The Nigeria Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative,
NEITI, has called on the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, to
back it up more in its quest for transparency and accountability in the
extractive industries in Nigeria.
This call was made in
Abuja on Friday, November 10, 2023 by the Executive Secretary of the
Initiative, Dr. Orji Ognonaya Orji when he led his team on a courtesy visit to
the Executive Chairman of the EFCC, Mr. Ola Olukoyede at the corporate
headquarters of the EFCC, in Jabi, Abuja.
Orji stated that the
mission of NEITI was to make the extractive industry open and accountable and
solicited for the support of the EFCC to enforce compliance of industries
falling short of its standards on disclosure of information and data.
“We need strong support of the EFCC to enforce compliance
with disclosure of information and data by companies”, he said. In a presentation made to the
management staff of the Commission, Orji disclosed that, 28 out of the 36
states of the federation are sourcing 84% of their revenue from allocation from
the federation accounts.
He explained that, “NEITI findings and recommendations are
leading reforms in the oil, gas and mining industries” and for the Initiative
to deliver more optimal results to the nation, he called for stronger
collaboration and synergy with the EFCC.
“Our allies in this industry are few but with an ally like
the EFCC, we feel strong and confident”, he said. He also called for joint training, capacity
building and manpower development for staff of the EFCC and NEITI.
In his response, the
EFCC’s boss noted that every anti-corruption effort should always stand on the
pillar of transparency. He particularly stressed that lessons learnt as a
result of fraud investigation should be a guiding principle for individuals,
organizations and nations. “Corruption
investigation is not just for investigation’s sake. Lessons learnt should
always be applied, he said.
He assured NEITI of enhanced collaboration. “We will renew our collaboration and mutual support. We will allow NEITI desks in our Zonal offices”, he said.
