No amount of blackmail will stop us from ridding Nigeria of forensic fraud ― CIFIPN

The Chartered Institute of Forensic and Investigative Professionals of Nigeria (CIFIPN) has said no amount of blackmail would stop the institute from ridding the country of from forensic fraud and other related crimes.

It, therefore, appealed to President Muhammadu Buhari to sign CIFIPN bill into law, following its passage at the National Assembly.

CIFIPN Protem President, Dr (Mrs.) Victoria Enape, who stated this in Abuja at a dinner and award night organised for members and stakeholders of the institute, said forensic was an emerging trend which was not in place in the 60s when some of the Acts were established.

She said part of the arrangement was to construct an academy to serve as the institute’s training ground for prospective members and other forensic investigators.

According to her, the prospective members would be expected to undergo one-year training and pass exams in three stages to qualify for professional membership, and they must be graduates in the relevant fields to qualify for admission into the academy.

“We are waiting for President Muhammadu Buhari to sign the CIFIPN bill into law, following its passage at the National Assembly. Forensic is an emerging trend; it was not there in the 60s when some of the Acts were established.

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“Considering our projection of a pacesetter status of CIFIPN, we are hoping to acquire land that will house a state of the art forensic training centre. The purpose of CIFIPN has been called into question while the blackmailers have continued to blackmail and even procure the services of other professionals to discourage the government from doing the needful.

“We are more like never before persuaded that Mr President will assent to the bill in no distant time; it is on this note that we plead with the president to see the urgency that is required in ensuring that the bill is assented to.

“Without any iota of doubt, our most ranked priority at the moment is to see that the CIFIPN bill is assent to by Mr President,” she pleaded.

The CIFIPN boss also disclosed that the institute was working on establishing a well-equipped forensic laboratory for fraud investigation and analysis, appealing to stakeholders to, as a matter of priority help the institute in that regard.

Also speaking, the Vice-Chancellor, Niger Delta University in Bayelsa State, Professor Samuel Edoumiekumo urged Mrs Enape to allow the institute begin its operation in the institution, promising to facilitate a block of building to CIFIPN for its forensic training pending when the academy would be ready.

“I will want this institute to have their training at my university just as we have ANAN in Jos. Some of us are at the forefront of fighting corruption and detecting fraud. We need to incorporate forensic investigation into our university system and we can discuss with the National Universities Commission (NUC) to see how it can work,” Edoumiekumo stated.