L-R: Chief of Staff to the chairman, Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS), Mr Tayo Koleosho; Coordinating Director, Support Services Group, M.L Abubakar; and representative of the chairman of the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) and Director, System Study and Review of ICPC, Mr Olusegun Adigun, during the inauguration of Anti-Corruption and Transparency Unit (ACTU) at the Revenue House in Abuja on Tuesday.
.Inducts unit members
Adedeji: He, who comes to equity must come with clean hands
By Valentine Amanze
The Chairman, Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS), Zacch Adedeji, has constituted a 12-member Anti-Corruption and Transparency Unit (ACTU) to ensure zero tolerance for unethical acts and corruption within the revenue-collecting agency.
The unit, which is to collaborate with anti-graft agencies, was inaugurated by the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) at the Revenue House in Abuja, on Tuesday, according to a statement issued by Dare Adekanmbi, the Special Adviser on Media to the FIRS boss.
Adedeji, who was represented by his Chief of Staff, Mr Tayo Koleosho, urged the newly inducted members of the anti-corruption unit to live above board.
His words: “He, who comes to equity must come with clean hands.”
Adedeji also urged members of the unit to reflect the core values of the agency which he said abhor corruption, tasking them to bring integrity and transparency to bear in their roles and responsibilities.
“The easy part of being a member of FIRS anti-corruption unit has just been done. The real work starts now. I believe that he who comes to equity must come with clean hands.
“The staff of FIRS and by extension the taxpayers as well as the general public should be able to relate with the integrity you bring to this responsibility,” Adedeji said.
The Coordinating Director, Support Services Group, Mohammed Lawal Abubakar, in his contribution, assured that the FIRS would continue to provide support for the anti-corruption unit and urged the inductees to be good examples of people imbued with honesty and integrity.
Also read: Nigeria needs law to overhaul revenue collection, regulate cryptocurrency landscape –FIRS
ICPC Chairman, Dr. Musa Adamu Aliyu, who was represented by the Director, System Study and Review of ICPC, Mr Olusegun Adigun, said that the FIRS ACTU members would be supported to deliver on their mandate.
“With this inauguration, the Anti-Corruption and Transparency Unit of the FIRS has been empowered to deliver on its mandate which includes: periodic sensitisation of staff on the ills of corruption; examination of systems, processes and procedures that are prone to corruption and offering solutions; developing and reviewing code of ethics for staff and ensuring compliance with same; monitoring budget and its implementation by the FIRS, coordinating the deployment of the ethics and integrity scorecards and undertaking preliminary investigation into complaints and reports received.
“The ACTU is not set up as a parallel authority to the management. Rather, they are to work closely with the management to build a reputable agency. I therefore implore the FIRS to see the unit in this light and support it by providing conducive environment for it to function, provide funds and office accommodation as well as incorporate members in various standing committees as contained in the extant circular of the Federal Government,” said the ICPC chief.
For more interesting stories click: nigerianewsflight.com.ng
