In
a statement by the National Coordinator Comrade Emmanuel Onwubiko and the
National Media affairs Director Miss Zainab Yusuf, HURIWA also tasked the new
Federal government to begin without further delay the comprehensive overhaul of
the anti -graft machinery by appointing tested, trusted, fearless,
incorruptible, and professionally competent persons to head the Economic
and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and the Independent Corrupt
practices and other offences commission (ICPC). Current leadership of the
two anti corruption agencies have compromised in a very unpleasant dimension,
HURIWA alleges.
In
the considered thinking of the Human Rights Writers Association of Nigeria the
incoming National Assembly should quickly move to amend the enabling laws
setting up the two anti-corruption agencies to create room for the central
government to hunt for globally respected anti corruption experts from any part
of the World to assume headship of either of the two anti-graft bodies.
"We urge that the incoming government should completely eschew partisan
politics in the composition of new sets of persons to run the two anti
corruption agencies so they can be headed by good people sourced from either
Nigeria or any parts of the World. We acknowledge that corruption is at
the centre of the mass poverty afflicting nearly 90 million Nigerians and the
only way to comprehensively battle and conquer mass poverty is the waging of
relentless war against economic crimes and all ramifications of corruption. It
is our suggestion that even a White American or a Briton with considerable
records as good anti corruption experts can be hired by the Nigerian Government
to spearhead a new war against the hydra headed monster of corruption in
Nigeria. The current set up of both anti graft agencies whereby officers of the
Nigerian Police play pivotal hierarchical roles is not right because from
available records these two agencies dominated by the Police drawn from the
Nigerian Police Force with poor records of professionalism and discipline has
frustrated the war against corruption that would comply with global best
practices. This evil status quo must be overthrown if the change mantra is to
have any pragmatic relevance to Nigerians who are clamouring for immediate
revolutionary changes in the fight against heist of public fund by politically
exposed persons in the corridors of power ".
On
police reforms the Rights Group said the existing policing structure has
abysmally failed demanding surgical overhaul of the entire foundations of the
Nigeria Police Force. We call for the establishment of State police as
recommended by the moribund National Political Conference organised by the last
Jonathan led federal government. "So long as the Nigerian policing
institution remains largely ineffective and inefficient due to fundamentally
defective structure and composition, the security situation of Nigeria will
continue to deteriorate. Any nation without an effective policing institution
will continuously face crises of insecurity of lives and property of the
citizenry which directly breaches the primary purpose of government as
contemplated in the Nigerian Constitution which recognise the security of lives
and welfare of Nigerians as the primary duty of government . We call for
comprehensive investigations of the police and defence budgets from 1999 to
date to determine how humongous public fund meant to secure national security
interest progressively disappeared into private pockets of top Generals and
police chiefs over the years. These looted public funds must be repatriated and
returned to public treasury and the looters named, shamed, prosecuted
diligently and appropriately sanctioned by the competent court of law ".
29/5/2015
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