In light of the enormous theft committed by corrupt persons, Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) Chairman Ola Olukoyede has expressed serious worries regarding the level of corruption in Nigeria. Meeting with the Revenue Mobilization Allocation and Fiscal Commission, chaired by Chairman Mohammed Shehu, he reportedly made these remarks, as reported by PUNCH.
Olukoyede regrets that he begins to doubt the country's continued stability due to the magnitude of financial misbehavior he finds in case files. The criminal redirection of monies to private accounts right before budget deadlines would severely concern the public, he said, if they knew what was in these papers.
I do not know how we are still here when I see the massive sums of money stolen in some of the case files. You will cry if you see the case files. If you see how they transfer the remaining funds from a budget cycle to individual accounts at commercial banks before the clock strikes midnight, you will have to ask yourself what motivates Nigerians, according to Olukoyede.
One of the main causes of Nigeria's fiscal mismanagement, he said, was corruption in the public sector. Olukoyede contended that Nigeria's performance relative to other nations would vastly improve if the issue of public corruption were adequately handled. It is intolerable, he said, for public leaders to avoid responsibility for their conduct.
Olukoyede voiced hope for the EFCC's preventative measures and emphasized the importance of openness and responsibility in the public and commercial sectors. The newly formed Department of Fraud Risk and Assessment and Control was one of the anti-corruption measures he emphasized.
To avoid money going missing, Olukoyede said that Nigeria's tax generation system needs a complete overhaul. To improve the country's governance and decrease corruption, he suggested concentrating on policy reforms and enhancing the execution of capital projects.