“Through the police I could see human beings for truly what they are. Without the Police Force, I wouldn’t have that insight into who human beings truly are”
Tunde Thomas
Farida Waziri, is a former Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and had served as Assistant Inspector General of Police before retiring into legal practice in Abuja. In this interview with EFFECTS, she spoke about her 35 years in the police, her experience as head of the nation’s foremost anti-graft agency and so much more. Waziri also talked about the many times her life was threatened while doing her job and how she fortified herself against these attacks.
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Excerpts:
You retired from the Nigeria police as an Assistant Inspector-General of Police, AIG, what was the motivation and the attraction that made you to join the Force?
If I’m to come to this world again I would still prefer to join the Police. I learnt a lot from the Force. I met so many people, and through the police I could see human beings for truly what they are. Without the Police Force, I wouldn’t have that insight into who human beings truly are.
Can you recall some of your memorable moments and experiences while in the Force?
I’m writing a book, and some of my experiences will be detailed there. However, I can still recall some of these experiences; like the case of a pilot that killed his wife. He was a German but travelled to England with his wife and he later killed the wife in a small London hotel. He gave her something to sip, and then stabbed her in the chest. He later dragged her into the toilet and went out later to buy a saw, and used the saw to dismember her. He later put the dismembered parts into a bin and took it to a refuse dump.
But somehow later, the body of the wife was discovered very fresh because it was winter period in England that period. One of the woman’s legs was discovered, and the London police sewed the dismembered parts of the woman together to make it whole again. Police officers in London, and in Nigeria here were surprised that the pilot could kill his wife. One surprising thing was that the pilot looked so normal. He looked like a normal human being. He was subsequently arrested and put on trial. I handled that case at the Nigeria end here.
Then I was at the Police General Investigation Section at Alagbon in Lagos I was a Commissioner then. The Metropolitan Police from London came to Nigeria while the case was going on. The pilot was later flown back to Germany where he was sentenced to life imprisonment because over there they had abolished death penalty.
Were there occasions when your life was on the line or came under threat in the course of carrying out your duties?
There were several of such. For instance, when I was serving at the Special Fraud Unit, I received several death threats, I also received threats of acid attacks. While on my way to the office, to resume work I would see broken calabash with fetish objects and dead chickens, but some of my officers and other staff would tell me not to be bothered. In actual fact, I was not bothered by the fetish items and intimidation because I believe that I was doing what is right. I also believe that what is worth doing at all is worth doing very well.
If I’m given an assignment which I believe I can’t do for one reason or the other I would decline. I had several death threats even on phone, some of these people would even be breathing heavily or making funny noise on the phone just to scare me. There was a particular funny one where this fellow would be calling my number, then it was landline, we didn’t have mobile lines then, this fellow would be breathing into the phone and I would pick, and he would be behaving in a funny manner again just to intimidate me. I was picking his calls because as a Commissioner of Police you have to pick your calls because you wouldn’t know which one would be genuine or not, or which one would be an emergency.
But one day when he called again, I picked and just said: ‘Ok, I now know who you are, I would get you, you bastard’, and he immediately cut the line, and he never called again. Then another one was when there was a big blast in my house at Lugard Road, Ikoyi. I was then living at Number 4 Lugard; I was upstairs, the impact of the blast was so serious that the house roof caved in, but I didn’t stand up as I later crawled downstairs before my police aides called police forensic department, and police CID. But thank God I was not hurt. If you have to do what is right, you will face a lot of problems in this country. People don’t want you to do the right thing.
With all these threats, was there a point you got fed up and felt like quitting?
There was a time I got fed up, but the President I was working with then had a lot of confidence in me. He told me that people would try to frustrate me, or threaten me, but that the government will continue to support me. With that assurance, I remained focused. With that assurance from the President I became more determined.
Even when I was in the saddle at the EFCC sometimes some people will blow powder on my route to the office but when your conscience is clear, that you are doing the right then no evil force can do you any harm. I continued doing my job to the best of my ability wherever I was serving and I’m happy that I did my best.
Some people believe that due to the nature of police work, bursting crime and investigations, that you have to belong to a cult or possess occult powers in order to escape danger …
(Cuts in) … It is true that a lot of people believe in that but my own staying power was in saying the truth at all times. For instance, when I was the Chairman of the EFCC I had so much power that if I have not been God-fearing one would have become power drunk. When you do the right and you are very constant with the truth there is nothing anybody can do to harm you. My husband and other family members were also very supportive. They were always praying for me. Then every Friday I also used to cook for the under-privileged.My staying power was God when I was in the Force. I don’t believe in juju. Life becomes miserable for anybody that believes in juju.
One of my daughters is a born-again Christian, a prayer warrior and we always pray together. I don’t joke with my prayers. Prayer was the major weapon I used to fortify myself while I was in the service.
While in the service you must have worked with different Inspectors-General of Police, what was your experience like with each of them?
I was recruited into the Police Force by former IG, Aliyu Attah. He was so much committed to the welfare of officers and non-commissioned officers alike. I also worked with Alhaji M.D. Yusuf of blessed memory. He was a great detective and a great security chief. I learnt so much from him. Even among the members of the international community, M.D. Yusuf was held in high esteem. They respect him so much. I also worked with Alhaji Gambo Jimeta, another fine officer. Working with late Sunday Adewusi was also a memorable one. Adewusi was so fatherly, and very kind. If Adewusi asked you to go and do any investigation, he will ask you to submit a list of everything you need to get the job done, and he would give them to you. He was a great police officer. He took care of not only the officers but also the rank and file. Sunday Adewusi was highly adored in the Force. He was also the one that transformed the police mobile unit into an effective and efficient unit that earned respect of Nigerians that time.
One of the Inspectors-General that made memorable impression on me was Alhaji Ibrahim Coomasie. He was a very tough officer. He was very hard working. He was the one that transferred me to the Special Fraud Unit. I recalled that when he sent me to head that unit, some police officers came to me to tell me that he deployed me to the unit because he wanted me to be killed. When I heard this, I became dejected, but later I went back to ask him why he sent me to the unit.
When he saw my face, he asked me to sit down and later asked me what happened. When I explained, he told me he sent me to the unit because he believed that I can do the job. He later asked me to mention and list all the facilities I needed to work with. I did that and he approved everything.
Eventually when I started working in that unit, I was able to get the first conviction in Nigeria over issues relating to fraudulent practices otherwise known as 419. But initially, we had problems with foreign victims of 419 coming to Nigeria to testify against those who duped them. The 419 victims were being threatened that if they come to Nigeria they would be eliminated. So the foreign victims were always scared of coming to Nigeria to testify against those who duped them.
But I had the first breakthrough when I got a German woman who was a victim of 419 to travel down to Nigeria. We partnered with her, her name is Frieda Springer-Beck. She came to Nigeria, and we worked together. She later became the President of Nigerian 419 victims in Germany.
Ibrahim Coomasie as police IG also sent me on training to War College in Abuja. He also sent me to the National Institute of Policy and Strategic Studies at Kuru near Jos. However, of all the various courses I attended the one I cherished most was the one at the War College.
At the National War College, we interacted with members of the Armed Forces, and they are so knowledgeable. While there, we travelled to several countries like China and Mozambique.
How do you relax?
I read a lot. Nigerians don’t read books. But those who don’t read books are missing a lot. I read at anytime of the day. I relax with books. I also relax by watching movies. I also play golf. I play golf to keep fit. Around 6am, I leave my house to play golf and I play till 8am. When my husband was alive, he would jokingly ask me what was so special in golf that I was so much attached to it. He would ask whether I would go to heaven by playing golf. But he later joined me in playing golf even though he later stopped.
Another thing that gives me so much joy is my grandchildren. They are wiser than when we were growing up. They were so entertaining. They even taught me how to dance Shaku-Shaku, and I must get it right. During their birthdays we also dance together. I watch their cartoons with them. They keep me very happy and whenever I travel, I usually miss them. But as soon as I arrive, we team up together again. I also play table tennis. I have it in the house but there is nobody to play with.
Another game that I love so much is snooker. I play it very well. When my husband was Nigeria Ambassador to Turkey, we had it there, and we used to play it. I even brought snooker game back to Nigeria from Turkey.
Do you have specific diets?
I eat a lot of vegetable and salad. But I also love pounded yam. I still have my mortar and once in a month, they prepare pounded yam for me with egusi soup.
People say you are fashionable, what’s your style?
I’m not fashion conscious at all. I believe people should wear what fits them, and when I was in service, I was always in uniform, but now that I’m not in service, I wear loose. Recently, there was an event I was to attend, and I gave material to a tailor to sow for me but the tailor made a very tight-fitting skirt and blouse for me, and I was very angry.
Although when I put on the dress people were saying that it fits me and that I looked gorgeous in it, they say it is the latest trend, but I was angry because the dress she made for me was not loose. I love good colours, pinkish, and when I get any new wear I make sure that I get a shawl to go with the colour of that material so I have lots of shawls and I pick different ones for different occasions.
Do you have preference for any particular designer?
Yes. I buy Gucci shoes. They are very comfortable. I also buy Baileys flat shoes. These are what they call loafers and they are good when somebody is travelling, moving from one airport to another. I have them a lot.
The person that sews for me is also a great lady, that’s Abbah Folawiyo. She is one of the nicest women I have ever come across. She is so sincere. If you see how she dresses, she wears loose gowns, and are very fitting on her, and also befitting of her age.
Although she has stopped sewing but she is the one that made my flowing dresses, and anytime I travel to Lagos, I used to that joke with her that since she’s no longer sewing I will take one of her dresses. So I prefer loose and flowing dresses. I feel so much comfortable wearing them.