Lamorde Charges LG Officials to Shun Corruption

EFCC PRESS RELEASE

The chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, Ibrahim Lamorde today, April 28, declared that Local government in Nigeria cannot achieve its aim of bringing development to the grassroots if the problem of systemic corruption was not curbed.

Lamorde who was represented by Bolaji Salami, director, Organisational Support, stated this at the opening ceremony of the EFCC/ALGON Training on Anti-Corruption, Fiscal Responsibility and Effective Leadership for principal officers of Local Government Councils in Nigeria.

“The problem of corruption and lack of fiscal transparency perhaps remain one of the hydra-headed factors that accounts for the inefficiency and retarded growth that local governments continue to experience in Nigeria today.  The system has virtually become superfluous and redundant,” he said.

Lamorde said “Corrupt practices in the local governments have over the years rendered the local governments inactive and devoid of concrete developmental activities”. According to the EFCC chair, corruption thrives in the local councils through inflation of prices; over-estimation of cost of project(s); the ghost workers syndrome; award of contracts and subsequent abandonment; and outright payment of huge sums of money to political godfathers.

However, the EFCC chairman said the Commission was happy to collaborate with ALGON to enlighten and train its officials. “I am by this medium assuring ALGON that the EFCC shall give ALGON all the support it requires to educate its officials all over the country on anti-corruption. Fiscal responsibility and effective leadership at the grassroots level,” he said.

In his opening remark, the President of ALGON, Ozor Nwabueze Okafor expressed appreciation to EFCC and Discovery Circle Inc for the training which he said was critical for the realization of the mandates of the councils.

"The most critical challenge is not the autonomy issues or the financial allocation but the capacity of those entrusted with these things to deliver on their expected mandate.”

In their respective goodwill messages, the Acting Chairman of the Fiscal Responsibility Commission, Victor Murako and the representative of the Director General of Bureau of Public Procurement, James Akamu said it is imperative that participants carry out their duties with fiscal prudence and due process.

They opined that domestication of both the Fiscal Responsibility and Public Procurement Acts in the states will go a long way in bringing sanity to the third tier of government.