The Federal Government says the President Muhammadu Buhari administration’s policy plank of fighting corruption is unwavering and on course.
The Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed who made this at a media briefing on Thursday in Abuja, said the administration had put in place structures that would not only check corrupt tendencies but make it unattractive and costly.
Mohammed highlighted the fundamental strategy of the administration in the fight against corruption and the successes recorded by the various anti-corruption agencies in justifying his position.
“The Buhari administration has taken bold measures to streamline cumbersome bureaucratic processes in the implementation of government policies, check corrupt practices and ensure accountability in the implementation as well as delivery of these policies.
“These reforms are all inclusive, cutting across all spheres of governance and not excluding even the private sector.
“They included the Treasury Single Account (TSA), Integrated Personnel and Payroll Information System (IPPIS), Petroleum Industry Act, Financial Autonomy for State Legislature and Judiciary (2020), Whistle-Blower Policy, Assets Recovery, Justice and Law reforms.
“Nigeria’s membership of the Open Government Partnership as well as the various instruments at the disposal of the Federal Government to track, trace and stop the flow of illicit funds used in financing terrorist activities within Nigeria, among others.
“For those who may say that some of these reforms, like the TSA, predate this administration, our response is that what’s the use of a policy that is not implemented?
“This administration has implemented these reforms with fidelity, and the reforms have made a huge impact in preventing corruption,’’ he said.
Specifically, the minister said the TSA system has been implemented in more than 90 per cent of all Federal MDAs.
He said the TSA has resulted in the consolidation of more than 17,000 bank accounts previously spread across Deposit Money Banks in the country monthly savings of an average of N4 billion in bank charges.
The minister said against stiff opposition, the Buhari administration expanded the coverage of IPPIS.
He said the use of BVN to verify the Federal Government’s payroll on the IPPIS platform had so far led to the detection of 54,000 fraudulent payroll entries.
Mohammed said the whistle-blower policy had helped in the cleansing of IPPIS, compliance on TSA and enhanced the Procurement Act 2007.
He said that as at 2020, a total sum of N700 billion had been recovered through the Whistle-Blower Policy.
The minister said the Petroleum Industry Act (2021) had helped the country to reform the laws regulating its oil and gas sector and blocked all loopholes hitherto being exploited by corrupt practitioners.
To check terrorism financing, the minister said the administration deployed a plethora of tools, including the Money Laundering Act, 2004, the EFCC Act, 2004, the ICPC Act, 2000, Department of State Services (DSS) and the Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit (NFIU).