GOVERNOR Abdulfatah Ahmed, of Kwara state has warned civil servants in the state against corruption, saying anyone caught in the act would be spared.
Speaking during the launching of the crusade of ‘War Against Corruption Among Civil Servants in Kwara State,’ he said corruption was not only antithetical to growth but also endangered democratic institutions.
The event, organised by Peace Corps Group, a Non Governmental Organisation (NGO) for all the civil servants in the state from levels 08 and above, was aimed at sensitising the workers against corruption.
According to the governor, represented by the state Head of Service, Mrs Zainab Omar, “corruption poses a great danger to growth; undermines the Rule of Law, and will ultimately lead to political instability. That is the main reason we will not spare anyone caught in the act.
“Nepotism is one of the major causes of corruption. Though prevalent in public service, it is also common in private sector. The newly established Kwara State Internal Revenue Services (KWIRS) has been able to block all the financial loopholes in the state’s Internal Generated Revenue (IGR) system,” he said.
He disclosed that the government had since established a MeritBased Promotion System (MBPS), which had since expunged quota or any form of discrimination from the state’s civil service.
Besides, he said the distributions of projects across the state were based on merits and needs, adding that “all these steps, and many others are aimed at ensuring that corruption has no value in the state.”
He thanked the organisers of the programme for their robust ideas, just as he urged all other NGOs to suggest how to foster peace and eliminate corruption.
Earlier, the HOS said that there was a dire need to uproot the seed of corruption from its root in the state’s public service, especially during the ongoing economic meltdown.
Omar, the first female HOS in the state said: “I want to remind all civil servants to note that the Act of Corruption features an all Civil service in form of truancy, lateness, abscondment from duty, sleeping on duty, delay in processing of work, cheating and all forms of fake credentials, impersonation, and a host of other forms of misconduct in the civil service rules.
“Consequently, going by today’s crusade of the War against Corruption, now is the time for every civil servants to stop perpetrating any act or practice that can lead to corruption. We should all join hands to kill corruption before it kills us,” she urged.
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