The acting Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, Ibrahim Magu, has dedicated the 2016 Person of the Year Award, bestowed on him by the Leadership Newspapers, to Nigerians, calling for more support in ridding the country of economic and financial crimes.
“I want to dedicate this award to all Nigerians, who have supported us in the fight against corruption,” he said.
Magu was among eminent Nigerians, who were on March 17, recognised for their achievements in various fields, including business, banking, aviation, leadership, music and education by Leadership Newspapers.
The award was bestowed on him for “doing one of the nation’s most challenging jobs in your dogged fight against corruption, working without a letter of confirmation in that acting capacity for over one year.”
Indeed, the award and recognition of his dogged commitment to the fight against corruption, came two days after the Nigerian Senate on March 15, chose to overlook the vigour with which the anti-graft czar has led the anti-corruption vision of the President Muhammadu Buhari administration.
An elated Magu, who noted that he received the award because “the process of selection was transparent and the organisers have high integrity,” has also been invited by two leading global anti-corruption organisations, the Transparency International and Global Witness, to speak at an international conference on money laundering and assets recovery on March 21, in London.
He would be speaking on the topic, “Give Us Our Money Back – Nigeria’s Fight Against Corruption: A Critical Conversation.”
“The commitment of the leadership of this country in fighting corruption is not in doubt, and so I call on everybody to join us in fighting corruption,” he added.
The event, which held at the International Conference Centre, Abuja, had as its theme, “The Rice Economy”.
The Minister of Agriculture, Audu Ogbeh, who delivered the keynote speech on the theme, noted that Nigerian government aims at making the country a major producer of rice, like India and China.
“By the time Nigeria achieves self-sufficiency in its rice production, it will mean the saving of nearly $7 million a day from our foreign reserves; it will mean a happier society,” Ogbeh said.
In attendance were captains of industry, members of the executive and legislature among other notable members of the society including, the Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami; the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Mohammed Bello; the Minister of Defence, Mohammed Dan Ali; the Senate Minority Leader, Godswill Akpabio; the Minister of Internal Affairs, Abdulrahman Dambazau; a former Vice President, Atiku Abubakar, among others.
