How Nigerians Can Fight Corruption – ICPC

By  Lukman Amusa

The Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC), has urged Nigerian citizens to take active part in budget tracking to curb corruption in the country.

The State Commissioner, ICPC, Akwa Ibom State, Mr Shola Shodipo, said this in Uyo, on Tuesday during a 2-Day training workshop on using Budget Data and Freedom of Information Act to fight corruption for civil society organisations and community representatives.

According to him, grand corruption has been major hindrance to the legislature in performing the onerous task of budget tracking through their oversight function.

“The people must accept the challenge of putting their eyes in budgetary matters. They stand to gain or lose depending on the steps they take.

“They may be lackadaisical, in which case, billions would be budgeted yearly and there won’t be value for the money which would amount to losses for them.

“They can show enough concern with a view to ensuring that budgets produce value for money which is gain to society,” Shodipo said.

Shodipo added that citizens participation in budget tracking would help translate budget intentions to reality.

The ICPC commissioner in the state said that grand corruption had impacted negatively on the social welfare projects which have direct bearing to the lives of ordinary people.

Earlier in his remarks, the Akwa Ibom Director, National Orientation Agency, Mr Enoh Uyoh, said that the sensitisation workshop was to inform community representatives to be firm, without compromise when projects were brought to their communities..

Uyoh said that institutional corruption has been the reason for decayed infrastructure in the country because money budgeted for projects were diverted to private pockets.

He said that citizens must be willing to take active part in governance and expose corrupt public officials known to them.

“Governance is about everybody, do not say I am not in government, because you need good roads, functional health centres and good schools for our children,” he said.

In his opening remarks, Mr Tijah Bolton-Akpan, Head of Programme of Policy Alert said that community representatives must be aware of the Freedom of Information Act so that they could ask questions about projects sited in their communities.

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