‘Don’t turn corruption war into tribal battle’
December 11, 2013 by Sodiq Oyeleke
Chairman, Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Offences Commission, Mr. Ekpo Nta
The
Chairman, Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences
Commission, Mr. Ekpo Nta, has said that fight against corrupt persons in
the country must be neutral and not be turned into a tribal battle.
He said this during the 2013
international anti-corruption day lecture organised by the ICPC for
non-governmental organisations, government officials, youth-based and
anti-graft groups on Monday in Lagos.
The ICPC boss, who was represented by
the commission’s head of operations in Lagos, Mr. Shitema Binga, said
despite repeated avowals of self-righteousness in public lives, there
were still proven incidences and allegations of brazen fraud and
stealing in different quarters.
He said, “Corruption should not be
trivialised, even where the offender shamelessly boasts and launders his
loot on supposedly legal ventures or charities. Its arrest and trial
also must not be labeled selective prosecution or tribal cleansing when
one’s relative or friend or colleague is indicted as is touted by some
quarters.
“We cannot claim to be wise or satisfied
as spectators while certain unscrupulous persons pillage and loot our
resources in every guise. I always consider it most grievous for any
person to withdraw to silence, indifference or outright resignation to
incidences of corruption and related offences.
“Imperfection, indiscretion and
pilfering are no excuse even if served in intangible doses in our public
lives. A truly honest Nigerian cannot be neutral in such an endeavour.
It is therefore necessary to check and scrutinise ourselves to determine
our incorruptible, and our commitment to remain so.”
President of Association for Eradication
of Corruption in Nigerians, Mrs. Simbiat Agbalajobi, while speaking on
‘Role of the individual in the fight against corruption’, faulted
Nigerians, including religious leaders, for the spread of corruption.
http://www.punchng.com/news/dont-turn-corruption-war-into-tribal-battle/
Written by NEWSTRAWL ONLINE UPDATE
Sodiq Oyeleke is a Media, Human Resources, Project Management and Public Relations Practitioner
0 comments:
Post a Comment