Ola Olukoyede, chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), on Monday, tasked heads of tertiary institutions across the country, to join hands with the agency in tackling the rising tide of internet fraud among students.
He said this during an interactive session with chancellors, rectors and provosts of tertiary institutions in Kogi State, at the EFCC Ilorin zonal command office, in Kwara State.
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Olukoyede, who spoke through Michael Nzekwe, the Ilorin zonal commander of EFCC, explained that the engagement was in furtherance of their meeting held on May 4, 2023, in Kwara State as part of the proactive measures by the command to checkmate cybercrime in the state.
The EFCC boss, however, called on authorities of tertiary institutions to put in place measures to discourage students from indulging in crimes even as he admonished parents to be more committed to the moral upbringing of their children.
A statement by Dele Oyewale,
head, media & publicity of the anti-graft agency, quoted the chairman as saying that “the commission can achieve the task of ridding the country of corruption if every institution gets involved and actively participates in the fight against the menace.
“Higher institutions must endeavour to change the current negative narrative regarding the quality of education in Nigeria because a corruption-free Nigeria is possible if every individual is proactively and sincerely involved in the fight against corruption”, he said.
Deliberations were also made on the causes of corruption, and its effects on students and society, including preventive measures to adopt in curbing corrupt practices in tertiary institutions.
Responding, Professor Salawu Sadiku, the vice chancellor of Confluence University of Science and Technology, lauded the initiative of the EFCC and urged the commission to ensure that anti-corruption courses were incorporated into the school curriculum and taught at all levels.
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“Youths of today are exposed to a number of vices that are capable of ruining their lives permanently. We need to do more for students to focus on their studies and desist from all forms of cybercrimes”, he said
Similarly, Salisu Usman, rector, Kogi State Polytechnic, Lokoja and Umar Hassan, provost, College of Education, Okene stressed the need for the introduction of an anti-corruption watchdog as part of measures to checkmate cybercrime on campuses.
