By Yakubu Salisu, Kano
The Executive Chairman, Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) Mr. Ola Olukoyode has revealed that the commission has adopted preventive measures of combating corruption from its root.
He stated this on Wednesday in Kano during a One-Day Statewide Consultative Meeting with relevant stakeholders organized by Resource Centre for Human Rights and Civic Education (CHRICED) at Mambaya House, Kano, sponsored by MacArthur Foundation with the theme; Fostering transparency, accountability and citizen participation in the fight against corruption in Nigeria .
According to him, the Commission in the last twenty years has engaged more in enforcement which necessitated a rethink and the decision to invoke the Commission’s powers of preventing corruption in the first place as stated in it’s mandate and not only wait until it has taken place.
“We have instituted a new directorate of Fraud Risk and Control with the view to go into ministries and agencies to monitor particularly their contracts and procurement award processes.
Through this, we can know whether it conforms with the provisions of the law, and ensure there is no underground dealings.
More than ninety percent of public corruption that takes place in our system is as a result of fraudulent contracts and procurement award processes so if we can sanitize the system you will find out that there will be good delivery and execution of projects.
So, by going yo the root, we can be able to correct most of the anomalies which at the end of the day, only few cases of enforcement and recovery will be left to handle”, he affirmed.
Olukoyode applauded CHRICED for its role and commitment towards the fight against corruption and it’s resort and commitment towards educating the public in active citizen’s participation in governance, accountability and constituency projects deliverance.
The Chairman urged other CSOs, NGOs and other relevant groups to emulate CHRICED by embarking on more citizen’s awareness campaigns with regards to issues of transparent and complete execution of constituency projects in their various domain.
In his welcome address, the Executive Director CHRICED, Dr. Ibrahim M Zikirullahi said, the Centre is always concerned about how public resources can be be used for the benefit of the most citizens.
He stated that they have always agonized about the paradox of how blessed Nigeria is , yet the people wallow in poverty, misery and extreme deprivation adding that one of the major tragedies of the country is the fact that since the advent if the current democratic dispensation in 1999, trillions of Naira of public resources spent by government at all levels have not translated to a better life for the people.
Zikirullahi explained that the paradox is not just an economic issue ; it is a profound social injustice that affects the very fabric of the society. “The reality is that despite Nigeria’s vast wealth, a significant portion of the population continues to live in conditions that are far below acceptable standards”.
“The Constituency project holds immense promise; it possesses the potential to deliver developmental initiatives directly to the grassroots, ensuring that the benefits of governance reach those who needs them most.
“We would continue to raise awareness about critical issues and mobilizing our networks to push for meaningful change”, he assured