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EFCC, banks’ auditors renew collaboration over fraud

By Chijioke Nelson
30 May 2017   |   1:37 am
A renewed collaboration in the fight against frauds in the banking system may have been forged between the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and the Association of Chief Audit Executives of Banks in Nigeria (ACAEBIN).

A renewed collaboration in the fight against frauds in the banking system may have been forged between the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and the Association of Chief Audit Executives of Banks in Nigeria (ACAEBIN).

The move, which is aimed at strengthening the ties, was reechoed during the visit the association’s executive to EFCC’s Lagos Office.ACAEBIN Chairman, Abiodun Aderoju, explained that the fight against corruption by the present administration will not be successful without the involvement and cooperation of the banks.

The association’s delegation was received by the Head of Economic Governance Crime, Mohammed Rabo, on behalf of the Head of Operations of the Lagos Unit of the anti-graft agency.

Aderoju noted that there was need for the association to constantly exchange details with the anti-graft agency in efforts to improve the current level of information sharing mechanism between them.

“The Association appreciates the effort of the EFCC in the renewed fight against corruption but believes that the needed result will not be fully achieved without the involvement and cooperation of the banks especially in the area of information and knowledge sharing.

“It is on this note that we as an Association and the third line of defense in the banking industry have come to familiarize ourselves with the new head of the Lagos Unit of the Commission and pledge our commitment to collaborate with him,” he said.

However, Rabo promised the association that the commission would strive to address the issues raised by the auditors despite the challenges of manpower and other logistics that beset the agency.

He tasked the auditors on the need to build trust with the commission by ensuring quick response to request for details, as that would enable it discharge its duties effectively.

He also urged the auditors to ensure proper profiling and documentation of bank customers, under the “Know Your Customer” policy, adding that it is key to all its investigations.

On the other hand, the association notes with concern that EFCC’s current focus on sanitising the public sector has made unscrupulous bank customers who obtained loans under false pretense to operate unhindered.

They therefore, appealed to the Federal Government to allocate more resources to the commission to enable it conclude investigations and prosecute defaulting bank customers in line with the Know Your Customer requirements.

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