Corrupt Persons Have Taken Crime Across Borders - EFCC

By Iyobosa Uwugiaren

The Executive Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Ibrahim Lamorde, monday said corrupt people had now taken their crimes beyond borders, and therefore canvassed for collaboration among all anti-graft agencies across West African region to rid the region of economic and financial crimes.

EFCC Chairman, Ibrahim Lamorde

He stated this at the opening ceremony of the maiden training programme of the Network of National Anti-Corruption Institutions in West Africa, NACIWA, which was held at the EFCC Academy, Karu, Abuja.

In his paper entitled: ‘West African Law Enforcement Agencies Must Cooperate to Win War on Corruption,’ Lamorde noted that such professional relationships come in very handy when bureaucratic bottlenecks threaten to derail law enforcement activities across jurisdictions.

“We must bear in mind that the criminals who we are after, have no problems whatsoever forging such cross-jurisdictional operational alliances in order to perpetrate crimes.

“Crimes in each of our nations today have not only grown in proportion, but in sophistication, and criminals now have reaches across national institutions and borders, and can even threaten the very existence of some states,” he said.

The anti-graft czar, while commending the creation of NACIWA – a coalition of anti-corruption agencies across the West African sub-region, noted that such a body could not have come at a most auspicious time, and that the training will provide participants a veritable platform of networking and sharing of ideas.

On his part, President Muhammadu Buhari has again stressed his determination and resolve to strengthen anti-graft agencies in Nigeria, with the view of ensuring that the war on corruption is fought to a conclusion.

The president, who was represented by the Secretary to the Federal Government (SFG), Babachir David Lawal, noted that corruption would always fight back, thus necessitating the need to strengthen various anti-graft agencies in the country.

“We shall strengthen agencies in the country involved in the corruption war,” he said, noting that the EFCC and other anti-graft agencies in the country had been charged to ramp up the corruption war and “save us from the scourge of corruption.”

Expressing the resolve of the current administration to ensure that the war against corruption is prosecuted to the letter, he said: “The time to act against corruption is now, and we do not have to wait till all the resources are in place. It is now.”

The president added: “They’ll fight back, indeed, they are already fighting back, but what they don’t know is that there is the will to ensure victory is achieved, because we have to reclaim our stolen wealth.”

President of NACIWA, Issoufou Boureima, while expressing gratitude to the EFCC for playing a pivotal role in the establishment of NACIWA, and for hosting the training which had participants from Republic of Benin, Burkina Faso, Cote d’Ivoire, Guinea, Mali, Republic of Niger, Senegal, Togo, Ghana, Liberia, Sierra Leone and Nigeria, stressed the need for anti-graft agencies in the sub region to unite in fighting corruption.

While commending the commitment of the EFCC chairman in the fight against corruption and the support of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, UNODC for its unalloyed support: in the creation of NACIWA, he said, “There is need for us to eradicate corruption and deploy every effort in a very sincere manner to check corruption in our society.”

In his remarks, the regional representative of the UNODC, Samuel De-Jaegere, re-echoed the views of Lamorde, noting that it was very important for anti-graft in the region to share knowledge, skills and information in the war against corruption.

“Now that we have NACIWA, which is essential for collaboration among anti-corruption agencies in the sub region, all of us have to work closely to make sure we win the war against corruption,” he said.

De-Jaegere said the establishment of NACIWA could not have come at a better time because, “we need to collaborate to bring those who steal our wealth, flee neighbouring countries with the aim of keeping the ill-gotten wealth abroad.”

Joseph Kamara, chairman, anti-corruption commission in Sierra Leone, reinforced the need for a reinvigorated commitment in fighting corruption.

“It’s a heavy burden on us to discharge, and collaborate, because it is not only a necessity, we definitely need to build a stronger network,” he said.

On his part, Brown Odigie, representative of the Head, Democracy and Good Governance at the ECOWAS, Eyesan Okorodudu, further stressed the need to achieve the goals of NACIWA.

“We need to ensure that the goal is achieved, and the key objective, is for NACIWA to increase capacity among member states to fight corruption,” he said.

Other dignitaries at the opening ceremony included Ekpo Nta, chairman of the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC); Sam Saba, Chairman of the Code of Conduct Bureau (CCB); Salawu O. Bello, Director, Operations, Nigeria Intelligence Agency (NIA), who represented the DG of NIA, A. G. Wobin; a Corps Commander representing the Corps Marshall of the Federal Road Safety Commission (FRSC), and Hycinth Dagala, who represented the Inspector General of Police (IG), Solomon Arase.

Corrupt Persons Have Taken Crime Across Borders - EFCC