The Acting Executive Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, Ibrahim Magu, has said that the whistle blowing policy against corruption adopted by the Federal Government has instilled fear and drastically reduced the craze for stealing of public funds by government officials.
Magu made the observation during a one-day town hall meeting organised in Yola, Adamawa State by the African Centre for Media and Information Literacy.
According to the EFCC boss, the policy has put fear in the minds of corrupt citizens against amassing and hiding illicit wealth.
He said, ”The Federal Government introduced Whistle Blowing policy in 2016 to enable patriotic citizens to report any financial criminal act.
”Since the implementation of the policy, it has achieved a lot. But most importantly is the fear of amassing and hiding cash created in the hearts of corrupt citizens.
”This has no doubt reduced the craze for stealing government resources and stocking them in unthinkable locations.”
The anti-graft agency’s boss commended Nigerians for their maximum support to the commission towards actualising its primary mandate.
In his welcome address, Coordinator, African Centre for Media and Information Literacy, Mr. Chido Onumah, said the core objective of the meeting was to create opportunity for media practitioners and the organisation involved in positive whistle blower policy and advocate.
Onumah, who was represented by the Programme Manager of the centre, Abdulaziz Abdulaziz, stated that the meeting was part of the centre’s accountability and good governance initiative.
He said the meeting was the fourth in the series as part of AFRICMIL’s Corruption Anonymous project.
Onumah said, ”AFRICMIL is a non-governmental organisation that focuses on media, information, research, advocacy and training.
“Our aim is to deploy the opportunity that new media and information technologies offer in tackling social issues.”
He noted that the centre launched the Corruption Anonymous (CORA) project, which seeks to engage civil society and Nigerians in general in tackling corruption.
He said the CORA project, was supported by The John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, with the aim of creating awareness about whistleblowing and making Nigerians see the need to adopt whistleblowing as a tool for reducing corruption.
