Magu was arrested on Monday by a combined team of officials of the Department of State Services and Force Criminal Investigation Department after failing to honour two invitations from the panel.
Anti-corruption groups, Re:Common, Globalwitness and The Corner House based in Europe, have written to President Muhammadu Buhari on what they consider the unfortunate treatment of Ibrahim Magu.
Magu was arrested on Monday by a combined team of officials of the Department of State Services and Force Criminal Investigation Department after failing to honour two invitations from the panel.
He has been detained since then and the police authorities on Friday withdrew his security.
His travails followed a memo by Abubakar Malami, Attorney-General of the Federation, in which the suspended anti-graft czar was accused of grave malfeasance.
The groups in a letter signed by Lucas Manes of Re:Common, Nicholas Hildyard of Corner House, Simon Taylor of Globalwitness, and their Nigerian counterpart, Olanrewaju Suraju of the HEDA, said the unceremonious removal of Magu may erode the recent gains in the fight against corruption. [story_link align="left"]82983[/story_link]
The letter reads, “What is going on in Nigeria is of concern to the international community. Mr Magu has proved himself to be up to the task. His determination to fight corruption is evident by the recovery of stolen funds and properties plus his own high moral ground earned at the cost of diligence and hardwork never before seen. His political removal questions the will of Nigeria to deal with a major cause of the country’s underdevelopment which is corruption.
“However, we very much hope that you will find a way forward that protects the huge strides made by the EFCC under Magu's acting chairmanship."