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Nigerians have no reason to pay bribes, Osinbajo declares
Vice President Yemi Osinbajo has declared that no Nigerian has any reason to pay bribes to law enforcement agencies in order to obtain drivers licenses, passports or clear goods from the ports.
The Vice President, who made the declaration on Tuesday in Abuja at the anti-corruption conference organized by the Office of the Vice President and Presidential Advisory Committee Against Corruption, PACAC, said: “All the relevant government agencies have shown a serious commitment to eradicating these forms of corruption; our next level is to create the environment for collaboration between our agencies, civil society and other stakeholders.”
Osinbajo also declared that the Federal government can seize assets from any citizen who cannot explain the source of their wealth.
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“The Supreme Court in a lead judgment of Akaahs JSC, recently held that forfeiture under Section 17 of the Advanced Fee Fraud and Other Related Offences Act is a civil process which neither requires the criminal conviction of the property owner nor his innocence.
“This opens the door for forfeiture of assets that the purported owner cannot explain, whether or not an allegation of corruption is made.
“By that, we mean the stealing of huge public resources directly from the treasury; usually at the highest levels of executive authority; and the stealing of budgeted funds through various schemes.
“We are now poised to deal with the wider problem of systemic corruption; especially where the average person interacts with government.
“Corruption in the issuance of contracts, licenses and other government approvals; there is no reason why any Nigerian should have to give bribe to law enforcement agents for obtaining drivers licenses or passports or to clear goods at our ports”, the Vice President.
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