‘We must set good examples’ — EFCC chairman orders staff to declare assets

Ola Olukoyede, chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), has directed personnel of the commission to declare their assets in line with civil service regulations and procedures.

Dele Oyewale, the EFCC spokesperson, said in a statement that Olukoyede gave the directive at the commission’s headquarters in Abuja on Tuesday.

“All of us are going to declare our assets; from level 17, downward. I did mine, so there’s no reason for anyone to be afraid to do the same,” the statement quoted Olukoyede as saying.

“Even the commission secretary did, you all may also have done it in the past, but there’s a need for all of us to do it again.

“We will declare our assets, and we are going to investigate it. We must live above board by setting the pace with good examples. As anti-corruption fighters, our hands must be clean, so we must declare our assets.”

The EFCC chairman called on the staff of the commission to pay more attention to the basis of fighting economic and financial crimes.

He also charged personnel to be professional, thorough in their engagements, rich in integrity and non-partisan.

He warned “those compromising their works and position” to desist from such conduct, as “dire consequences await every unsavoury tendency”.

“We must do our job to add value to the nation. Investors must have confidence in the economy and we must help the country to be governed in an accountable and transparent manner,” he added.

“By doing this, it will offer us a new direction to redeem the image of the nation.

“Please, I beg you, let’s our hands be clean and put our house in order. Some may not like me, but I am going to do the right thing and treat everybody equally irrespective of religion, ethnicity and region”.

The EFCC boss assured the staff that adherence to the rule of law would be an article of faith and a defining principle of work.

“The EFCC is a creation of the law. We must do our job in line with the dictates of the law. This is a standard international practice and we would ensure that it is our established norm,” he said.