Nigeria’s President, Muhammadu
Buhari has presented Integrity awards to two public servants, Bashir Abubakar
and Mrs Josephine Ugwu of the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria, for
exhibiting Integrity in the performance of their official duties.
Buhari presented the awards to
the recipients at the opening of two-day National Summit on Diminishing
Corruption in Public Sector held at the State House old Banquet hall, Abuja.
The event is being organized by
the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation in
collaboration with Independent Corrupt Practices and other related offences
Commission (ICPC).
The Assistant Comptroller-General
of Customs, Bashir Abubakar rejected 412,000 dollars (N150 million) bribe
offered to him by drug traffickers to import 40 containers laden with Tramadol,
a controlled and highly addictive drug.
Ugwu, a former cleaner at the
Murtala Mohammed International Airport (MMIA), Lagos had on different occasions
returned millions of naira found in the course of her duty, including the sum
of N12 million dollars forgotten in the toilet by an airport user.
Speaking at the event, Buhari
stressed the need for Nigerians to uphold the traditionally cherished values of
honesty and integrity.
‘‘Let me again note with concern
the need to uphold the values of loyalty, honesty, trust, and integrity that
were once cherished in our public service. Ethics and integrity are the
foundation of an enduring society.
‘‘Nigerian culture does not
tolerate dishonesty. Therefore, we must reclaim our traditional values of
honesty, integrity and hard work. In spite of the few bad eggs, I am delighted
that many Nigerians still hold on to our traditionally cherished values of
honesty and integrity,” he said.
Buhari called on the National
Assembly to fast-track the passage of the Special Crimes Court Bill.
He also urged the judiciary to
embrace and support the creation of the Special Crimes Court.
He said: ‘‘The fight against
corruption is of course not only for government and anti-corruption agencies
alone. All arms and tiers of government must develop and implement the
anti-corruption measures.
‘‘I invite the legislative and
judicial arms of government to embrace and support the creation of Special
Crimes Court that Nigerians have been agitating for to handle corruption
cases.’’
Buhari noted that the passage of
the Bill was a ‘‘specific priority’’ of this administration’s Economic Recovery
& Growth Plan 2017-2020.
The President also used the
occasion, which marked the launch of the Constituency Projects Transparency
Group (CPTG) Report Phase One, to reiterate his appeal to all well-meaning
Nigerians to join in the fight against corruption.
‘‘The war against corruption
cannot be won without prevention, enforcement, public education and
enlightenment.
‘‘I encourage the ICPC and other
law enforcement agencies to intensify their efforts in public education,
enlightenment and engagement with citizens.
‘‘I also urge our development
partners, civil society organizations, and the media to continue to support our
efforts to strengthen ethical values and integrity in Nigeria,’’ he said.
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