Ola Olukoyede, the Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), has disclosed plans to rehabilitate convicted internet fraudsters, commonly referred to as ‘Yahoo Boys’, as part of efforts to reorient them and channel their energies toward positive contributions to society.
Olukoyede made this revelation during a courtesy visit by a delegation of the National Association of University Students (NAUS) led by its President, Obadi Marshal, in Abuja on Thursday.
Addressing the delegation, Olukoyede emphasized the importance of rehabilitating convicted fraudsters with lesser sentences, aiming to reintegrate them into society as productive individuals.
“We have a plan to rehabilitate convicted internet fraudsters with lesser sentences. The plan is to work with the correctional centre to make them useful and more productive in society,” he stated.
The EFCC boss also cautioned youths against engaging in cybercrimes, highlighting the detrimental consequences and societal stigma associated with being labeled as ex-convicts.
“When you think deeply, that tag ‘ex-convict’ is not a good thing. You can never tell where you will find yourself tomorrow, and they will want to profile you and discover that you are an ex-convict,” Olukoyede remarked.
“So, it is even in the interest of the youth that the EFCC is doing what it is doing to prevent them from indulging in the heinous act of cybercrime.
“The issue of dichotomies of associations is disturbing. Regulate yourselves and the society will take you more seriously.”
In response, Marshal expressed NAUS’s commitment to collaborating with the EFCC in combating cybercrimes prevalent across Nigerian university campuses.
“The aim of our visit today is to see how we can synergize and partner with the EFCC in eradicating cybercrime in all the higher institutions of learning in the country,” Marshal stated.
“NAUS has never been part of it and will never support it, that is why we are at the EFCC to see how we can collaborate to end it. The onus is on us all to save our youths from taking part in it and to save our country.”
