The Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Act 2000 is exactly 20 years old today. Let us examine the highlights of the Act pointing out its unique features and provisions. #Thread#ICPCAct2000
Section 5(1) of the Act confers on an officer of the Commission when investigating or prosecuting a case of corruption with all the powers and immunities of a Police officer under the Police Act and any other laws conferring power on the Police or law enforcement agents.
Section 6 (a) – (f): Duties of the Commission include:
To receive and investigate complaints from members of the public on allegations of corrupt practices and in appropriate cases prosecute the offenders.
To examine the practices,systems and procedures of public bodies and where such systems aid corruption,direct and supervise their review.
To instruct, advise and assist any officer, agency or parastatal on ways by which fraud or corruption may be eliminated or minimized by them.
To advise heads of public bodies of any changes in practices, systems or procedures compatible with the effective discharge of the duties of the public bodies to reduce the likelihood or incidence of bribery, corruption and related offences.
To educate the public on and against bribery, corruption and related offences.
To enlist and foster public support in combating corruption.
Section 8 prohibits demand, receipt for or agreeing to receive gratification for one’s self or another on account of past/future happening: Attracts a 7 years imprisonment.
Section 9 prohibits offer or promise of offer of gratification to a public officer or another for past/future happening effected by a public officer: Attracts 7 years imprisonment.
Section 10 prohibits demand, receipt for or agreeing to receive gratification for self or another on account of past/future happening carried out by a public officer: Attracts 7 years imprisonment.
Section 16 prohibits making of false statement or returns by any person charged with the receipt, custody or management of public revenue or property: Attracts 7 years imprisonment.
Section 19 prohibits a public officer from using his office/position to confer corrupt or an unfair advantage on himself, relation, associate or another public officer: Attracts 5 years imprisonment.
Section 22(4) prohibits the award of contract by a public officer without budgetary provision, approval and cash backing: Attracts a jail term of three years and a fine of N100, 000.
Section 22(5) prohibits transfer of money from one project or service to another without requisite approval: Punishable with one-year jail term or a fine of N 50,000.
ICPC Arrests Woman Offering New Naira Notes for Sale
ICPC has today, 1st of February 2023, arrested a woman, Omoseyin Oluwadarasimi Esther, with the Twitter handle of Lala, offering new naira notes for sale on social media.
The arrest was as a result of intelligence received which led the ICPC operatives to seek out and promptly arrest the suspect.
It is believed she is in collusion with key elements in the financial services sector diverting the newly released notes away from banking halls ...
...and payment channels into a “ black market”
She is currently in ICPC detention and is helping the Commission with its findings on the criminal trading of the naira and the attendant scarcity and negative economic outcomes being caused by the action.
ICPC Clarifies Chairman's Speech on N2.7Billion School Feeding Diverted
The attention of ICPC has been drawn to some reports making the rounds on a segment of the speech delivered by the ICPC Chairman, Professor Bolaji Owasanoye, ...
... yesterday, Monday, 28th September 2020 at its 2nd National Submit on Diminishing Corruption in the Public Sector. The said reports erroneously implied that the Minister of Humanitarian Affairs diverted monies meant for Home-Grown School Feeding Programme.
In the speech, Prof. Owasanoye stated inter alia, ‘’... we discovered payments to some federal colleges (secondary schools) for school feeding in the sum of N2.67b during the lockdown when the children were not in school, and some of the money ended up in personal accounts.
2/ The Commission has in the last 20 years recorded a number of milestones. It has treated over 20,000 petitions, found over 5000 worthy of investigation and prosecuted about 1000 of such cases. - Prof. Bolaji Owasanoye, ICPC Chairman.
3/ Within the same period we have conducted 47 full System Study and Reviews, 582 reviews comprising personnel and capital budget utilization, review of open treasury portal entries and implementation of some recommendations from AuGF on MDAs. - ICPC Chairman
ICPC in collaboration with the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation is organising the 2nd National Submit on Diminishing Corruption in the Public Sector as part of activities to mark its 20th Anniversary. #TogetherAgainstCorruptionicpc.gov.ng/2020/09/26/2nd…
Highlights of the event, which will be declared opened by President Muhammadu Buhari, include:
- Presidential Launch of the National Ethics and Integrity Policy
- Recognition of Winners of the Public Sector Integrity Awards, Music and Essay Competitions
- Presentation of ICPC @20 Legacy Book and the Report of the Nigeria Corruption Index, and
- Panel discussions featuring notable Nigerians.
The Federal Executive Council (FEC), at its (2020) 20th meeting, held Wednesday, 19th August, 2020, has approved the National Ethics and Integrity Policy. The Policy, which is the brainchild of ICPC was was co-sponsored by ...
... the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (OSGF) and National Orientation Agency (NOA).
The Policy was approved for the good and ethical conduct of the Nigerian citizenry.
The Policy, according to ICPC Chairman, Prof. Bolaji Owasanoye, is “a befitting follow-up to the National Values Curriculum initiative”, adding that, “the policy coming at ICPC’s 20th Anniversary and Nigeria’s 60th year of nationhood is timely”.
ICPC has quizzed top management staff of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), over allegations of various acts of corruption such as diversion of funds, procurement fraud and misappropriation of the agency’s Covid-19 funds.
Some directors of NDDC were interrogated at the Commission’s headquarters recently, after months of intelligence gathering, following the receipt of petitions from Nigerians on the alleged illegalities and contracts fraud by some officials of the agency.
Top officials of the agency are being investigated for their complicity in an alleged diversion of N5.474 billion meant for the purchase of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) for health workers handling the Covid-19 pandemic in the nine states of NDDC.