Nigeria’s anti-graft agency, the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC), has urged state and local governments to intensify anti-corruption measures, describing them as the “true frontline” in the national fight against graft.
At a one-day strategic roundtable in Abuja on Wednesday, ICPC Chairman Dr Musa Aliyu said mismanagement of resources at sub-national levels directly undermines development.
“When resources are not utilised properly, the farmer will be without roads, the child without books, and the sick without healthcare,” he warned.
Aliyu outlined several ICPC interventions designed to stem corruption, including its Constituency and Executive Project Tracking Initiative, System Studies and Reviews, and the National Ethics and Integrity Policy. These, he said, were built to prevent graft, reinforce values, and encourage citizen participation.
The National Orientation Agency (NOA), represented at the meeting by senior officials, pledged to work with the ICPC. NOA chief Lanre Issa-Onilu cautioned that if corruption in state governance remains unchecked, Nigeria risks worsening inequality, inefficient services, and a breakdown in public trust.
He said stronger anti-corruption institutions, greater accountability, and a culture of integrity were essential to unlocking the country’s development potential.
