre of fake medical reports had added to the many frustrations that attend the prosecution of corruption cases in court, as defendants frequently use such bogus reports to delay trial unnecessarily.
Magu who made the disclosure today, November 1, 2019 , at stakeholders’ meeting at the agency’s head office in Abuja also highlighted the giant strides of the Commission in the fight against Internet and other computer based frauds.

The anti-graft agency, EFCC, has said it is set to prosecute medical doctors who issue fake medical reports to those undergoing trial for financial crimes.

The acting chairman of the commission, Ibrahim Magu, disclosed this, on Friday, during an interactive session with anti-corruption stakeholders and journalists at the EFCC headquarters in Abuja.

Mr Magu also said many of these fake medical reports issued by doctors actually frustrate pending cases in court.

“We will extend our investigation to doctors who gives fake medical reports to individuals who are facing different kinds of corruption cases. so we put them on the spot,” he said.

“Some would win Senate and present serial medical results that they cannot appear in court. Some would be brought to the courtroom on a stretcher,” he added.

”Many of these fake medical reports are actually the reasons why many of our cases in court are overstretched and go on for years endlessly,” Mr Magu explained.

Many corruption cases in recent years have been stalled over alleged ailments suffered by the suspects, many of whom the judges have been forced to grant permission to seek medical treatment, usually overseas.

The judges usually act on medical reports presented in court by the defence counsel on behalf of their clients.

Mulling new measures

Mr Magu noted that the commission would invite lawyers handling many ”to come and tell the status of these cases, as we cannot continue like this”.

”You would hear some of the defendants’ lawyers saying their clients cannot come to court bringing medical reports that they sick, or they would rather come to courts with stretchers,” Mr Magu said.

He said: “those facing corrupt allegations go as far of getting fake reports from abroad. So, the practice of giving fake medical reports must stop.”

Mr Magu also said the EFCC has begun investigating corruption activities in ‘sister anti-corruption agencies’.

Mr Magu was referring to agencies like the police, civil defence, ICPC, FRSC and other uniformed outfits.

The EFCC chairman also disclosed that the commission is partnering with about 48 countries and the INTERPOL in its fight against corruption.

”We are seeing how we can work with other law enforcement agencies in about 48 countries across the world, it is globalisation and the world has become a global village.

”And we have made an agreement with our colleagues all over the world. Also we have created a desk so you can reach us as long as there are any acts of criminality we would investigate them and we would get it done,” he said.

”We are also working on corruption in the civil service and corruption in our sister services particularly, law enforcement agencies in the country.

”All the law enforcement agencies were created to fight corruption and we are doing that,” he added.