The head of the Inter-Agency Task Team saddled with anti-corruption and accountability mandate, Lilian Ekeanyanwu said that the anti-corruption strategies embarked upon by agencies in Nigeria were recording progress but still in their elementary stages.
Ekeanyanwu, who heads the Technical Unit on Governance and Anti-Corruption Reforms, (TUGAR) disclosed this at the commemoration of the 2019 International Anti-Corruption Day, in Abuja.
“We are just trying to implement reform and also track the progress. So far, I think we are doing well. I will rate us above average in the anti-corruption fight in Nigeria.
“This is because, if you look at the number of high-profile people who have been sanctioned for corruption in Nigeria, there are very few countries that have achieved this.”
“It is only one country that has death penalty for corruption, but many others are still struggling to sanction the calibre of people we have successfully sanctioned in Nigeria.
“I know that law enforcement and the judicial process is slow, but we are consistently doing a lot in that effect. And when it comes to prevention, it is amazing how much we have achieved,” she said
On whether there was any positive impact of the anti-corruption fight on the masses, the TUGAR boss said a lot of monies had been saved through the Treasury Single Account and other similar policies and that these funds had been used to support the poor.
She added, “In as much as the savings are being applied towards social benefits, I will say it is impacting positively on the masses.
“The recovered assets both internationally and locally, for instance, are used for the social initiatives and cash transfer to vulnerable people in our society.”
Also, the Country Director, ActionAid Nigeria, Ene Obi, said the president should strive to fight corruption from his internal processes.
“We know President Muhammadu Buhari has made a pronouncement to fight corruption but we are saying that he should fight corruption from his own internal processes,” she said.
She added that it was unfortunate that many looters of the country’s funds were still moving freely without any being tried.
She further urged the government to increase its fight against such persons.
