By Raphael Onyekachukwu
The National Taskforce to combat illegal importation/smuggling of arms, ammunition, light weapons and pipeline vandalism (NATFORCE), says that the engine house of corruption in Nigeria is the civil service, and must be sanitized if the war on corruption would succeed.
This contained in a statement it issued yesterday and signed by its Director General, Dr. Osita E. Okereke.
It called on President Muhammadu Buhari to probe all the Directors, Permanent Secretaries, both serving and retired, former heads of MDAs, stressing that this is the key if we must move forward.
According to statement, “these men and women own briefcase companies as contractors, awarding contract to themselves and signs monies to themselves under different covers which does not reflect on the common Nigerians. They inflate government contracts, duplicate jobs, multiply numbers of ghost workers and eat pensioners’ money with impunity”.
National Taskforce noted that the present challenges facing us as a country and the shocking revelations on the war against corruption, said this monster should be dealt with and all the culprits brought to book.
Even as they expressed confidence on the experience and sincerity of President Muhammadu Buhari in fishing out these evil men and women that have stalled the growth of this nation and pretended to be saints, it warned APC government to be firm and show good example as most of Nigerians are anxious to see tangible results.
“This fight against corruption must be fought headlong. No sacred cow, every stone must not be unturned for this nation to move forward. We must assist the President in fighting and blocking every loophole our economy is drained and the common Nigerians impoverished”.
“The national assembly members should see themselves as partners in progress in ensuring that things are done to assist the security agencies and other related bodies to carry out their investigations and prosecution accordingly. Like the late Sunny Okosun “Nigerians is now or never”.
National Taskforce; however advise the former President Olusegun Obasanjo to guide his utterances not to deceive the public into believing that he is a saint and master-know-all.
It said he introduced high level of corruption and impunity in Nigeria and in our polity.
“Obasanjo awarded many un-executed and unfinished contracts across the nation. He polarized the God-Fatherism in Nigeria Civil Service and government with impunity”.
It noted that under his watch, “Ghana Must-Go crippled into the national Assembly openly and till today brought a major decay in our polity.
“It was in his time that appointments were made based on your ability to make returns and not on merit. So many civil servants took the advantage to siphon the economy and nothing has happened to them”, the statement reads.
