Speaker of the House of Representatives, Mr Dimeji Bankole, is advocating a review of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) Act for better performance by the commission.
He has, therefore, directed the House Committee on Drugs, Narcotic and Financial Crimes to begin the process of such review for improved performance and ensuring the availability of more money for all agencies under the purview of the committee.
Inaugurating the committee in Abuja yesterday, he charged members to “look at the possibility of amending existing laws and legislation to enhance the performance of these agencies.
“In the case of EFCC, I would urge you to note that Nigerians desire an independent financial crimes agency and you have been challenged to quickly review the EFCC enabling act to enhance the performance of this agency. Ensuring that adequate funding for these establishments is also your responsibility,” he said.
Mr Bankole noted the increasing respect the nation has earned within the international community but regretted that its image was being dented by the continued trafficking in drugs and narcotics, which he observed, has been a serious set back.
Similarly, he was of the opinion that financial crimes were harming the nation’s standing, saying it was “an impediment in the drive to completely shake off the garb of suspicion around which many foreigners tend to view us.
“This apart, financial crimes do incalculable harm to our national economy and limit the realisation of developmental goals. Taken together, drug trafficking, drug abuse and financial crimes are responsible for the negative international image of Nigeria,” he said.
He blamed the increase in violence, including armed robbery, youth militancy, cultism, rape, among other crimes, on the consumption of hard drugs and charged the committee to devise ways to deal with the menace.
“You are to oversee and monitor the implementation of policies and programmes intended to rid our society of these dangerous phenomena. Your oversight functions span agencies like the National Drugs Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) and the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC),” he reminded the committee.
The EFCC chairman, Mallam Nuhu Ribadu, who was present at the occasion, attributed the success of the commission to the support it enjoyed from the National Assembly. He, however, called for more funding for the commission to enable it to meet up with its statutory functions.
The chairman of the committee, Dave Salako, in his address observed that Nigeria had moved from being labelled a transit country for narcotic and psychotropic substances to both a transit and consumer country.
He said efforts by the relevant agencies to tackle the problem had been frustrated by the criminals who had continued to evolve new means to circumvent those efforts. He called on the relevant agencies, Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs) and other stakeholders to collaborate towards stemming the unwholesome activities of the perpetrators.
By Leon Usigbe & Tordue Salem
Vanguard
Friday, November 28, 2007
