Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) in Nigeria including the Civil Society Legislative Advocacy Centre (CISLAC), Transparency International (TI) have declared that Nigeria anti-graft agencies and law enforcement personnel must do more ahead of the 2023 general elections.
The CSOs while congratulating Nigerians and Africans at this year’s Anti-Corruption Day Celebration with the theme: “Strategies and Mechanisms for the Transparent Management of Covid-19 Funds” said the government must be transparent.
A statement issued by their leader, Awwal Musa Rafsanjani, said: “CISLAC would like to remind the government of the need to be transparent on its expenditures. A good example is the lingering fuel scarcity which has lasted for months. This is despite the huge sums set aside for subsidy payments. Citizens struggle to understand how trillions are budgeted for fuel subsidy.
“This year’s celebration is a good time to remind INEC, anti-graft agencies and law enforcement agencies of their role in enabling a free and fair elections devoid of dirty money and vote trading. As the highest Illicit Financial Flow (IFF) offender in the African continent with and estimated sum of $18billion USD according to the African Union High Level panel on IFF led by Thabo Mbeki, existing laws around money laundering and political party financing in Nigeria should be adhered to so that politicians don’t use ill gotten wealth to get into power.
“CISLAC will also use this opportunity to remind the current government that citizens are keenly watching events around the office of the accountant general of the federation. With 3 different individuals acting in that capacity in less than 2 months, and the numerous allegations against the previous two, citizens demand answers and the government should not sweep the matter under the carpet.
“There is also a need to investigate the deteriorating security situation bedevilling the country, the latest being the Kuje prison break. Recent discoveries of huge sums in the residence of military contractors needs to be investigated to its logical conclusion. Funds meant for securing the lives and properties of Nigerians shouldn’t be diverted.
In conclusion, we would like to call on the anti-graft agencies to be very professional in their actions. Rather than seek media trial and sensational reporting, they should endeavour to do their assignments thoroughly so that state resources are conserved, ” the statement added.