EFCC boss charges UNILORIN students to be anti-graft vanguards
By Stephen Olufemi Oni, Ilorin
The Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Abdulrasheed Bawa, has called on students of the University of Ilorin, to shun cybercrime and be foot soldiers in the fight against corruption.
He also admonished the students to be disciplined and strive for academic excellence.
Bawa gave the admonition in Ilorin, the Kwara state capital, at the 2020/2021 Orientation Programme for fresh students of the University of Ilorin.
The EFCC Chairman, who was represented by the Head, Public Affairs Department, Ilorin Zonal Command of the EFCC, Ayodele Babatunde, said the woes bedeviling the country could be tied to corruption.
He said: “In discussions among scholars and ordinary people, there is overwhelming convergence of opinion that corruption is at the intersection of the nation’s development. This is the reason our country is still touted as a potentially great nation despite its rich natural and human resources endowment.”
He decried youths involvement in cybercrime, saying, “One critical group of stakeholders are the youths. Apart from the fact that they are considered as the leaders of tomorrow, most economic crimes, especially cybercrime, are committed by young people.”
The EFCC boss, while calling on youths to avoid the temptation of being lured into cybercrime or any other form of corruption said: “Young people must not be mere spectators in the anti-graft campaign. Rather, they should actually be the foot soldiers leading the mass rout of corruption and economic crimes out of our land.
“It is no use lamenting that things are not right with our country. We are inviting you to lend a hand in helping us build a society where there is respect for law and order and where impunity is a thing of the past. We urge you, when you see something, to say something; and don’t stop there, please do something.”
Earlier, the Vice Chancellor of the University of Ilorin, Prof. Sulyman Age Abdulkareem, represented by the Dean, Student Affairs, Prof. Lanre Ajibade, enjoined the students to be disciplined at all times and be dedicated to their studies adding that the University has zero tolerance for anything anti-social.
While assuring the EFCC of the university’s support in the fight against corruption, Prof. Abdulkareem commended the anti graft agency for its giant strides towards having a country that is free of corruption.