Governor Mohammed Abubakar says the future of Nigeria as a successful nation depends on how it executes its anticorruption drive, lamenting that the “massive corruption and the looting of public funds which became the order of the day during the last administration have indeed almost brought the country to a standstill.”
The governor stated this at the launch of Bauchi State Anticorruption Summit with the slogan “I support the fight against corruption in Bauchi State” organized by the State government in conjunction with the Anticorruption Academy of Nigeria and the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission.
He assured that the future of this country depends on the success it records against corruption and looting public treasury, stressing that all developed nations attained their development after successfully fighting corruption to a halt.
The governor said positive attitude among Nigerians is pertinent to the success of anticorruption campaign pointing out that first stage of the fight against corruption starts with organizing the summit with the theme transparency and accountability: a panacea to good governance and sustainable development.
He lamented that the fight against corruption over the years has only been restricted to the governments, but assured that his administration is working assiduously to extend the campaign to all strata of life by promoting value change.
Governor Mohammed Abubakar maintained that his administration was quick in recognizing the importance of transparency and accountability are the basic requirements for nurturing good governance, especially in emerging democracies like Nigeria’s.
He said in the last nineteen months, the administration has ensured that due process was followed in the award of contracts, saying the anticorruption efforts are succeeding because the media traditional, and community leaders have been drafted into the programme.
The attorney general and commissioner for Justice in the State, Barrister Ibrahim Yakubu Umar who expressed the commitment of Bauchi state government to the anticorruption war, revealed that arrangements are being concluded to establish the Bauchi State Anticorruption Agency which will further take the fight against graft to all nooks and crannies of the State.
The attorney general who said only Kano State out of the entire federation has such an agency, urged the ICPC to treat the issue of budget padding in every legislative arm of government as corruption contrary to what some politicians want Nigerians to see it as.
Provost of the Anticorruption Academy, Professor Shola Akinrinade, state that the Academy collaborated with the State government and the ICPC to assure Nigerians that corruption can be managed through training and retraining of Nigerians, noting that the summit creates the enabling environment for transparency and accountability in governance while enforcement can be attained through enlightenment and training.
The Chairman of the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Matters, ICPC, Barrister Ekpo Nta said the summit seeks to make Bauchi state service and other revenue generating institutions corruption-free so as to save enough resources to execute projects the people need.
According to him most states can pay their workers’ salaries if only the workers were verified. He assured the State of his Commission’s readiness to provide support in establishing the Bauchi State Anticorruption Agency.
