NNPC

2023: Ambitious public officials should resign to engage in politics, says Olawepo-Hashim

A chieftain of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), Gbenga Olawepo-Hashim, has said all appointed public officials nursing political ambitions in 2023 must resign from their present positions before joining the partisan politics train.

Delivering a paper, titled: Uthman Danfodiyo: A Legacy of Anti-Corruption, at the Arewa House Public Lecture in Kaduna yesterday, Olawepo-Hashim noted that the first step to stem corruption in Nigeria is to ensure that the forces promoting graft do not hijack the processes in the build-up to 2023 general election.

The former presidential candidate said politicians with prima facie cases of corruption established against them must be shamed and prevented by the electorate from being nominated in the various party elections.
According to him, if such corrupt politicians cannot be stopped in the primaries, they must be voted against at the general election.

Olawepo-Hashim also called for the decentralisation of government processes to reduce corruption induced through over-centralisation of power and made a case for “constitutional amendment to ensure that elected public officers at the Federal and state levels publicly declare their assets upon election to office. Mere declaration at the Code of Conduct Bureau (CCB) asset declaration forms will no longer suffice”.

The business mogul also called for a new policy of encouraging electronic registration of all assets, such as land and house titles at state levels.
Olawepo-Hashim had expressed his gratitude to the Arewa House for giving him “the opportunity to speak on this important topic concerning the legacy of a scholar, philosopher and extraordinary reformer, Sheikh Uthman Danfodio, especially as it affects corruption, the hydra-headed virus ravaging Nigeria’s social, political and economic fabric”.

He added: “Nothing of recent underscores the depth of the corruption quagmire in our country as the sordid details of the alleged drug deals of the soon-to-be extradited top policeman, DCP Abba Kyari.

“This particular case is interesting because it reveals how audacious the corrupt have become in the Nigerian system. Since Kyari was already indicted on cybercrime, one would have expected him to keep a low profile, as men of the underworld do in other climes when the radar is on them.

“But in Nigeria, the criminals now believe that there is no government and that they can literally get away with just anything.”

The lecture, which attracted dignitaries and intellectuals from the public and private sectors, had the Director of Arewa House, Dr. Shehu Aliyu delivering the welcome address on behalf of the Vice Chancellor of the Ahmadu Bello University (ABU), Zaria, Professor Kabiru Bala.

Other dignitaries at the event include Alhaji Usman Ibrahim (Falaki Zazzau), who chaired the occasion; and Professor S. Muhamme, who led the discussion on the paper.

First Bank

About Daily Record

Check Also

Nigerians Speak As DStv, GOtv Lose 1.8 Million Subscribers

MultiChoice, the company behind DStv and GOtv platforms, has recorded a huge decline in its …

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *