Launches radio station
Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has expressed the need to review the law that established the Bureau of Public Procurement to reduce corruption that comes with the award of contracts, lamenting that the Act aids corruption.
Chairman of EFCC, Ola Olukoyede, stated this at the headquarters of the commission in Abuja when he hosted the management team of BPP, led by Mamman Ahmadu.He said the BPP Act had not aided any prosecution and had not been used to secure the conviction of corrupt individuals.
The EFCC boss stressed that there were areas to be worked on to prevent corruption in the award of contracts, saying there was no need to wait until a contract is awarded and money stolen.
He said: “I am not sure that I can remember any specific case where we secured a conviction using the provisions of the Bureau of Public Procurement Act. I am not sure that the EFCC has secured any conviction using the BPP Act.”
“If we mean business about sanitising our contract and procurement award processes, we have to do something about the BPP Act and review it in such a way that it can address some of these concerns.”
The anti-graft czar also expressed dismay over BPP’s procedure of issuance of the “Certificate of No Objection” to applicants on some items for procurement. Speaking earlier, Ahmadu stated that the need for better collaboration between the EFCC and BPP was the motivation for the visit by his team.
MEANWHILE, the Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris, has said the ministry remains resolute in restoring trust in public communication and amplifying the policies and programmes of the Federal Government.
Idris, who stated this at the commissioning of the EFCC Radio at the commission’s headquarters in Jabi, Abuja, explained that this was in line with the first two items in the agenda of the ministry. He charged the management and staff of the new station to strive to operate at all times by the principles and ethics of the practice of broadcasting and journalism.
“As a public-facing agency, it is indeed very important for the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission to be deliberate and strategic about shaping the narratives around the all-important war being waged against corruption in our country”, the minister said.
Idris added that the ministry, collaborating with the National Broadcasting Commission (NBC), would ensure that other relevant public sector agencies toe a similar path and contribute to the task of informing, enlightening and sensitising the public.
