Corruption has permeated every sector of the nation’s economy, but in this report by OYIBO SALIHU, such would become a thing of the past in Kogi state especially on constituency projects tracking.
Nigeria is blessed with all forms of indices required of a nation to attain unprecedented economic and human capital development.
Despite all of these, the country seems to be breathing through the mouth as a result of corruption that has permeated through all sectors thereby becoming a cancer affecting the nation’s development and ultimately the people.
Regrettably, successive administrations since independence also seem to be playing lip service to the fight against the dreaded disease called corruption.
In 1999, Transparency International Corruption Perception Index rated Nigeria the second most corrupt nation in the world.
Worried by this ugly development, on September 29 2000, then President Olusegun Obasanjo created and inaugurated the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) to fight against all forms of corruption through receiving of complaints, investigation and prosecution of offenders.
In Kogi state since then, the commission has done a lot in fulfilling its statutory obligations. One of such efforts was constituency projects tracking that have yielded result in recovering some projects abandoned by contractors in the three senatorial districts of the state.
Putting heads together
Just recently during the continuation of the fight against corruption, the commission in collaboration with the National Orientation Agency (NOA) organised a one-day sensitisation dialogue with traditional rulers, religious leaders and community based civil society organisations on behavioural change, national ethics and integrity policy and constituency and executive project tracking initiative.
The sensitization programme which was held in Lokoja the state capital was well attended by stakeholders an indication that Nigerians were desirous of fighting against corrupt practices.
In his opening remark at the occasion, the chairman of the commission, Prof Bolaji Owasanoye (SAN) who was represented by a member of ICPC governing board representingth North-central, Hon Yahaya Umar Dauda called on traditional rulers, political leaders and Nigerians to deepen their partnership with the commission in order to diminish corruption through adequate promotion of ethics, values and behavioural change.
According to him, the constituency and executive projects tracking initiative embarked upon by ICPC since 2019 has clearly shown the extent corruption has short-changed Nigerians especially the ordinary citizens at the rural communities.
The chairman however stated that the revelations from the project tracking would underscore why every core value of the ethics and integrity policy should be imbibed, practised and upheld by Nigerians in the fight against corruption.
While charging the participants on the need to join hands in the fight against corruption, Professor Owasanoye said, “You have followership, influence and you command respect, use these traits to bring about enduring positive behavioural change among our people.
“Nigerians are good people, let not the actions and attitude of a few bad eggs give us all a bad name. I am looking forward to seeing state government, traditional rulers and religious leaders organise events at furthering this endeavour on their own in the near future and inviting the ICPC, NOA and other qualified persons to come and serve as resource persons in our collective desire to enthrone a Nigeria glowing with integrity, transparency and accountability in all spheres.”
Also in his welcome address, the resident anti-corruption commissioner ICPC, Kogi state office, Mr Okoro James Ulu said the commission was established to prohibit and prescribe punishment for corrupt practices and other related offences with its three pronged mandate such as Enforcement, Prevention, Public education and mobilisation.
Ulu expressed the determination of the commission in achieving its mandate through the mobilisation of stakeholders, noting that, “We are here today to mobilise and enlighten you as leaders to partner with us and in fact own the fight against corruption and graft.”
According to him, the chairman and board of ICPC in their collective effort aimed at fighting corruption to a stand-still partners with the Office of Secretary to the Government of the Federation and National Orientation Agency (NOA) and came up with the National Ethics and Integrated Policy(NEIP) to tackle corruption from the roots.
He pointed out that the seven core values of NEIP which include human dignity, voice and participation, patriotism, personal responsibility, integrity, national unity and professionalism are values the traditional rulers, religious leaders and civil society organisations were expected to espouse at all time in the fight against corruption.
The chairman of constituency and executive projects tracking initiative Hon Yahaya Umar Dauda in an interview with journalists shortly after the stakeholders dialogue, described the fight against corruption as a herculean task.
He however stated that since the governing council of ICPC came on board and with the support of President Muhammadu Buhari and the commission’s chairman, a lot of programmes have been initiated to rid the country of corrupt practices.
“We are succeeding in the fight against corruption. It is a continuous process and we will not relent on our oars until the mandate of the commission is achieved.
“As our president often says that if Nigerians did not kill corruption, corruption will one day kill us, I want Nigerians to bear in mind that the fight against corruption should not be left for the commission and the president only. It should be a collective responsibility because the negative effects concern all Nigerians irrespective of tribe and religion.
“Therefore, all hands must be on deck to fight corruption so that the future of Nigerian children would not be at stake.”
Further remarks
Also in his remark, the rector Kogi State Polytechnic Lokoja, Dr Salisu Usman Ogbo said for effective fight against corruption, Nigerians should endeavour to live an exemplary life and should live within their means.
Ogbo a doctor of philosophy (PhD) holder in Political Science charged ICPC to be courageous in the fight and urged them to shun primordial sentiment in their investigation and prosecution of offenders.
“If selective effort is being applied in the fight against corruption, obviously it would be difficult to achieve the desired result.
“I commended ICPC for the enlightenment and the sensitisation exercise, but this effort should be scale down to the grassroots where appreciable population resides”.
In his goodwill message, the chairman, Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), Kogi state chapter, Senior Apostle Adebayo Olaniyan Emmanuel appealed to Nigerians to change their attitude in order to sanitise the society for the better.
He urged the anti-corruption agency not to relent in their effort to making the country a corruption-free nation and pledged the support of the association in the fight against corruption, saying the fight must be a collective effort to banish all forms of corruption in Nigeria.
Apparently, corruption is a global malaise that has pervaded private and public institutions in Nigeria, regrettably the effect of corruption has been extremely high to an extent that the economic, political, social and moral bases of the country have been degraded without recourse for the future of Nigeria.
