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ESVARBON cautions pratititioners on ethical pitfalls

By Victor Gbonegun
07 December 2020   |   4:01 am
The Estate Surveyors and Valuers Registration Board of Nigeria (ESVARBON) has charged newly registered practitioners to comply with national and international laws relating to bribery, corruption, money laundering and terrorism financing.

Kasimu

The Estate Surveyors and Valuers Registration Board of Nigeria (ESVARBON) has charged newly registered practitioners to comply with national and international laws relating to bribery, corruption, money laundering and terrorism financing.

The board stated that these aspects of the profession are critical in businesses but relatively ignored.

Chairman, Investigation Panel of ESVARBON, Adamu Kasimu, gave the charge at the induction of 333 inductees, the highest in the history of the board. According to him, ESVARBON sets the minimum standard of education for estate surveyors and valuer, regulates the practice of the profession in Nigeria, and enforces discipline through the investigation panel and tribunal whose rulings can only be set aside by the Court of Appeal.

Kasimu urged them to comply with all statutory requirements against these vices through proper registration of businesses and transactions, reporting as well as effective archiving of records of customers through ’Know your customer’.

He said arrest and conviction of any practitioner by a court might lead to concomitant regulatory disciplinary proceedings by the board for misconduct.

The board drew the attention of the inductees to the existence of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Independent Corrupt Practices Commission (ICPC), Nigeria Financial Intelligence Unit (NFIU), the Special Committee Against Money Laundering (SCUML) and others monitoring transactions in the sector adding that they have to be vigilant.

Kasimu said: “You are required to adhere to the tenets of International Ethic Coalition and act with integrity, provide high standard of service, conduct yourselves in a way that promote trust in the profession, treat others with respect and be ready to take responsibility for your actions. In relation to valuation, adhering to the minimum performance benchmark for valuation reporting is mandatory.”

He stated that the Nigerian economic space has witnessed tremendous changes eliciting lots of challenges for practitioners. This, he said requires high standard of knowledge, diligence and application of contemporary tools by practitioners in both public and private sectors, to stave off competition from quacks

The ESVARBON boss disclosed that the board is about to commence training of valuers on the implementation of Nigerian Valuation Standard, stressing that it may be necessary to be trained before being certified as green book compliant.

“All monies received on behalf of clients must be properly accounted for on demand or as may be agreed in the terms of engagement. Be reminded that the seal and stamp are issued in your personal names but remain the property of the board and could be withdrawn anytime you are found wanting.”

Earlier, ESVARBON chairman, Sir Nweke Umezuruike, who conducted his last ceremony as the board’s helmsman, tasked the inducted to make integrity their watchword in-line with the motto of the profession, which hinges on honesty and devotion in order to go far in their professional pursuit.

The president of Nigerian Institution of Estate Surveyors and Valuer (NIESV), Sir Emmanuel Wike, lauded the board for the cordial relationship with NIESV, which has contributed immensely to the development of the profession, especially in checking quackery and incursion into competencies of practitioners.

He stated that the institution has improved its standards and ethics in compliance with the boards’ rules and regulations.

“We will soon ratify amendments to our code of professional ethics and practice. We have put into implementation the national council approved software for membership committee to check plagiarism and ensure members admitted into the institution meet international standards,” Wike said.

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