The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission has clarified the circumstances surrounding the recent incident involving its operatives and staff members of University of Uyo Teaching Hospital, insisting that the visit to the hospital was not an arrest operation.
In a statement issued on Friday after public reactions trailed the development, the anti-graft agency explained that its operatives from the Uyo Zonal Directorate were at the hospital on Tuesday, May 12, 2026, strictly for administrative purposes.
According to the Commission, “the presence of the Commission’s Operatives in the facility on Tuesday, May 12th, 2026 was purely administrative, to facilitate the authentication of a document, rather than a tactical operation to effect arrest.”
The EFCC also denied reports suggesting that hospital workers were arrested or detained during the incident. It stated that although some members of staff accompanied operatives to the zonal command, they were neither arrested nor held against their will.
Responding to allegations that some medical personnel were brutalised during the encounter, the Commission said it was deeply concerned by the claims and had already ordered an internal investigation into the matter.
“The Commission is outraged by the allegations of brutalisation of staff of the hospital,” the statement read.
While noting that it had not seen any visible evidence of bodily harm or injuries suffered by the affected staff members, the EFCC assured Nigerians that any operative found to have violated the agency’s operational procedures would face disciplinary action.
It added that, “any staff of the Commission found to have deviated from the Standard Operating Procedure of the Agency, will not be spared.”
The anti-corruption agency further appealed to the public not to allow the incident to be used to discredit its activities, describing the development as an isolated case.
The Commission reaffirmed its commitment to respecting the rights of Nigerians while continuing its anti-corruption mandate without interference.