As a result of its anti-corruption campaign, Chairman of the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC), Ekpo Nta, has praised the Bayelsa State Government, urging it not to relent in that direction.
Nta, who spoke on Thursday in Yenagoa during a summit and flag-off of an anti-corruption campaign, said Bayelsa has one of the lowest records of corruption in the country and attributed it to the commitment of the present administration under Governor Seriake Dickson.
He announced that Bayelsa State is the first to apply to have the ICPC in their state which is an indication that the government is serious on the issue of fighting corruption and lauded the governor for checkmating corrupt practices in the public sector.
The ICPC chairman also hailed Dickson for his numerous transparency programmes and promised to send a template of the commission’s verification forms to assist the verification work of the various committees set up by the government to fight corruption.
In his remark, Dickson who thanked the ICPC for the great job it is doing in the country to reduce corruption informed that his administration is ready to partner with the commission to step up the ongoing anti-corruption campaign in Bayelsa State.
Earlier in their remarks, Speaker of the State Assembly, Rt. Hon. Konbowei Benson, said with a law such as the Transperency Law by the government has made it possible for Bayelsans to, on a monthly basis, monitor the state’s income and expenditure while the State Chief Judge, Justice Kate Abiri, noted that the judiciary in Bayelsa is truly independent.
She opined that the development has made it possible for them to effectively carry out their duties and also thanked Dickson for providing modern electronic equipment to record and monitor court proceedings which has made legal proceedings more attractive.
