The Benue State Government has reiterated its commitment to strengthening collaboration with the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) in the fight against corruption.
According to Hobnob News, the Special Adviser to the Governor on Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs, Mr. Denen Aondoakaa, disclosed this over the weekend in Makurdi during a courtesy visit by the ICPC Benue Resident Anti-Corruption Commissioner, Mr. M.A. Wala.
Mr. Aondoakaa said Governor Hyacinth Alia had directed all government appointees and civil servants to be transparent and diligent in the management of public resources. He noted that this commitment was evident in the administration’s ongoing infrastructure projects, prompt payment of salaries and pensions, and other critical interventions that have positioned Benue as a hub of construction and development.
The Special Adviser expressed the Bureau’s readiness to work closely with the ICPC, as requested by the Resident Anti-Corruption Commissioner, to strengthen institutions at the local government level and safeguard them against corrupt practices. He also stressed the need for value re-orientation campaigns to discourage the public from exerting undue financial pressure on public officials, which he said often fuels corruption.
Mr. Aondoakaa thanked the ICPC for the visit and reaffirmed the Bureau’s readiness to support anti-corruption initiatives, particularly at the grassroots.
Earlier, Mr. Wala explained that the visit aimed to foster stronger partnership with the Bureau to extend the ICPC’s campaigns to local governments and raise anti-corruption awareness at the grassroots. He said the commission’s focus was not only on arrests, prosecution, and enforcement, but also on preventing corruption through system review and public enlightenment.
