The two leading agencies in the fight against corrupt practices namely the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and the Independent Corrupt Practices Commission (ICPC) recovered over N227billion in the last one year.
This was disclosed on Thursday in Abuja during a joint press conference under the auspices of the Strategic Communications Interagency Advisory Policy Committee, coordinated by Office of National Security Adviser, ONSA. Strategic Communications Interagency Advisory Policy Committee is made up of all spokespersons of the Defence and law enforcement agencies in the country.
Speaking on behalf of the committee at the joint press conference, Major General Edward Buba, the Director Defence Media Operations said the two leading agencies in the fight against corrupt practices evolved anti-corruption initiatives that have been significant in maintaining law and order.
He said that some of these initiatives resulted in the recovery and forfeiture of assets. “The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) made significant progress in the fight against economic and financial crimes by securing 3,412 convictions and recovering vast sums of money both in local and foreign denominations.”
“The recovered amounts include N161,642,239,242.30 (One Hundred and Sixty One Billion, Six Hundred and Forty-Two Million, Two Hundred and Thirty-Nine Thousand, Two Hundred and Forty Two Naira, Thirty Kobo), $43,835,214.24 (Forty-Three Million, Eight Hundred and Thirty-Five Thousand, Two Hundred and Fourteen Dollars, Twenty-Four Cents), £25,365.00 (Twenty-Five Thousand, Three Hundred and Sixty-Five Pounds), €186,947.10 (One Hundred and Eighty-Six Thousand, Nine Hundred and Forty-Seven Euros, Ten Cents),”
The EFCC further recovered ₹51,360.00 (Fifty-One Thousand, Three Hundred and Sixty Rupees), C$3,750.00 (Three Thousand, Seven Hundred and Fifty Canadian Dollars), A$740.00 (Seven Hundred and Forty Dollars), ¥74,754.00 (Seventy-Four Thousand, Seven Hundred and Fifty-Four Yen), R35,000.00 (Thirty-Five Thousand Rand),
It also recovered 42,390.00 UAE Dirhams (Forty-Two Thousand, Three Hundred and Ninety Dirhams), 247.00 Riyals (Two Hundred and Forty-Seven Riyals), and 21,580,867.631 Crypto Currency (Twenty-One Million, Five Hundred and Eighty Thousand, Eight Hundred and Sixty-Seven Crypto Currency Units, Six Hundred and Thirty-One Cents).
He said that EFCC within the period took several bold steps to combat corruption, including the investigation of several politically exposed persons including former ministers and governors. The agency launch a crackdown on internet fraudsters and currency racketeers, securing over 50 convictions.
EFCC also launched Special Task Force against Naira Abuse and Dollarization of the Economy as is working to protect the sanctity and strength of the Naira.
Additionally , in order to prevent corruption, the EFCC established a Fraud Risk Assessment and Control department (FRAC) to identify vulnerabilities in government agencies and launch preventive measures.
He said that on its part,the Independent Corrupt Practices Commission (ICPC) recovered over N66 billion in cash and rent on forfeited assets while assets worth N5.882 billion were restrained and N366.97 million was forfeited through judicial processes.
During the period, there were 131 investigations by ICPC that led to prosecutions and 18 convictions. Furthermore, Education and training programs were organized with 25 training sessions and 2,244 participants. Also, diverse public education and enlightenment programs lead to the implementation of public awareness initiatives.
On Maritime security, the committee noted that increased patrols and international collaborations of the Nigerian Navy led to a substantial reduction in piracy incidents in the Gulf of Guinea. Notable achievements in the last twelve months include the prevention of oil theft which denied the oil theft of an estimated sum of N91,247,052,565.
Troops equally discovered and destroyed 3,051 dugout pits, 1,276 boats, 3,924 storage tanks, and 408 vehicles. Additionally, the Nigerian Navy anti crude oil theft operations recovered significant quantities of illegally refined petroleum products, amounting to millions of litres.