The Chairman of Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, Mr.Abdulrasheed Bawa, today Wednesday October 27, 2021 charged members of the National Youth Service Corps, NYSC, 2021 Batch ‘C’ Stream 1, to partner with the Commission in the fight against economic and financial crimes.
He made the call in a sensitization lecture on the Role of Youths in Curbing Corruption at the NYSC Orientation Camps across the country.
At Okada, Edo State, Bawa stated that, “young people must not be mere spectators in the anti-graft campaign; rather, they should actually be foot soldiers leading the mass rout of corruption and economic crimes out of our land”.
The EFCC boss who was represented by Williams Oseghale, Head, Public Affairs Department, Benin Zonal Command urged the corps members to enlist in the anti-graft army by joining the NYSC/EFCC Anti-Corruption CDS group. “Youth Corps members are dynamic young men and women whose energy can be harnessed for greater public good by being role models and whistle blowers in their area of primary assignment,” he stated.
He admonished the youths to embrace hard work and shun crime. “There is no shortcut to wealth and fame. The fact that the rate of unemployment is high should not be an excuse to resort to crime. Acts of criminality might deliver wealth in the short term but ultimately, they lead to misery,” he warned.
At the NYSC Orientation Camp in Ise-Orun, Ekiti State, the EFCC chairman who was represented by Ayodele Babatunde, Head, Public Affairs Department, Ilorin Zonal Command urged Corps members to take ownership of the fight against corruption in order to redeem the image of the country. Bawa expressed optimism that Nigeria can overcome the various socio-economic challenges confronting it through strong determination by youths and other stakeholders.
The EFCC boss also admonished the youth to resist the temptation of being lured into cybercrimes warning that the end could be “perilous and shameful”.
At the NYSC Orientation Camp, Awgu, Enugu State, the Zonal Commander, Enugu Command, ACE Oshodi Johnson, who represented the EFCC boss charged the youth to become anti-corruption whistleblowers. “The message of the EFCC to you all this morning is that you should become whistleblowers in any place where you find yourself by reporting acts that fail the simple test of integrity. It’s no use lamenting that things are not right with our country. We are inviting you to lend a hand in helping us build a society where there is respect for law and order and where impunity is a thing of the past” he said.
In Kaduna, Nana Fatima Abubakar of the Public Affairs Department, Kaduna Command, who represented the Commission urged Corps members to take advantage of the service years to contribute their quota to the anti-corruption fight. She enjoined them to become change agents by helping to mentor kids in schools through the establishment of Integrity clubs.
The same message was delivered by Mary Ogolekwu of the Public Affairs Department, Benin Zonal Command, at the NYSC Orientation Camp in Issele Uku, Delta State and Sunday Eze of the Port Harcourt Zonal Command at the NYSC Orientation Camp in Nonwa, Port Harcourt.
