FG to introduce electronic declaration of assets in 2017

FG to introduce electronic declaration of assets in 2017

- The government is set to introduce the declaration of assets in 2017

- The new process, the minister of information and tourism, Lai Mohammed said will facilitate compliance, search and retrieve data on public officers assets

- Mohammed said other measures have also been perfected to strengthen the anti-corruption fight with methods to boost revenue and diminish corruption

FG to introduce electronic declaration of assets in 2017
The federal government has said it will introduce electronic declaration of assets in 2017

The Nigerian government is set to introduce the declaration of assets in 2017, the minister of information, culture and tourism Lai Mohammed has said.

Mohammed in a statement issued by his spokesperson in Lagos on Thursday, December 28, said the federal government is working with the Code of Conduct Bureau to commence the new asset declaration approach in 2017.

He said once perfected, a trial run of the asset declaration process will facilitate compliance, search and retrieve data on public officers assets.

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The minister said the Presidential Advisory Committee Against Corruption (PACAC) is working with relevant ministries, Departments and agencies, especially the National Bureau of Statistics, to improve data collection on corruption indicators generally.

''Once perfected, the data will be shared with government periodically, if possible as regularly as government receives data on inflation and unemployment trends, to indicate trends in corruption and influence government measures to correct the situation before it gets out of hand as we have now,'' Mohammed said.

He also said some other measures have been perfected to strengthen the anti-corruption fight with methods to boost revenue and diminish corruption and the perception that crime pays or criminals can keep their loot.

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"The Federal Government is getting Nigerians in Diaspora and international civil society organizations involved in the campaign for return of looted assets,'' he said.

He also said some other measures have been perfected to strengthen the anti-corruption fight.

He said the measures include the establishment of the Presidential Committee on Asset Recovery and the Asset Tracing Committee; the setting up of an asset register, and the Whistle Blower Policy.

''This same body, on the recommendation of the Presidential Advisory Committee Against Corruption, has directed a centralized management of recovered looted assets through the Central Asset Management Committee under the leadership of Minister of Finance as legal custodian of government asset.

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''This singular move has reduced the opportunity for re-looting of recovered assets that was prevalent under previous regime. By this measure, EFCC, ICPC and all asset recovery law enforcement agencies are mandatorily required to furnish the Minister of Finance with full details of recovered asset whether cash or otherwise,'' he said.

The Senate President Bukola Saraki is currently facing charges for false declaration of his assets while he was the governor of Kwara state.

The charges leveled on him by the Code of Conduct Bureau is been heard at the Code of Conduct Tribunal under the chairmanship of Justice Danladi Umar.

Source: Legit.ng

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