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Ola Olukoyede, the Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) is surprised that Nigeria still survives despite the humongous amount of public funds stolen by corrupt elements.
The EFCC boss said any time he checks files and sees the amount stolen from Nigeria, he wonders how the country remains standing.
Olukoyede, who is the first southerner to head the anti-graft commission, said if Nigerians saw some case files they would weep.
The EFCC chairman, according to a statement by the commission’s Head of Media and Publicity, Dele Oyewale, said this while receiving the management team of the Revenue Mobilisation Allocation and Fiscal Commission led by its Chairman, Mohammed Shehu on Tuesday, July 2, 2024.
“When I look at some case files and see the humongous amount of money stolen, I wonder how we are still surviving. If you see some case files, you will weep. The way they move unspent budget allocation to private accounts in commercial banks before midnight at the end of a budget circle, you will wonder what kind of spirit drives us as Nigerians,” Olukoyede was quoted as saying.
He explained that public corruption is the biggest cause of corruption in Nigeria, adding that if it is taken out of the polity, Nigeria would fare better than many other countries in the world.
A situation where somebody would hold a public office or position of trust for years and you call him to account and he says No, he would not account, is not acceptable,” he said.
To rid the country of corruption and develop it, Olukoyede advised that transparency and accountability should be embedded in both the public and private sectors.