President Muhammadu Buhari has advised the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, to avoid being used for partisan politics.
He also warned the Commission to avoid being dragged into personal disputes, urging it to focus on serving the nation to entrench good governance.
The President, who spoke at the unveiling of the EFCC Standard Operating Procedures, Policies and Manuals, at the State House, emphasised the need for leaders and operatives of the commission to resist the temptation of being influenced by political actors for personal gains or to score political points.
The President noted the excellent performance of the leadership of the EFCC in securing 2,220 convictions within one year and recovering over 152 billion Naira and 385 million dollars.
He noted that the war against corruption, which is one of the cardinal objectives of his administration, is being strengthened through the institutionalisation of operational procedures, particularly as they form the building blocks of transparency and accountability in administration and public expenditure.
President Buhari also commended the EFCC Chairman, Abdulrasheed Bawa, for efforts to further institutionalise the commission by developing 26 Standard Operating Procedures and 25 Policies and Manuals for the Departments, Units and Staff of the Commission, while appreciating the support of the Board, Management and Staff.
The President said the administration would continue to accord the necessary support to ministries, departments, and agencies to ensure the sustainability of the initiatives already commenced in actualising its vision of a corrupt-free society.
President Buhari said the fight against economic and financial crimes in Nigeria was a collective responsibility of all Nigerians if a meaningful progress was to be achieved as a nation.
President Buhari said the development of the Standards had demonstrated the commitment of his administration to the fight against corruption and the acceptance of transparency and willingness to be subjected to scrutiny against set standards by services.
The President assured of a rules-based-system in government business while providing the necessary enabling environment for effective implementation.
Chairman of the EFCC, Abdulrasheed Bawa, had noted that the institution was undergoing various phases of reforms to reposition it for the task of fighting financial crimes in the country, with production of policies and manuals.
He said departments had been re-organised and upgraded, including intelligence gathering, training and the academic institutions, to meet the demands of the job, adding that a software had been developed for operations, and a mobile app, “The Evil Eye’’, deployed for ease of reporting economic and financial crimes from the comfort of homes.
BELLO WAKILI
