Corruption: Perpetrators No Longer Fear God, Laws -CCB

– Political Officer Holders, Others To Declare Assets Online By 2021

The Code of Conduct Bureau (CCB) has said that corrupt practices are carried out with impunity in the country because perpetrators no longer have both the fear of God and the laws of the land.

According to the Chairman of the CCB, Mohammed Isah, perpetrators must have fear God and also fear that they will pay dearly if caught, for corruption to be contained.

“But in Nigeria, none is exiting. People do things with impunity”, he said.

Isah, who also disclosed that there was a plan for public office holders to access asset declaration forms online from 2021, spoke at a training programme for members of the House of Representatives Committee on Ethics and Privileges.

The programme was held to train the lawmakers on the code of conduct for legislators.

It was organised by the Civil Society Legislative Advocacy Centre (CISLAC) in partnership with the MacArthur Foundation, the CCB and the House of Representative Committee on Ethics and Privileges.

The chairman, who noted that corruption remained a major setback for the country, told the session that it had also caused mistrust between those in power and the led.

Isah explained, “There is no sector in this country that one can venture into with a view to making things better for citizens faced with challenges of corruption one way or the other, directly or indirectly. 

“So, the task of giving an overview of the code of conduct in Nigeria, is very instructive and timely. It is important to know the legal and legislative framework that the Nigerian legislators have put in place and the operational capacity of the institutions that are mandated to enforce such laws against corruption.”

For instance, he said a trend that was condemnable was the habit of public officers demanding bribe to do the the job they were paid by taxpayers to do.

He added, “It is dishonourable of any public officer not to do what he is expected to do in order to undermine the interest of that office and that of the society at large. It is also dishonourable for any officer to expect something to come his way in the course of duty which is not lawful earning.

“So, there are several misconduct that a public officer will engage in which will jeopardise the interest of his office as well as that of the nation.”

The Executive Director, CISLAC, Auwal Ibrahim Musa Rafsanjani, said the essence of the session was to strengthen the capacity of the lawmakers on their role and responsibilities, especially with the introduction of the national policy on ethics.

Rafsanjani noted that asset declaration remained a challenge in the country, as office holders still engaged in a half-hearted approach toward it.

The director spoke further, “We believe that this  committee is one of the most important if it will be allowed to work, because it will guide the behaviour and conduct of members of National Assembly.

“Lawmakers can only be celebrated if they live by ethical values. The interactive session will go along way in terms of helping them carry out their responsibilities.

“We know their task is not welcome because they are the police of their colleagues, they can sanction anybody not adhering to ethical conducts. It is a powerful committee. It may not be considered as lucrative to members but the work they are doing is lucrative to Nigerians. It is their work that will ensure proper governance, legislative and ethics compliance.

“So, for Nigerians, it is  an important committee that needs to be supported at all levels and at all cost and that is why CISLAC is happy to continue to engage with this committee to provide them with information and tools and also create linkages and synergy.

“That is why the presence of ICPC, Nigeria legal and advanced study and code of conduct bureau clearly show the synergy that the committee needs in order to continue to show exemplary leadership.”

The representative of MacArthur Foundation, Oladayo Olaide, seized the opportunity to urge the lawmakers to give speedy attention to some pending bills before the National Assembly, which he said could fast-tract the anti-corruption war.

Olaide stated, “I kindly urged you to give attention to these important bills, one is the Federal Audit Bill. It is one of the most crucial legislation that have been in the National Assembly. It has been there for quite a while.

“There is the Whistle Blower Bill that has been at the National Assembly for a while. The importance of these bills cannot be over-emphasised.

“There has been proceeds from crime act bill and then of recent management or mismanagement of recovered assets. Recovery of assets became a major issue, if we had a focal bill in place probably that problem would have been dealt with.

“Finally, elections have become the single biggest issue in our country. Bills to reform the Electoral Act are also at the National Assembly. I want to crave your kind indulgence to give attention and priority to these bills in our effort to strengthen democracy and also to build trust of the general populace in the National Assembly and in every democratic institution in our country.”

On his part, the Chairman of the House Committee on Ethics and Privileges, Kolawole Lawal, talked about the challenges of serving on an ethics committee, explaining that many members did not see it as rewarding committee.

He said, “But, we believe that integrity is the best compared to being in any juicy committee. We are committed to doing what we are supposed to do as members and I commend everyone for accepting to write their names in gold.

“Integrity is about doing what is right and demonstrates that one is upright.

“The benefit of this interaction is that it provides a set of principles that is designed to help us as members to discharge our responsibilities honestly and with a sense of integrity, which in essence means it’s about behavioural change in public service.”