A Professor of Forensic Accounting, Samuel Dada, has called on the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to engage forensic experts to enhance investigation of corruption cases.
Dada delivered the Babcock University 41st inaugural lecture entitled, “The forensic accountant in a global world of corruption and stunted economic growth.”
He recommended the engagement of forensic accounting experts and offer of attractive remuneration to facilitate investigation of corruption cases. He said they could serve as investigators and expert witnesses.
This, he argued, would assist the court reach a conclusion on corruption cases without delay.
The Professor called for the strengthening of the legal framework to ensure that courts apply the provisions of Section 19 Sub-section 2 of the EFCC Act, 2004 for accelerated trial of corruption cases as well as the non-interference in corruption cases by the government.
“Government should not interfere in the operations of EFCC. No individual should be treated as sacred cow,” he said.
Apart from attractive pay, he attributed the success of the anti-corruption campaign in Hong Kong to the country’s anti-corruption agency’s independence from political interference and separation from the police and the civil service.
Dada urged the judiciary not to use technicalities to dismiss cases of corruption as in case of former Delta State Governor, James Ibori, whose case was dismissed by a Nigerian court, but convicted by a court in London, leading to a 13-year jail term for the former governor.
He noted that the inclusion of ethics and forensic accounting in the curricula of tertiary educational institutions would ensure effective professional training and create stronger awareness of its value to “boost societal moral values”.