As war on corruption heats up, EFCC wants 750 more staff

In from Ripples Nigeria

The Chairman of  Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Mr. Ibrahim Magu, on Tuesday sought the support of the National Assembly to recruit additional 750 staff of different cadres.

Justifying the need for the new hire, Magu said it becomes inevitable so as to assist the commission in its effort to fight corruption effectively.

The EFCC boss made the request while presenting the commission’s 2016 budget proposal before the Senate Committee on Anti-Corruption and Financial Crime in Abuja.

He said, “We have made the proposal asking for permission for us to recruit that number of staff to increase our staff strength to build up our capacity to do the work. The expectation is very high, so we have to put in the proper manpower development to enable us handle our duties.’’

Magu also urged the National Assembly to approve the provision of N220million for the purchase of operational vehicles as contained in the Commission’s 2016 proposal of N11.2billion. He equally requested the approval and inclusion of the sum of N160 million in the commission’s 2016 budget proposal in view of the need for the commission to make foreign travels in the course of its duties.

“The commission has to contend with serious office space constraint with attendant burden of high rent rate to meet office space requirements in rented apartments. This invariably affects the commission’s operational activities through significant loss of man-hours and compromise control over human resources and documents,’’ he said.

The Chairman, Senate Committee on Anti-Corruption and Financial Crimes, Sen. Chukwuka Utazi, pledged the committee’s resolve to present the request made by the commission before the leadership of the National Assembly.

He said although there was paucity of funds in the economy, the fight against corruption must be taken seriously to enable the commission recover stolen funds.

“The issue here is need, not just the paucity of funds.  When you are fighting corruption, you need the manpower, you don’t stay in your house to do it, you need personnel to do it. We have been carrying series of oversights to make sure we are on the same page with you in terms of the challenges you face and what should be done to tackle them.”

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