Human rights lawyer Deji Adeyanju has exposed disturbing allegations of corruption within Nigerian government contracting.
According to Adeyanju’s post on Tuesday night, government officials within the Finance Departments have allegedly extorted contractors who have completed their assigned projects. Moreover, it is claimed that unscrupulous anti-corruption agents have exploited these contractors even further.
“I heard an allegation today that contractors after using their own money to execute government contracts, still have to pay Finance Departments before they are paid the jobs already executed. This is the most painful form of corruption. I also heard some anti corruption agents also go after contractors to blackmail and extort them thereafter.”, he wrote.
He then called upon individuals with knowledge of corrupt officials to come forward with details, pledging to personally report the offenders to their respective agency heads and doggedly pursue their dismissal.
“If you know any official of such agency, just message me with details & I will personally go to report to the head of the agency and won’t rest until the person is sacked.”, he stressed.
In a subsequent post, the Lawyer then underscored the detrimental impact of corruption on Nigeria. He question the unethical practices that have infiltrated the system, “Corruption is what is killing Nigeria. Why will a contractor be made to pay money before he is paid for a job done or a percentage of the money for a contract be demanded in exchange for award of contract? Why will any anti corruption agent extort a contractor after payment?”
Last week, the Executive Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Mr. Ola Olukoyede, has stated that corruption cannot be tackled in Nigeria with kid gloves.
The anti-graft agency boss stated this in Abuja when the Chairman of the Code of Conduct Bureau, Dr. Abdullahi Usman Bello, paid him a courtesy visit at the Commission’s headquarters, Jabi, on Tuesday.
According to a statement issued by Dele Oyewale, EFCC Head of Media and Publicity, Olukoyede expressed the anti-graft commission’s resolve to work with the CCB in the fight against corruption, economic and financial crimes, stressing that every effort must be made by stakeholders to build strength against corruption.
According to the statement, Olukoyede, while stating that both agencies have related mandates, added that there is a need for them to strengthen their existing collaboration.
He said, “I don’t see it as a courtesy visit, I see it more for the need for us to strengthen our existing collaboration. It is important for all of us to note that the two agencies are mandate -aligned, we are set up to fight corruption and financial crimes in the land.
“One of the things that we have been talking about with respect to the functions of CCB is the ability to be able to do investigation and to really ensure that investigations and prosecution are pursued very rigorously.
“You don’t fight corruption with kid gloves in Nigeria, it will never work. You don’t plead with people. You don’t beg people; everybody knows that corruption is bad.
“Fighting corruption is what nobody wants to do but somebody has to do it. All of us desire to see a better Nigeria, but a better Nigeria will not just drop from the sky, we have to work for it.”
“Foreigners will not come and do it for us, we have to deal with it by ourselves and we have what it takes to deal with it,” he added.
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