- Minister inaugurates NACS Ministerial Committee
The Attorney General of the Federation (AGF) and Justice Minister Lateef Fagbemi (SAN) has listed a number of steps that fellow Nigerians can take to ensure the success of Federal Government’s anti-corruption initiatives and related vices.
Fagbemi noted that “confronting the issue of corruption requires a collaborative approach in order to guarantee any meaningful impact”.
The AGF said there is a need for enhanced enlightenment to enable relevant government agencies, ministries and departments (MDAs) understand their roles under the National Anti-Corruption Strategy (NACS).
Fagbemi spoke yesterday in Abuja while inaugurating the NACS Ministerial Committee.
The AGF highlighted the negative impact of corruption on the nation’s development, saying: “As you are aware, corruption is one of the formidable challenges to the attainment our national development goals.
“It undermines trust in public and private institutions, distorts resource allocation and incapacitates our ability to provide effective and efficient service delivery.
“It is in a bid to curb this menace that the NACS Ministerial Committee was established.”
Fagbemi named members of the committee to include himself, as the Chairman, and the ministers of Finance, Interior, Foreign Affairs, Information and National Orientation, Women Affairs, and Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy, as other members.
The AGF also named other members of the committee as: the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation (HoCSF); Chairman of the Senate Committee on Anti-Corruption and Financial Crimes; Chairman of the House Committee on Anti-corruption and Financial Crimes; and representative of Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF) not below the rank of a Permanent Secretary.
Fagbemi explained that the role of the committee is not only fundamental to achieving the NACS objective “but also safeguarding our democracy, strengthening governance and promoting sustainable economic growth of our nation”.
He added: “The NACS is in tandem with the anti-corruption stance of the Administration of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, which aims at eradicating corruption whilst strengthening the effectiveness and efficiency of various anti-corruption agencies.
“It is in line with this administration’s agenda that the NACS Ministerial Committee was selected. I must reiterate that our role as a committee is of immense importance and essential to the achievement of the NACS vision and mission.
“In other to ensure successful implementation, NACS has adopted the top to bottom approach, allowing the heads of relevant agencies to be drivers of the policy within their sectors and to also allow for cross-evaluation of implementation.
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“Under NACS, the distinguished members of this committee are therefore responsible for facilitating the Anti-corruption Funding Framework (AFF) and the development of sector-specific strategies for the implementation of NACS.
“This is of critical importance because there is an observed lack of knowledge and misinformation on the part of most agencies as to their expectations in the implementation of the NACS policy.
“Most agencies are uniformed or do not understand the purport of the policy and what is expected of them in its implementation.
“The honourable ministers and distinguished members of the NACS Ministerial Committee are, therefore, expected to drive critical understanding and implementation of NACS within their sectors.”
The AGF urged members of the committee to give their full support and commitment to the responsibilities arising from our nomination.
Fagbemi added: “We must contribute our quota at institutionalising accountability and transparency to ensure access to equitable opportunities for all citizens.”
He explained that the implementation of the NACS and its Action Plan were expected to be carried out under the following headings:
* Strengthening the legal and institutional framework designed to prevent and combat corruption.
* Mainstreaming anti-corruption principles into governance and service delivery, and
* Mainstreaming anti-corruption into sub-national public administration.