The Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) has urged heads of tertiary establishments throughout Nigeria to strengthen inner controls, implement transparency and deal with corruption dangers to make sure that interventions by the Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund) ship worth for cash.
The ICPC chairman, Dr Musa Adamu Aliyu, mentioned elevated funding alone couldn’t assure enhancements within the schooling sector with out efficient accountability, correct mission supervision and prudent administration of public assets.
Aliyu made the decision in Abuja on Monday whereas declaring open a two-day Organisational Integrity Management Capacity-Building Programme for officers of TETFund beneficiary establishments.
The programme was organised by the Anti-Corruption Academy of Nigeria (ACAN), the coaching and analysis arm of ICPC, with assist from TETFund.
The ICPC chairman recognized weak procurement practices, insufficient mission supervision, ineffective inner controls, conflicts of curiosity and monetary mismanagement as main corruption dangers able to undermining investments in tertiary schooling.
He confused that establishments benefiting from public funds should reveal transparency and accountability in managing the assets.
“Integrity must not exist merely in policy documents or institutional mission statements. It must be reflected in everyday decisions, administrative processes, and the management of public resources,” he mentioned.
Aliyu urged heads of establishments to guide by instance via moral conduct, strict enforcement of established procedures and the supply of secure channels for reporting misconduct with out concern of victimisation.
He additionally referred to as for normal corruption danger assessments, improved documentation, separation of duties, unbiased verification of initiatives and stronger reporting mechanisms.
According to him, collaborating establishments ought to develop particular integrity measures, assign tasks to designated officers, set implementation timelines and introduce measurable indicators to watch compliance.
“The success of this initiative should be measured not merely by attendance or participation, but by the improvements introduced in your respective institutions,” he added.
Aliyu reaffirmed ICPC’s dedication to stopping corruption in public establishments via System Study and Review, Corruption Risk Assessment, the Ethics and Integrity Compliance Scorecard and capacity-building initiatives applied via ACAN.
Earlier, ACAN Provost, Professor Sheriff Ghali Ibrahim, mentioned selling integrity in tertiary establishments required the involvement of administration, tutorial and non-academic employees, in addition to college students.
He recognized honesty, accountability and equity as vital values for constructing public confidence and sustaining moral requirements within the schooling sector.
Ibrahim urged tertiary establishments to collaborate with ICPC to handle administrative corruption, embezzlement, examination misconduct, monetisation of marks, sexual harassment and the usage of ghost staff.
He recommended TETFund for supporting the initiative, noting that strengthening institutional integrity was crucial to enhance governance and shield investments in schooling.
Also talking, TETFund Executive Secretary, Arc. Sonny Echono, represented by the Director of Human Resources and General Administration, Dr Kolapo Okunlola, mentioned funding with out accountable management and efficient implementation wouldn’t produce the specified outcomes.
Echono urged heads of establishments to adjust to procurement legal guidelines, monetary laws and TETFund pointers, whereas taking duty for the standard and outcomes of initiatives executed with intervention funds.
He additionally referred to as on institutional authorities to guard whistleblowers and establish vulnerabilities of their administrative and monetary programs.
The TETFund government secretary reaffirmed the fund’s dedication to transparency and accountability, stressing that the success of its interventions must be measured not solely by the amount of cash launched but additionally by enhancements in instructional infrastructure, analysis and studying outcomes.
He urged members to translate classes from the programme into sensible reforms that might strengthen accountability and guarantee public investments in tertiary schooling obtain their meant targets.
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