Acting Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Mr Ibrahim Magu has disclosed that most crimes militating against humanity are perpetrated using proceeds of corruption.
Speaking in Abuja on Tuesday during a public lecture to mark 20th anniversary of Finance Correspondents Association of Nigeria (FICAN), Abuja, Magu also narrated how his commission recovered N409.2 billion, $69.5 million, 231,118.69 British pound sterling, 610,816.20 Euros, 443,400.00 United Arab Emirates Dirham and 70,500.00 Saudi Riyal in the first eight months of 2017.
While explaining that recovered monies are kept in the Recovery Fund account domiciled with the Central Bank of Nigeria, EFCC chairman said “they were monies illegally siphoned, and which, unfortunately would have gone a long way to improve the living conditions of Nigerians.”
He observed that wherever strict adherence to ethics and values by the citizenry is lacking, there will always be obvious deficit in morals, which is the precursor of corruption.
Quoting York Willbern, Magu said “if ethics and morality are important for individuals and organisations, they should also be for public officials, as it is the basis for public trust.”
He identified six types and levels of morality to include “basic honesty and conformity to law; conflict of interest; service orientation and procedural fairness; ethic of democratic responsibility; ethics of public policy and determinations and the ethic of compromise and social integration.”
The acting EFCC boss noted that if indeed Nigeria is bleeding from or groaning under the heavyweight of corruption as widely acclaimed, it is also because the average public office holder is more interested in advancing personal interest rather than the public interest, which he is charged to do.
“Perhaps, in the thinking of the morally bankrupt person, the public office confers on him or her a rare opportunity of a lifetime. So, his or her action is informed by pecuniary motives.
“As much as we are striving to fight corruption to a standstill in Nigeria, sadly, it is fighting really hard. In the history of EFCC’s 14 years of spearheading the fight against corruption, the fight back has never been this savage”, he lamented.
He then urged journalists to use their pen to push for reforms in the judiciary, and society at large, by exposing corrupt elements. “They do not deserve to be praised on the pages of newspapers. It is one of the ways that we can re-orientate our value system.”
Also speaking in a goodwill message, Chairman of Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS), Mr Tunde Fowler revealed that efforts to close gaps in low oil revenue caused by fall in oil price, incessant destruction of oil and gas in the Niger Delta led to the introduction of innovative strategies to raise the revenue from non-oil sources.
“This has resulted in the collection of total tax revenue of N2.5 trillion between January and August, 2017. Non-oil revenue contributed about 65% while oil revenue contributed 35% which shows a positive result in our stride to increase non-oil revenue.”
Fowler stated that collaboration with state boards of Inland Revenue generated N803.95 billion in 2016.
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