Chinedum Treasure
The Head of Service of Anambra State, Barrister Theodora Igwegbe, has urged civil servants to key into the anti-corruption campaign championed by the Rule of Law and Anti-corruption (RoLAC) Program 2, to heal the state civil service of the destructive effects of corruption.
Igwegbe made the call during the inauguration of the Monitoring and Evaluation (M&E) Committee and Anti-corruption committees (ACCs) of various Ministries, Departments and Agencies, MDAs, under the Component of the RoLAC programme.
The event, organized by the RoLAC 2 program, funded by the European Union and implemented by International IDEA, attracted members of the M&E committee (state and non-state actors) as well as civil servants, who are members of the anti-corruption committees across the MDAs.
Represented by Mr Bayo Ojeyinka, the Permanent Secretary in the office, the Head of Service appealed to public servants to allow the service to heal from the devastating impacts of corruption. “Some of us present here are corrupt. But since you are in this committee, you are expected to change because the people you are teaching corruption today can mess you up when you come back to them after retirement.
“Be a soldier of anti-corruption as we are building the institutional mechanism to make it work. Your presence here underscores our collective commitment to strengthening governance, enhancing service delivery and ensuring accountability in Anambra State.
Igwegbe lauded the first phase of the RoLAC program for achieving significant milestones in promoting transparency, improving access to justice and strengthening anti-corruption measures. “In RoLAC 2, we are poised to build on these achievements to institutionalize best practices across the 21 local governments in Anambra State. This inauguration marks the beginning of structured capacity building activities aimed at equipping you with the necessary knowledge, skills and tools to drive the anti-corruption strategy forward.
“As public servants, you and other stakeholders must be equipped with the skills to enforce anti-corruption frameworks and uphold ethical governance standards in your various MDAs, and local governments.
“Building your capacity at the state, local government and agency level will ensure that service delivery is not compromised by inefficiency and corrupt practices. What we are doing here is for the benefit of our state, our children and grandchildren,” she said.
In an address of welcome, the RoLAC State Coordinator, Dr Josephine Onah, remarked, “We are here to talk about issues around corruption. RoLAC 2 is a successor programme to RoLAC 1, during which RoLAC worked with the state government to develop an anti-corruption strategy, containing the policy and legal framework for this anti-corruption fight.
“However, remember, corruption is not limited to money. It can be as basic as taking attendance in an office properly or delivering services to the citizens without compromising standards.
“All we have come to do is to enhance the performance, is to increase accountability, transparency of the legal processes, of the policy frameworks, you know, that are part of the processes by which we will do the work on anti-corruption.
“Bear it in mind, that this is targeted at increasing the oversight functions of the actors of anti-corruption, so that we will be able to operate optimally,” Onah concluded.
In a goodwill message, Chairman, Local Government Commission, Barrister Vincent Ezeaka, charged members of the M&E and ACCs to strive to be above board. “You’re our anti-corruption agents. If you want to fight corruption, you must be free from corruption. If you don’t fight corruption now that you are working, corruption will fight you even after service. Approach this task with the determination to justify the confidence reposed in you. Do it well to the benefit of all of us”.
Chief Ezeaka stressed the importance of rejigging the state and local government services for optimal performances and greater efficiency.
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