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A fresh boost came for the
Economic and
Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC
and the war against corruption on
Wednesday, June 9, 2010 with a new
assurance from the Federal Government
that it would continue to support,
strengthen and protect the anti-graft
agency against the numerous antics of
the corrupt and powerful individuals in
the country. The
Attorney
General of the Federation and
Minister of Justice, Mr.Mohammed Bello
Adoke, SAN gave this assurance at the
launch of an Anti-Corruption Handbook
For Nigerian Youths sponsored by the
EFCC.
The AGF, while expressing government
support to the anti-graft agency ,
stated that government was not oblivious
of the resolve of the criminally-minded
to scuttle the anti-corruption fight but
promised that their efforts would be met
with stiff opposition. “We are not
unaware of the challenges militating
against the fight , especially of those
trying to frustrate it. We shall make
sure they do not succeed”. Adoke
promised. He also stressed that his
presence at the occasion was to
underscore government’s commitment to
the fight against corruption. “I am here
to show support and solidarity to the
author and the EFCC. This is because the
fight against corruption is one of the
most cardinal thrust of this
government.”
Speaking earlier, Chairman of the EFCC,
Mrs. Farida Waziri commended the author
for his efforts which she said was aimed
at re-branding education , business,
politics and public administration in
the country. She said that because many
corrupt
practices fall within the ambit
of economic crimes, EFCC has come under
serious and sometimes mis-guided public
scrutiny. “Because of the volume of
jobs we do, a lot of attention has been
attracted to us and when there are no
dramatic results, the impression is
created that there is a lull or that the
fight has been dampened or is
compromised.” She , therefore, used the
occasion to highlight some of the
commission’s achievements which included
rising prosecution of high profile
personalities and consistent
enlightenment of Nigerians about the
evils of corrupt practices. She also
bemoaned slow pace of court processes
which she said could only be curtailed
by the creation of
special courts
that she has been advocating. Waziri
therefore solicited for support from the
legislature in this regard stating that
the war can only be effective when more
convictions are achieved.
In his brief remark at the occasion,
chairman of the occasion, Dr. Tahir
Mamman, Director General of the Nigeria
Law School , declared that the starting
point in the fight against corruption
should be a change of mindset from every
Nigerian. He urged all anti- corruption
agencies to be self -regulating if they
wished the fight to be successful,
stressing that youths should equally
shun successes measured only from the
perspective of money.
Speaking also, Prof. E.A. Afolabi ,
representing the Special Guest of
Honour and
Minister of Education, Ruqayyattu
Rufa’i ,said the occasion has come at an
auspicious time when government was
battling with how to restore the lost
hope in the dwindling fortunes of
education in the country. He identified
the neglect of the education sector by
previous governments as one reason
corruption has taken a front burner,
stating that adequate remuneration and
respect for teachers at all levels would
stem the tide of corrupt practices.
The reviewer of the book ,Prof. E.
Alemika, while giving a critical
analysis of the phenomenon called
corruption and some successive
governments’ efforts at tackling it,
identified the judiciary as the weakest
link in the anti-corruption fight. He
lauded the author’s efforts saying the
book was a bold attempt. The author of
the book, Tabi Hamman Joda, expressed
his gratitude to Waziri and the EFCC in
identifying with what he termed a
landmark in the quest to sustain the
anti- corruption fight. He challenged
the youths to shun corruption and live
up to the billings of
Nigeria
’s founding fathers. Many other speakers
at the occasion included the
Commandant
General of the Nigeria Security and
Civil Defence
Corps, Dr. Ade Abolarin, Minister
of Police Affairs,
Alhaji
Adamu
Waziri, Dr.
Abubakar Tsav and many others,
including representatives of the civil
society, National Association of
Nigerian Students, NANS, etc, all
agreed that corruption was the bane of
development in Nigeria and that EFCC
being an agent of change must be
supported. Highlight of the event was
the unveiling of the book by the
chairman of the occasion supported by
other dignitaries .
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