The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has urged the Kwara State academia to support its quest to arrest the rising internet fraud in tertiary institutions.
The zonal commander, Ilorin, Michael Nzekwe, stated this during an interactive meeting with heads of tertiary institutions including vice chancellors of universities, rectors of polytechnics and provosts of colleges of education in Kwara State at the commission’s office in IIorin.
The meeting deliberated on causes of corruption, its effects on students and the institutions and the larger society. They also discussed preventive measures to adopt in curbing corrupt practices in tertiary institutions.
Nzekwe, who described the trend as a menace, said it was unfortunate that citadels of learning were becoming environments where corrupt practices, maladministration and diversion of public funds thrive.
“Our universities must endeavour to change the current negative narrative regarding the quality of education in Nigeria,” he said.
He said the EFCC could rid the country of corruption with the active participation of institutions.
“We at EFCC are passionate about engendering discipline, honesty, hard work, accountability and transparency through our proactive mechanism of checkmating corruption and we will remain antagonistic against fraud and every form of corruption in our institutions,” Nzekwe said.
He also told the participants about the efforts of the EFCC chairman, Abdulrasheed Bawa, to ensure anti-corruption courses are incorporated in the curriculum of universities, polytechnics and colleges of education.
The vice chancellor, University of Ilorin, who was represented by Professor O.A Omotesho, commended the EFCC’s efforts in ensuring probity and transparency in the private and public sectors of the state.
The rector, Kwara State Polytechnic, Ilorin, Dr. Abdul Jimoh, commended the initiative of the Ilorin zonal command of the EFCC in bringing heads of tertiary institutions together on a round table to discuss issues of corruption as it affected their various institutions. He said Kwara Polytechnic had made it a policy that it would no longer offer admission to applicants already convicted for one crime or the other.
Dr. Salimonu Ishaq, the deputy rector, Federal Polytechnic, Offa, expressed readiness of the institution to collaborate with the EFCC, while urging it not to be deterred as corruption would always fight back.
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