Nigeria’s Minister of Justice and Attorney General of the Federation (AGF), Lateef Fagbemi, has reiterated the determination of President Bola Tinubu to free Nigeria from the grip of corruption.
Fagbemi, who stated this on Thursday while speaking at the inauguration of an ultra-modern office complex at the Ilorin Zonal Command of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) in Kwara State, southwest Nigeria, said the commitment of the Tinubu-led administration to see a corrupt-free country would not be compromised.
“The EFCC is pivotal in the Tinubu administration’s plan to remove impediments to accountability in governance institutions and strengthen mechanisms and platforms by which Nigerians can hold public officers to account,” Fagbemi said.
The AGF described corruption as a malaise that had undermined past governments’ efforts at reforming the EFCC and other agencies set up to fight corruption at all levels, noting that it was increasingly disruptive to the family, economic and social life of citizens, and ultimately fuelled insecurity.
“Economic and financial crimes have negative impact on developmental programs and policy of government at all levels and ultimately fuel insecurity and erode gains arising from reforms in the core sectors of our economy”, he noted.
The justice minister further called on the states of the federation, as well as the legislative and judicial arms of government, to key into the fight against corruption, and economic and financial crimes in Nigeria, adding that one of the lessons learnt from the implementation of the National Anti-Corruption Strategy, 2017-2022, was the need to ensure that the strategy was also adopted and driven at the subnational level.
“It is for this reason that His Excellency, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, has accorded high priority to the fight against corruption, economic and other financial crimes through his key policy document of ‘Renewed Hope 2023 – Action Plan for a Better Nigeria’”.
He further stated that the recovery and repatriation of Nigeria’s stolen wealth stashed in foreign banks was an issue of great concern to the administration.
“The EFCC is expected to continue to lead the charge to trace, recover and facilitate the return of our stolen wealth,” Fagbemi charged.