Centre for Social Justice (CSJ) has held a training workshop on the disbursement of the Abacha loot of $322 million. The training was organised in collaboration with the African Network for Environmental and Economic Justice (ANEEJ). It brought together journalists, civil society organisations as well as concerned Nigerians. Also represented at the event were government agencies, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) and the National Social Investment Office (NSIO) amongst others.

The Programme Manager of CSJ, Victor Emejuiwe, who represented the organisation’s Lead Director, said, ‘the objective of the workshop is to sensitise Nigerians, especially media practitioners on federal government’s programmes and policies in fighting corruption, as well as to instil positive behavioural change amongst citizens. Centre for Social Justice, in partnership with African Network for Environmental and Economic Justice (ANEEJ), is implementing a DFID project on the monitoring of the disbursement of Abacha’s $322m loot across Nigeria. CSOs and journalists are expected to monitor the disbursement of the funds across different parts of the country. In fact, while monitoring the disbursement last year, we encountered many baffling corrupt practices that tend to undermine the efforts of the federal government’.

Illustrating the need for the stakeholder training workshop, the National Programme Coordinator of the National Cash Transfer Programme, also known as the Household Uplifting Programme, Dr Temitope Sinkaiye, said, ‘The poverty situation in Nigeria is very high. The National Cash Transfer Programme is one of the programmes addressing the poorest of the poor. It is being funded partly with loans from World Bank, budgetary allocations and the recovered Abacha loot’.

Source: Blueprint

Photo source: Enrique Mendizabal