Despite widespread condemnation of corruption, many Nigerians continue to back corrupt leaders who are subject to legal action, according to Ola Olukoyede, chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), who expressed his concerns about this incongruity in public opinion in an interview with DAILY POST.
These remarks were delivered by Olukoyede on Friday in Abuja during a meeting with representatives from the Centre for Crisis Communication (CCC). He brought attention to the irony of Nigerians’ dual stances on corruption: condemning its destructive effects on the country and supporting corrupt persons during their prosecution.
This discrepancy, Olukoyede said, impedes national development and the battle against corruption as a whole. “Everyone is lamenting the corruption of Nigerians and the system; the corruption that is supposedly destroying us and our system,” he exclaimed. He stressed that a change in public perception is critical if the country is to triumph against corruption. No matter one’s political leanings or socioeconomic status, the EFCC chairman argued that corruption is an adversary that everyone must fight.
Efforts to combat corruption will remain ineffective, he emphasised, unless the people of Nigeria start to view it as a fundamental threat. Recognising the need for cooperation among authorities, the media, and civil society organisations, Olukoyede emphasised the significance of public understanding and backing in the battle against corruption.
While the EFCC can spearhead investigations and prosecutions of corrupt individuals, he stressed that everyone in society must do their part to combat the problem. He insisted that if Nigerians worked together in this way, they could defeat corruption more effectively and speedily, which would benefit the country as a whole. Olukoyede discussed his time as EFCC Chairman and the methods he used to combat corruption throughout his speech.
He spoke clean about how, since becoming leader, he has prioritised prevention over enforcement alone. If we want to stop corruption in its tracks, Olukoyede said, we must first deal with the problems that generate it, which include ineffective leadership, a lack of openness, and weak institutions.
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