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ABUJA, July 10 (Reuters) - Nigeria has suspended the head of
its anti-corruption body, the attorney general's office said on
Friday, days after the attorney general accused the agency of
diverting funds that had been recovered during investigations
into graft.
Ibrahim Magu, head of the Economic and Financial Crimes
Commission (EFCC), has been appearing before a presidential
panel reviewing its activities this week. Attorney General
Abubakar Malami told the panel EFCC agents had been steering
recovered funds into private pockets.
"President Muhammadu Buhari has approved the immediate
suspension of Ibrahim Magu as Acting Chairman of the Economic
and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC)," the attorney general's
office said in a statement.
EFCC operations director Mohammed Umar would be placed in
charge pending the outcome of Magu's case.
Buhari has made tackling corruption a priority since taking
office in 2015. Nigerians blame endemic graft among the
political elite dating back decades for widespread poverty in
the country, Africa's biggest economy and energy producer.