By Chika Onyesi
The economic and financial crimes commission has
warned banks against conniving with politicians to compromise the upcoming elections.
He gave the warning at a meeting with the
association of chief conduct and compliance officers of banks in Nigeria.
The Executive Chairman of the EFCC, Mr. Ibrahim Magu
noted that the anti-graft agency has observed various activities of financial institutions
and the deliberate connivance and collusion of most Banks in laundering illicit
funds for criminals as well as politicians.
‘‘We are not ignorant of the prevailing
electioneering activities going on in the Country today and the efforts being
made by many politicians who had stolen our commonwealth to repatriate to
Nigeria these stolen funds for the purpose of influencing the elections through
vote buying and compromise of election officers to do their bidding, as well as
engage in various other illicit activities calculated to undermined the
integrity of the elections’’
He said the impact of allowing political elements compromise
the elections will be grievous, and devastating.
‘‘We are all under a civic duty to comply with our
various responsibilities and ensure that we do the needful to obey the laws and
regulations governing the elections; let me remind you that the provisions of
the Nigerian Electoral Act, 2010, Article 130, provides that: “ A person who-
(a) ‘‘Corruptly
by himself or by any other person at any time after the date of an election has
been announced, directly or indirectly gives or provides or pays money to or
for any person for the purpose of corruptly influencing that person or any
other person to vote or refrain from voting at such election, or on account of
such person or any other person having voted or refrained from voting at such
election; or
(b)
Being a voter, corruptly or takes money or any other inducement during any of
the period stated in paragraphs (a) of this Section, commits an offence and is
liable on conviction to a fine of N 100,000.00 or 12 months imprisonment or
both”
The EFCC boss said while vote buying is subject to
punishment, the attainment of compliance to this legal obligation is the responsibility
of all.
He said the activities of the criminals can be
checkmated by increase transaction monitoring by the Bank officers and
reporting suspicious transactions to the relevant agencies timely.
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