Senate forecloses EFCC, ICPC merger Featured
The Senate has foreclosed the possibility of merging the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission with the Independent Corrupt Practices and other related Offences Commission.
Spokesperson of the ICPC, Folu Olamiti, said the Chairman of Senate Committee on Drugs, Narcotics, Financial Crimes and Anti-Corruption, Mr. Victor Lar, made the clarification during a visit to the commission as part of the committee’s oversight function.
The committee, he said, did not believe that the fight against corruption should be domiciled in a single agency.
Lar said rather than merge the two anti-graft agencies, the committee was working towards ensuring that the agencies, especially the ICPC “is strengthened and made to be more proactive in executing its mandate.”
He said, “Let me use this opportunity to say that in public view, ICPC has not lived up to its expectations and that is why in various sectors, there have been arguments that ICPC should be merged. We do not support that. We believe that the ICPC should be strengthened to ensure that they deliver on their mandate.
Although Lar admitted that the processes of the ICPC might be painfully slow, he said, “even if you volunteer to give ICPC information, say from my village in Plateau State, you will have to travel to Abuja. There is the need to spread the offices of the commission to ensure that it covers the whole federation.
He added, “Somebody willing to help you with information must not incur avoidable expenses and avoidable risk. We will be of assistance to ensure that your activities are spread across the36 states of the federation and the FCT.”
He assured the management of the commission that the committee would look into the challenges of the amendments of the ICPC enabling Act.
The Senate has foreclosed the possibility of merging the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission with the Independent Corrupt Practices and other related Offences Commission.
Spokesperson of the ICPC, Folu Olamiti, said the Chairman of Senate Committee on Drugs, Narcotics, Financial Crimes and Anti-Corruption, Mr. Victor Lar, made the clarification during a visit to the commission as part of the committee’s oversight function.
The committee, he said, did not believe that the fight against corruption should be domiciled in a single agency.
Lar said rather than merge the two anti-graft agencies, the committee was working towards ensuring that the agencies, especially the ICPC “is strengthened and made to be more proactive in executing its mandate.”
He said, “Let me use this opportunity to say that in public view, ICPC has not lived up to its expectations and that is why in various sectors, there have been arguments that ICPC should be merged. We do not support that. We believe that the ICPC should be strengthened to ensure that they deliver on their mandate.
Although Lar admitted that the processes of the ICPC might be painfully slow, he said, “even if you volunteer to give ICPC information, say from my village in Plateau State, you will have to travel to Abuja. There is the need to spread the offices of the commission to ensure that it covers the whole federation.
He added, “Somebody willing to help you with information must not incur avoidable expenses and avoidable risk. We will be of assistance to ensure that your activities are spread across the36 states of the federation and the FCT.”
He assured the management of the commission that the committee would look into the challenges of the amendments of the ICPC enabling Act.
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