From Joseph Amedu, Lokoja
With the recent disclosure of corrupt practices among public officers in the country, Dr Goodman Akwu, a social crusader and former governorship candidate of All Progressive Grand Alliance(APGA) in Kogi state has said the only solution that could frustrate stealing of public fund lies in the hands of the legislators.
The politicians turned activist disclosed this to journalists in Lokoja in a press conference on Tuesday, saying that the time has come for the legislative arms of the government to evolve a law to safeguard Public money from grafters or pilfers in the public service of the country.
Citizen Akwu who was one time the state Secretary of All Progressive Congress(APC) implored the members of both law making chambers to work round the clock in order to come up with a laws that will protect public money, instead of spending more money again in the name of Anti Corruption fighting to recover stolen money.
“Just in one deal a lone, the former Minister of Petroleum and Mineral Resources, Mrs Deziani Madueke, was reported to have allegedly stolen a whooping sum of $70 million.
” Again , in the same vain, it was in the news recently that in the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) ,a sum of N81bn disappeared from the commission’s fund within 8 months, without difficulty”, he said.
While he argued that stealing of public fund in developed countries is not easy because of solid legislation and refined judicial system, Dr Akwu stressed that if this country that borrowed governmental system of the advanced nations can go by the workings of their law and principles of their judiciary , corruption could be minimised to a very bearable level.
He said, “imagine, a case lasting for 20 to 30 years to be decided in the law court of Nigeria. That is why corrupt minded ones takes delight in diverting commonwealth to personal use with impunity; all because of weakness in our judicial system”.
Dr Akwu, the president general of Uja Ache world described the level of corrupt practices through grafting in the states, Local Government and Federal level as mind boggling, saying, their accounting system is so free for all to steal and making diversion of tax payers money by both political office holders and civil servants an easy task.
He therefore implored the law makers in the country not to rest on their oars until they legislate a law that will guarantee standard practice that will make corruption in public service nearly impossible to achieve
