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THE CONTRIBUTIONS OF EFCC IN PROMOTING FINANCIAL ACCOUNTABILITY AND TRANSPARENCY IN NIGERIA

Amount: ₦5,000.00 |

Format: Ms Word |

1-5 chapters |



ABSTRACT

Several years of military misrule and mismanagement had weakened the economic management processes and institutions in Nigeria.   There was no transparency and accountability in government   (Public   Sector)   and   private   sectors   and   Nigeria became notorious for endemic corruption.   The result was the inability of government to deliver services to the Nigeria public. Most private  companies both  in  the oil  and  non-oil sector  have constantly evade taxes and have collide with officials to evade custom duties and payment of  taxes.    In  addition, widespread perpetration of economic and financial crimes like advance fee fraud (419), money laundering, cyber crime, banking fraud and endemic corruption have had severe negative consequences on Nigeria, including decreased direct foreign investment in the country.   Consequently, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) was established as one of the mechanisms for the prevention, investigation and prosecution of corrupt practices and economic and financial crimes in the public and the private  sector.   Finally,  this research  work  is aimed  at looking into  the  various  contributions  of  the  Economic  and  Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) in promoting financial accountability and  transparency.  To  achieve  this  aim  five  research  questions were   developed.      The   study   adopted   the   survey   research approach using the three study areas.   The EFCC Lagos, EFCC Enugu and PHCN formed the population of the study.   A sample size of 55 was choosing using Taro Yamane’s model while simple random   techniques   was   used   to   select   the   sample.      Data retrieved from 55 completed questionnaires were subsequently presented   in   tables   while   simple   percentage   were   used   to analyse and answer the research questions formulated to guide the research  work.   After  the analysis of  data,  the hypotheses tested reviewed that the contributions of EFCC has effectively promoted financial accountability and transparency in Nigeria. Therefore, the researcher recommends the following: developing an intensified information technology, staff training, capacity building and health care fraud control.

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

1.1   BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY

Fraudulent activities, economic mismanagement, corruption, lack of accountability and transparency have been the  bane  of  the  economy.  Fraud  and  criminality  remained elusive   and   therefore   brought   inefficiency   in   the   system, especially in the public sector.

This menace lead to the establishment of EFCC in 2002 by an  Act of  the  National  Assembly which  was  later amended  in 2004. It was borne out of the determination of the Federal Government to root out corruption and sanitize the Nigerian economic environment by enforcing all economic and financial crimes laws.

The Act mandates the EFCC to combat financial and economic crimes and the Commission is empowered to prevent, investigate, prosecute and penalize economic and financial crimes.   Also,   the   EFCC   is   charged   with   and   has   been investigating cases of abuse of office, diversion of public funds through   fraudulent   award   of   contracts,   tax   fraud,   illegal bunkering,  terrorism  financing,  capital  market  fraud,  cyber crime, banking fraud, etc.

With a mission to curb the menace of corruption that constitutes  the  clog in the  wheel of progress; protect national and foreign investments in the country; imbue the spirit of hard work  in  the  citizenry  and  discourage  the  crave  for  ill-gotten wealth;  identify  such  ill-gotten  wealth  and  confiscate  them; build an upright work force in both public and private sector of the economy; and contribute to the global war against financial crimes and terrorism financing; the advent of the EFCC has impacted   positively   on   Nigeria’s   global   acceptance   being   a turning point in the country’s anti-corruption crusade.

Since its establishment, the EFCC has taken the bull by the horns working tenaciously to fulfill its mandate. Under the current leadership, it vigorously pursues its mandate of investigating  cases  earlier  highlighted;  the  Commission  has made concerted efforts in identifying, tracing and freezing, confiscating, or seizing proceeds derived from such illicit activities. EFCC, from inception, has also played host to the Nigerian  Financial  Intelligence  Unit  (NFIU),  vested  with  the responsibility   of   collecting   suspicious   transactions   reports (STRs) from financial and designated non-financial institutions, analyzing and disseminating them to all relevant government agencies and other FIUs all over the world.

So   far,   the   Commission   has   been   able   to   and   still recording successes in several areas of its mandate. Among others, it has recorded several convictions on corruption, money laundering, oil pipeline vandalism and related offences. Assets and money worth over $11 billion have been recovered from corrupt officials and their cohorts. The Commission is tenacious with   over   65   high   profile   cases   at   advanced   stages   of prosecution  in  several  courts  in  Nigeria  and  over  1500  other cases in court and secured over 600 convictions.

Before   then   there   were   other   provisions   of   Financial

Crimes Laws such as:

  Money laundering amendment Acts 2003, No 7; 1995, No

  The Advance fee fraud and other related offences Act 1995 as amended.

  The   failed   Banks   (Recovery   of   Debts)   and   financial malpractices on Banks Acts 1994 as amended.

  The Banks and other financial institution Act 1991 as amended.

  Miscellaneous offences Act 1983.

  Any  other  law  or  regulations  relating  to  economic  and financial  crimes  including  the  Criminal  code  and  penal code.

The commission is also designated to Nigerian financial intelligent unit (NFIU). It is thus, substantial that our problem is not the absence of legislation (Law) or the deficiencies in them but the total neglect to enforce them have been the plight of disaster,

1.2   STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM

A nation where financial and economic crimes are endemic cannot attain economic stability, growth and development. According to Irving Kristol’s (2OO7), the problem is always far more important than devising a solution, for he who can define the problem has always exercised a large degree of intellectual sovereignty over the range of possible solutions that must be imagined

Nigeria being a country where corruption is pandemic has been rated  both domestically and internationally as  a  corrupt nation. Public officials take huge bribes and the cost of public goods and services are inflated, government often pays for non- existent goods and services. Even when such corrupt practices are  exposed,  it  has  always  been  played  to  the  gallery  and sacrificed at the alter of backside bargaining. The corrupt practices that have characterized and painted the nation black include fraud, embezzlement, falsification of financial information,  obtaining  by  false  pretence,  lack  of  transparency and accountability among others.

These evils have in no small measure negated economic stability,  growth  and  development  in  our  country.  Experience has shown that both the public and private sectors have continued to suffer inefficiency and ineptness and that growth indices  and  graph  are  having  a  downward  slope.  This  has brought the pertinent question — are there adequate control measures and checks to stem this ugly tide (corruption)?

Poor and insincere policy conception, formulation and implementation  on  economic  and  financial  crimes  in  Nigeria have  been  responsible  for  the  low  achievement  recorded  in curbing and stamping out economic and financial crimes in the country. Hence, the emergence of the “Economic and financial crimes commission to enhance financial accountability and transparency in Nigeria.”

1.3   AIMS/OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY

The major aim of this study is to assess the contributions of EFCC in promoting financial accountability and transparency in Nigeria.  The objectives include:

1.      To examine the responsibilities and functions of EFCC.

2.   To  carry  out  a  comprehensive  analysis  on  the contributions  of EFCC  in detecting and  controlling fraud in Nigeria.

3.      To  examine  how  effective  EFCC  contributions  benefited Nigeria public and private sectors since her inception.

4.      To   examine   the   contributions   of   EFCC   in   enhancing financial accountability and transparency.

5.      To effectively examine the achievements and successes of the commission.

1.4   RESEARCH QUESTIONS

1.      What are the responsibilities and functions of EFCC?

2.      What  are  the  contributions  of  EFCC  in  detecting  and controlling fraud in Nigeria?

3.      How effective EFCC contributions benefited Nigeria public and private sector?

4.      What are the contribution of EFCC in enhancing financial accountability and transparency?

5.      What    are    the    achievements    and    successes    of    the commission?

1.5   RESEARCH HYPOTHESES

Also in line with objectives and research questions are the hypotheses of this study.

1.      EFCC  has  no  responsibilities  and  functions  assigned  for her.

2.      EFCC contributions cannot benefit the Nigeria public and private sector.

3.      There is no achievement and successes on the side of the Commission.

4.      The   contributions   of   EFCC   cannot   enhance   financial accountability and transparency.

5.      EFCC as a machinery cannot effectively detect and control financial and economic irregularities in Nigeria.

1.6     SIGNIFICANT OF THE STUDY.

The research work will be useful and moreover be a source of information to the followings

•        Government  with  this  research  work  will  be  witty  and aware of the extent the activities of EFCC has   contributed      in administration and controlling of fraud in Nigeria. It will also be of great significant in examining the area of weakness and how best to improve them for effective regulation of fraud.

•         To the academic, the research work will help    them formulate  more  theories  and  strategies  that  will  enhance  the effectiveness of EFCC in ensuring financial accountability and transparency.   It   will   also   contribute   to   the   enrichment   of literature on EFCC and serve as a body of reserved knowledge to be referred to by researchers.

•         Public    sector,    by    this    we    mean    all    government parastatals,    institutions,    ministries,    corporations    etc. FIUs work will expose them to the activities of  EFCC.

•        Private sector: By this we mean individuals and corporate bodies who have contributed their resources to provide goods  and  services  to  the  public  at  a  profit.  They  carry out their various activities which are expected to be done within the ambits of laws and legislations governing their operations. They include sole proprietorship, partnership, corporate organizations among others.

1.7 SCOPE AND LIMITATION OF THE STUDY.

The scope of this study tries to take a holistic view of the activities of EFCC in Nigeria and how these  can help improve financial accountability and transparency. It embraces their operations both in the public and private sectors with the aim of improving financial efficiency.

1.8     LIMITATIONS.

This research work would suffer many set backs due to a lot of reasons. One of such is the inaccessibility of information from the office of EFCC. Presently, they are security conscious and unwilling to disclose information and plans available some write ups and journals which would have been helpful for this research  work.  Ideally,  the  work  should  have  involved  more states  but due  to  some  inherent constraint such as  time  and money  but  effort  would  be  made  to  at  least  touch  a  great number of states to have a balance view of this research.

1.9   DEFINITION OF TERMS.

•        EFCC:  This  is  an  acronym  for  Economic  and  Financial crimes commission. It is a commission created by an act of  the  National  Assembly  in  2002  and  was  amended  in 2004. It is charged with the responsibility of investigating and   enforcement   of   all   laws   against   economic   and financial crimes.

•        FRAUD:  The  crime  of  deceiving  somebody  in  order  to collect  money  or  goods  illegally.  It  also  means  a  person who  pretends  to  have  qualities  and  abilities,  skills  etc that he or she does not really have to deceive others.

•        It is an acronym for Nigeria Financial intelligent unit. It is an autonomous central national agency, domiciled within EFCC   with   responsibility   of   receiving   and   analyzing financial information.

•         INVESTIGATION:    This    means    a    special    kind    of examination of accounts or records carried on by an investigator with the predefined purpose according to the necessity of the situation (Chike Nwoha 2003:33).



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THE CONTRIBUTIONS OF EFCC IN PROMOTING FINANCIAL ACCOUNTABILITY AND TRANSPARENCY IN NIGERIA

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