The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission has challenged former Bayelsa State Governor, Timipre Sylva, to make himself available for questioning after he accused the anti graft agency of operating as an arm of the All Progressives Congress.
The EFCC spokesman, Dele Oyewale, issued the challenge on Monday in response to Sylva’s decision to resign from the APC and his allegation that the commission had become increasingly politicised.
“He has been declared wanted; he should make himself available to the commission,” Oyewale said when asked to respond to Sylva’s allegation.
Sylva, a former Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, announced his resignation from the ruling APC on Monday, saying the party had abandoned the principles upon which it was founded. In his resignation letter, dated August 31, 2026, and addressed to the APC chairman in Ward 4, Brass Local Government Area of Bayelsa State, he accused the party’s leadership of embracing the philosophy that “all is fair in politics”.
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The former governor also criticised the administration of President Bola Tinubu, saying the Federal Government had disappointed the majority of Nigerians and showing no credible prospect of reversing its alleged shortcomings. He described the APC as a “floundering ship” whose fate had been sealed by its “irreedeemable load of iniquities”.
Sylva specifically copied the EFCC in his resignation letter, saying he did so because of what he described as the commission’s recent conduct. “I am deliberately putting the EFCC in copy of this letter because, of late, it has conducted itself more as an organ of the APC than as an institution of State,” he wrote.
He further alleged that his resignation could trigger what he called a “redoubled witch-hunt” against him and his associates, but said he was prepared to accept the risk. The former governor expressed confidence that Nigerians would use the next general election to “vote for Nigeria” and change the country’s political direction.
The EFCC, however, dismissed the political dimension of Sylva’s claims by directing him to appear before the commission. Sylva was declared wanted by the anti graft agency in November 2025 over an alleged case of conspiracy and dishonest conversion involving $14.859m.
His latest confrontation with the EFCC comes amid separate legal and security related allegations surrounding him. He is listed as a defendant in a 13 count Federal Government charge arising from an alleged plot against the administration of President Tinubu, with allegations including treason, terrorism related offences, conspiracy and money laundering.
Sylva has reportedly remained outside Nigeria since the allegations surrounding the alleged plot became public. Investigators have also alleged that he was a principal financier of the operation, with about N785m allegedly traced through Purple Waves Limited and a bureau de change operator. The broader investigation reportedly involves more than N5bn allegedly pooled for the operation.
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His resignation from the APC therefore places him at the centre of a potentially significant political and legal confrontation ahead of the 2027 general elections, as his criticism of the ruling party now coincides with outstanding investigations and criminal allegations against him.
While Sylva has framed his departure as a principled rejection of what he described as the APC’s departure from its founding ideals, the EFCC’s response has been unequivocal: the former governor should return and answer questions concerning the allegations against him.
