By Miriam Humbe
The Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Petroleum Resources, Amb. Nicholas Agbo Ella has called on the staff of his Ministry to embrace a culture of zero tolerance for corruption and ensure that ethical considerations are at the heart of their official decisions.
Ella said this on Tuesday in Abuja at a sensitization workshop organised by the Anti – Corruption and Transparency Unit (ACTU) of the Ministry.
It was themed: “Curbing corruption at workplace”.
The Permanent Secretary noted that the Petroleum Industry remained the backbone of Nigeria’s economy, contributing approximately 85% of government revenue and 95% of foreign exchange earnings.
He added that in spite of its critical importance, the Oil and Gas Sector had historically been susceptible to financial malpractices, contract opacity, revenue leakages and operational inefficiencies, all of which have significantly undermined national development efforts.
Citing the 2021 Nigeria Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (NEITI) Oil and Gas Industry Report, Ella said that Nigeria lost approximately $46 billion in oil revenue between 2009 and 2020 due to operational inefficiencies, contract opacity, and illicit financial flows.
The Permanent Secretary further stated that the 2023 Global Corruption Index ranked Nigeria 150th out of 180 countries, with corruption in the extractive industries cited as a major contributing factor.
He however expressed optimism that the inauguration of Anti-Corruption Unit was a significant step towards institutionalizing ethical practices, improving governance structures, and ensuring regulatory compliance within the Ministry and its affiliated Agencies.
He enthused that the workshop would mark the beginning of a new era of corporate integrity, ethical leadership and systemic accountability in the Ministry of Petroleum Resources.
Ella expressed profound appreciation to the Honourable Ministers of State Petroleum Resources, Independent Corrupt Practices and other Related Offences Commission (ICPC), Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), and the Nigeria Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (NEITI) and all stakeholders for their unwavering support for the initiative.
Speaking at the workshop, the Director of Special Duties in the Ministry, Mr. Salami Adebola opined that corruption is a problem that can have catastrophic consequences on the nation’s economy and charged the participants to demonstrate strong commitment to integrity and transparency in order to hold themselves accountable for their actions.
Earlier in his welcome address, the Chairman of Anti-Corruption and Transparency Unit (ACTU) in the Ministry, Mr. Emmanuel Okon said that ACTU, an arm of of Independent Corrupt Practices and other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) was approved by the Federal Executive Council (FEC) in 2001 to serve as an in-house check mechanism for the prevention of corruption in various MDAs in line with global best practices of building strong institutions and encouraging governments to fight against corruption and unethical conducts in the workplaces.
Resources Persons from the National Headquarters of the ICPC delivered lectures at the workshop, while the high point of the event was the unveiling of the ACTU Banner.
