EFCC Pledges Support for CISLAC to Stem Graft

The Acting Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commisson, EFCC, Ibrahim Magu, has pledged support for any Civil Society Organisation, CSO, willing to partner with the Commission in the fight against corruption in Nigeria.

He gave this assurance on Tuesday, November 8, 2016 while receiving members of the Civil Society Legislative Advocacy Centre, CISLAC, who were at the Commission’s Head Office, Abuja to seek the agency’s support in advancing the campaign against graft.  

 “We are ready to support and work with you. We are in favour of the protection and safety of whistle blowers. You are welcome here anytime . We all need to join hands to rid Nigeria of corruption.  We have a common consensus, which is fighting corruption. As we all know, corruption is a crime against humanity and it affects all of us”, Magu assured.

Earlier, the leader of the delegation, Kolawole Banwo, who is also the deputy director, CISLAC, said that the organisation was on a visit to the Commission to solicit support for its course saying, “we advocate for good governance, anti-corruption, transparency, accountability and whistle blowers protection in our country”.

According to him, CISLAC which is also the national contact for Transparency International, TI, in Nigeria, is “currently implementing a project supported through the Transparency International  in Berlin, to empower citizens to become part of the anti-corruption efforts of the present administration, called the IMPACT project”.

“We propose to establish Advocacy and Legal Advisory Centers, ALACs. These centers are designed to take reports for witnesses and victims of corrupt practices on a case –by-case basis and then working with the relevant MDA’s to explore their internal processes to address the complaints in order to shore confidence in citizens and to deter their staff from perpetrating similar acts.

“We also intend to sensitize youths in tertiary institutions to both commit to shunning corruption and becoming advocates of promoting attitudinal changes against corruption as future leaders”, Banwo stated

The CISLAC director enjoined the EFCC to buy into the project and to provide support for its implementation.

He also encouraged the EFCC to support its youth sensitization campaign  with materials and personnel while calling for support on cases from the ALAC that border on economic crimes in line with the EFCC mandate.