A recent statement by the Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Ola Olukoyede, has drawn significant public criticism. Olukoyede attributed the surge in cybercrime to “laziness” and “greed” among Nigerian youths, remarks that have been widely contested on social media.
The EFCC chairman made the comments on Monday, October 27, 2025, during a sensitization program for new students at the Air Force Institute of Technology (AFIT) in Mando, Kaduna. Represented by Chief Superintendent of the EFCC, Nana Fatima Abubakar, Olukoyede asserted that many young people are choosing internet fraud as an alternative to “hard work, perseverance, and dedication.”
In his address, Olukoyede identified “peer pressure, lack of patriotism, greed and laziness” as the primary drivers of youth involvement in cybercrime. He also pointed to a dangerous nexus between internet fraud, substance abuse, and “criminal fetish activities.” He urged the students to act as role models by shunning illicit activities and to support the anti-corruption fight by reporting fraud through the commission’s Eagle Eye App.
Public Reacts on X
The statement, however, was met with sharp disapproval online, with many users on X (formerly Twitter) arguing that the EFCC chairman’s comments overlook deeper systemic issues. Critics pointed to widespread unemployment, government corruption, and economic hardship as the root causes of the problem.
Reacting to the news, user ABBAH (@isahadamabbah) stated, “The EFCC’s current method of targeting youths with moral lectures and blame neglects the fact that unemployment and deep-rooted corruption are the real catalysts for cybercrime.”
Another user, ISIP (@001Xtasy), shifted the blame towards the political class, commenting, “And what is pushing them is “lazy and Greediest” Nigerian politicians, @officialEFCC stop trimming the branches and start working on the root cause.” This sentiment was echoed by Kanary (@OKARIAUKE), who argued, “They are neither lazy nor greedy; the system has failed them, and they must survive. A lazy person cannot be a scammer. The government is the lazy one.”
The EFCC itself was not spared from criticism. Mahdi Shehu (@shehu_mahdi) compared the issue to the agency’s own operational challenges, saying, “Just like lazy and greedy EFCC operatives drag several investigations for 20 years and beyond and eventually abandon them because the stakes are high.”
Several users also called on the commission to focus on high-profile corruption cases.
Emmpatri (@emmlayi) expressed a common frustration: “I’m more interested in the case of Former governors Yahaya Bello and Okowa from Delta State. Until I see justice, else EFCC is a scam.”
The backlash suggests a significant disconnect between the EFCC’s narrative and the public’s perception of the socioeconomic factors driving Nigerian youths toward cybercrime.
