The leading anti-money laundering firm in Nigeria, DataPro, has observed that the fight against corruption requires functional infrastructure, strong political will and commitment.
Assessing the first year of the Buhari administration’s “War Against Corruption” (WAC), the firm said it would be difficult to determine its success or failure.
According to its recent findings, N13.9 trillion has been lost to corruption in the last six years; N822. 7billion is currently being investigated and about N10.4 billion has been recovered so far.
DataPro observed that one of the major hindrances to the fight against corruption is the poor state of institutions and agencies needed for a successful campaign, insisting that “a strong and well-coordinated network of state institutions and agencies are fundamental to the success of any campaign.”
It called for urgent reforms and enhancement in the following areas: the Nigerian legal system, anti-corruption agencies, compliance level of reporting entities, identification management, corporate registry, geographic information system (GIS) and border control.
The firm observed that one of the major draw-backs of the fight against corruption in Nigeria is the type of punishment meted out to offenders.
“The sanction regime has not been effective because it is not dissuasive and proportionate. The present punishment system is not considered dissuasive enough for would-be offenders.
“There is the urgent call for the enhancement of the punishment for corruption in Nigeria especially the stealing of public funds,” the firm said.
While recommending that The War Against Corruption (WAC) in Nigeria must be fought holistically, it advised the government to come up with definite policies, programmes, processes and procedures (4Ps) to fight corruption. “The 4Ps must be well documented, standardised and not subjected to the whim and caprices of anybody. Every Nigerian, institution and agency must understand their roles, function, duties and responsibility in the fight against corruption. The implementation of the 4Ps must