Nigeria has adequate bureaucratic measures to combat corruption -ICPC

Nigeria’s anti-corruption agency, Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission ICPC, says the country has put bureaucratic measures in place to checkmate corruption.

The Provost of the Anti-Corruption Academy of Nigeria Professor Olatunde Babawale, who stated this at a training for public servants urged them to utilise administrative checks and balances, to prevent corrupt practices in the public sector.

The training which is ongoing at the Anti-Corruption Academy has as its theme “Administrative Measures of Controlling Workplace Corruption”..

Professor Babawale told the participants that Nigeria has multiple laws and agencies aimed at fighting corruption adding that not taking advantage of the instruments in regulations to curb corrupt practices, has made the fight against corruption cumbersome.

“If Nigeria is to solve the issue of corruption, we must understand that it begins with every individual and within the public service, there are administrative measures that can be used to check corrupt practices. Fighting corruption requires a multi-prong approach as a single approach will not be sufficient”, he said.

He said the course over a 3-day period was designed to enrol more anti-corruption crusaders as the anti-corruption agencies alone would not be able to make the required difference.

While delivering a paper on Ethical conduct in the workplace, Mr. Richard Bello the head of training in the academy, said organisations must continue to trouble shoot by conducting integrity tests to strengthen weak links.

Mr. Bello said “Corruption can be minimised to the barest minimum if organisations conduct regular systems studies and reviews , check where there are loopholes . it is better to prevent corruption than to fight it”.

The workshop on Administrative Measures of controlling workplace corruption is the first in 2023 in the series of trainings designed by the Anti-Corruption Academy of Nigeria, the training arm of the Independent and Corruption Practices and other related offences Commission – ICPC.