Corruption: ICPC Seeks Support Of Traditional/Religious Rulers

As incidents of corrupt practices in public offices continue to rise, the Independent Corrupt Practices Commission, ICPC has reached out to traditional rulers and religious leaders to join the campaign to stop the practice.
Giving a keynote address at the one-day sensitization which held at Landmark Hotels, Port Harcourt, Rivers State commissioner for Chieftaincy Affairs, Hon Borabe Bari said corruption is causing the country to bleed and be poor.
He lamented though anti-corruption agencies have been tracking corruption in the country, failure to bring those found culpable has undermined the system.
Said he: “Corruption has been a major challenge in Nigeria today. Though there are agencies fighting against corruption, it has been more talk than tracking. Even when trials are done for those who have corruptly enriched themselves, we hear of pardon. Which legacy are you leaving for others? For the youth and children?
“The country is being mismanaged without recourse to the rule of law”.
The commissioner said it is time for attitudinal change to bring Nigeria out of the doldrums.
“There is need for change in behavior, a change from wrong ways of doing service to good service delivery”, he stressed listing the traits to imbibe as, “discipline, integrity, dignity of labour, tolerance, self-reliance, obedience, payment of taxes, reporting criminals and assisting the poor”.
He called on Nigerians to embrace the spirit of patriotism. “If we are patriotic to the country, the country will not be bleeding or poor,” he added reiterating that, “we have good laws and policies but lack institutions”.
Hon Bira charged citizens to choose their leaders wisely. “Let us all be agents in educating our people to elect leaders who will address citizens’ needs”.
Addressing the very well selected gathering of leaders, ICPC board member Dr (Mrs) Grace Chinda who represented the ICPC director general Prof Bolaji Awasoye said the event was to call for collaboration and deliberation on national issues and to encourage the leaders to become more involved in governance issues by monitoring federal and constituency projects in their domain.
“ICPC is here to show what has been done on tracking constituency projects and seek your collaboration.
“Partner to ensure projects in your places are being executed. As soon as money is released, it is your duty to ensure that the jobs are done”.
She said the sensitization was a follow-up to programmes at the Federal Executive Council and consultative forums which raised the need for collaboration with a wider segment of the society including the traditional and religious leaders as well as civil society and the media on ethics and values.
The programme was a collaboration between the Rivers State National Orientation Agency and the ICPC under the Roller programme of the DFID, MacArthur Foundation and government.