Atiku advocates for independence of anti-graft agencies

Former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar has advocated for the independence of anti-graft agencies in order to strengthen their operations.

He said these agencies would do better if granted financial autonomy through their inclusion among institutions on the first-line charge.

The former vice-president also suggested that anti-graft agencies should be under the supervision of the National Assembly.

Atiku said this in a speech entitled, “Good Governance and Development: Notes on Nigeria,” which he delivered at the 2nd Annual Convention of the Abia State Medical Association Alumni Association, UK, held at Doubletree by Hilton Hotel, Dartford, London.

A copy of the speech was sent to our correspondent via an e-mail on Monday.

He said for the anti-corruption war to achieve the desired results, premium must be placed on crime prevention through the removal of the opportunities that promote corruption.

Atiku equally explained that good governance, which he described as a prerequisite for development, required adequate planning because it was beyond managing day-to-day governance issues.

He said, “Good governance in Nigeria will include a relentless effort to curb corruption in public life. And this should not be merely dealing with corruption after the fact.

“Perhaps, more important are the efforts to prevent corruption from taking place, especially through the removal of the opportunities for corruption and imposing strong sanctions for the corrupt.

“Such efforts should also include ensuring the independence of the anti-corruption agencies through such measures as funding them through the first-line charge in the consolidated revenue fund and having them report to the parliament.”