The Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Olanipekun Olukoyede, has warned religious leaders against diverting tithes, offerings, zakat and other funds belonging to religious organisations into their private businesses.
Olukoyede described such diversion as criminal, urging churches and mosques to establish clear regulatory compliance mechanisms to prevent the misuse of funds entrusted to religious institutions.
The EFCC chairman spoke at the 2026 Second Council Meeting of the Nigeria Inter-Religious Council (NIREC), held with the theme, “Shared Sacred Flourishing in Nigeria”.
He said religious leaders had a responsibility to lead by example in the fight against corruption, stressing that followers often emulate the conduct of their leaders.
According to him, religious organisations are registered as not-for-profit entities, and funds received in the name of such organisations should be kept in their designated accounts and used for the purposes for which they were contributed.
“You are not supposed to mingle it. There’s nothing that says you can’t do another vocation. You sell cars, you have a farm and all of that.
“Don’t mix the money from the purse of your organisation with that of your own personal money. Don’t do that. When money is paid to your organisation, don’t divert it to your business. That is criminal,” Olukoyede said.
He advised religious leaders who engage in legitimate private businesses to maintain a clear separation between their personal finances and funds belonging to their churches, mosques or other religious organisations.
The EFCC chairman also recounted investigations conducted by the commission into institutions responsible for sponsoring religious pilgrimages, alleging that investigators had uncovered significant financial irregularities.
He said that during his previous service at the EFCC, including as Chief of Staff and Secretary, the commission investigated the Christian and Muslim pilgrimage boards.
“Some of the discoveries we made were mind-boggling,” he said, alleging that in one location, almost 75 per cent of government funds released for the sponsorship of pilgrims had been stolen by officials of the organisations.
Olukoyede said the allegations underscored the need for greater accountability and transparency in religious institutions and government-funded religious programmes.
He urged religious organisations to develop regulatory compliance templates to clearly define the boundaries between organisational and personal finances.
“Go and develop regulatory compliance templates for your religious organisation so that you know where you don’t have to cross the line. You know where the boundary is drawn. You know the money that belongs to you and the money that does not belong to you,” he said.
The EFCC chairman stressed that funds entrusted to religious leaders belonged to members of the faith community and were held in trust for the propagation of the faith and its tenets.
He further called on religious institutions to play a greater role in preventing corruption by shaping the moral character and conscience of citizens.
According to him, while the EFCC can investigate and prosecute financial crimes, religious institutions have the capacity to influence the values and character that determine whether individuals engage in corrupt practices.
“The EFCC can investigate a person’s conduct. Faith communities can influence that person’s character.
“We can prosecute fraud. Religious teachings can cultivate honesty. We can confiscate illicit wealth.
“Churches and mosques can challenge the values that make society worship wealth without questioning its source,” he said.
Olukoyede said religious leaders could contribute significantly to Nigeria’s anti-corruption campaign by promoting honest living and discouraging the pursuit of wealth without regard to its source.
He said religious institutions had an “extraordinary responsibility” in the country’s anti-corruption struggle, adding that preventing corruption before it occurs was as important as punishing offenders after the crime had been committed.
“It is important to state here that one of the most consequential contributions religious leaders can make to shared sacred flourishing is to restore the moral dignity of honest living,” the EFCC chairman said.