Presidential committee urges collective action against corruption

Prof. Sadiq Radda, the Executive Secretary of the Presidential Advisory Committee Against Corruption (PACAC), has called for collective action from all Nigerians to ensure the success of the war against corruption in the country.
Radda made the call on Wednesday in Umuahia during an enlightenment programme organised by the committee in collaboration with the National Orientation Agency (NOA).
He said that Nigerians from all walks of life must join the fight against corruption for it to yield the desired result.
He gave the assurance that the committee would take the campaign to every part of the country.
He therefore called on Nigerians, civil society organisations, non-governmental organisations, religious groups and community-based organisations to support government’s efforts to eradicate the scourge.
Radda expressed the confidence that at the end of the event, participants would see the need  to propagate the values of integrity to other Nigerians.
He said that there had been efforts in the area of executing laws against corrupt practices, even though it might not be to the satisfaction of all Nigerians.
He said, “We are not where we want to be but we are making progress because we are here discussing corruption.’’
In her speech, Mrs Ngozi Okechukwu, the Director of NOA in Abia, said that the programme was designed to remind Nigerians that the fight against corruption required a collective approach.
Okechukwu appealed to Nigerians to imbibe positive beliefs and values which, according to her, form the building blocks of development.
In a keynote address, entitled “The  imperatives of changing the culture of corruption in Nigeria,” Prof. Osita Ogbu, said that the cost of corruption affected every Nigerian, irrespective of tribe, state or local government, hence the scourge ought to be everyone’s concern.
Speaking further on the theme of the programme, “Value re-orientation and the fight against corruption,” he underscored the need to re-establish the culture of integrity and honesty in Nigeria.
Ogbu, who is a professor of Law, therefore called for constitutional amendment to provide for the right of every Nigerian to checkmate corrupt practices.
Earlier, Dr Ngozi Uduma, a resource person, spoke on the need by major stakeholders in the anti-graft war to fill orientation gaps in the system by propagating values that unite and build the nation.
Uduma, a former Director of NOA in Abia, called for political will on the part of the government at all levels to enforce sanctions against corrupt practices.
She opined that addressing the lopsidedness in governance and political appointments would further help in instituting value re-orientation.
In an interview with News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), two participants called on relevant agencies of government to intensify their efforts in mobilising Nigerians for the war on corruption.
Eze Nwaigwe Adiele of Okaiuga Alike Community said that there should be conscious efforts to enlighten the people at the grassroots on the need to imbibe the virtues of honesty and integrity.
Also, Mr Emmanuel Agomuo, the Chairman of Christian Association of Nigeria in Abia, advised that the programme be taken to the grassroots to provide a platform for the common man to be heard and educated. (NAN)