By Danlami Nmodu
Nigeria’s Acting President, Professor Yemi Osinbajo has advocated for sanctions against banks and financial institutions aiding illicit financial flows.
Osinbajo made this call in his address at the Conference on Promoting International Co-operation in Combating Illicit Financial Flows and Enhancing Asset Recovery to Foster Sustainable Development,Monday in Abuja.
He said “There is no way this the transfer of this assets can happen without a handshake between the countries that they are transferred and the international banking institutions in the countries in which they are transferred, there is no way it will happen without some form of connivance.
”We have to look at somehow delegitimizing those kind of Financial institutions and criminalizing them, so that banks and financial institutions that actually engage in this are called out and made to face the consequences of engaging in criminal practices. If that isn’t done we are not likely to go very far.
”For there to be collaboration there must first be connivance, in the agreement and conventions we will be signing we must find away and ensure that financial institutions are not given a free run and hold them accountable.
He noted further that “African countries and developing countries must realize that is our responsibility to ensure not only find get these monies and make sure that there are return. It is not enough to talk about it. Some countries are somehow reluctant about it, many have civil processes that make it difficult, they say our courts are handling this matter and there is very little we can do about.
”We must make it a national call, a call for other developing countries to have the same outrage for drugs, terrorist financing for illicit financial flows. We must emphasis at every point and call out institutions that are not cooperating and ensuring that they recognize that this for us a serious issue.
”Like President Buhari has said repeatedly that if we don’t kill corruption, corruption will kill it. When corrupt monies finds safe havens it will begin to fight back and if government is not careful it can fight back.
”In Nigeria for instance where corruption fights back so eloquently that government itself if not careful can be overwhelmed.
”If you look at the anticorruption fight in Nigeria there is a major fight back in the media. There is a media war, between people fighting corruption and those behind the stolen funds.
”It is called media trial, I don’t know what that means. If you discover for instance large sums of money in an air condition room there is no where it will not make news anywhere in the world.
”So this whole idea of trying to legitimize corruption is definitely being fueled and sponsored by those who have these resources, who have stolen funds. Unless we see it as a problem that can bring down our system then we will never be able to fight. I hope we will be able to advance this with other African countries.”
