The Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, Abdulrasheed Bawa has called on members of the National Youth Service Corps, NYSC, to be change agents and take ownership of the war against economic and financial crimes, in order to save the nation of its damaging effects.
He gave the charge on Thursday in a lecture entitled “EFCC And The Role of Youth in Curbing Corruption” for members of the National Youth Service Corps, NYSC, 2022 Batch ‘C’ Stream II, at the NYSC Orientation Camp, Yikpata, Edu Local Government Area of Kwara State.
Bawa, whose sensitisation lecture was delivered by an Assistant Commander of the EFCC, Ayodele Babatunde, Head, Public Affairs Department of the Ilorin Zonal Office of the Commission admonished the youth to resist the temptation of being lured into cybercrimes, warning that the end could be “perilous and shameful”.
He also called on youths across the country to put the internet to more productive uses rather than employing it to commit crimes.
“There is no shortcut to wealth and fame. The fact that the rate of unemployment is high should not be an excuse to resort to crime. Acts of criminality might deliver wealth in the short term but ultimately, they lead to misery,” he warned.
At the Orientation Camp, Ise/Empire/Orun, in Ekiti State, the EFCC boss who spoke through a Deputy Superintendent of the EFCC, Gbenga Adewoye, urged corps members to take advantage of their service year to contribute their quota to the anti-corruption fight by helping to mentor kids in schools through the establishment of Integrity clubs.
“Youth Corps members are dynamic young men and women whose energy can be harnessed for greater public good by being role models and whistle blowers in their area of primary assignment,” he said.
The EFCC Chair expressed gratitude to the leadership of the NYSC for the support the Commission had enjoyed from the corps members over the years and hoped that the collaboration would be sustained in order to check the involvement of youths in internet related crimes.
Confidence Okwuchi
