Prosecuting and jailing corr¥pt individuals has never worked in Nigeria, and it will never work — EFCC Chairman

Prosecuting and jailing corr¥pt individuals has never worked in Nigeria, and it will never work — EFCC Chairman

The Executive Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, Mr. Ola Olukoyede has explained why he’s prioritizing corruption prevention over prosecuting and jailing corrupt individuals.

Speaking at an event in Abuja, he said: “Upon my assumption of office, I made it known to Nigerians that one of the key areas that we will pursue seriously and vigorously is the area of prevention. Everything in the anti-corruption fight is not about enforcement.

There are policy issues that are involved. It is not all about throwing b%mbs and chasing people with armoured vehicles and machine g¥ns. No, it has never worked, and it will never work. We have been on the path of enforcement for 20 years now. Would anyone tell me that corr¥ption is abating?

The more you do, the more progress you make in the area of recovery, in the area of prosecution and conviction of people, the deeper the problem becomes. As you are facing one, people are inventing new areas and getting smarter by the day.

And so, we have come to realise that there is actually nothing fundamentally wrong with our people, but that our values have been bastardised over the years and also the system that we run, so I made it known to Nigerians and the entire world that we will pursue the issue of prevention very seriously.”