Despite President Muhammadu Buhari determined efforts to plug all the loopholes for corrupt practices in Ministries, Department, and Agencies, the success is still far off. Investigations carried out across the board showed that the evil of corrupt practices still strong –and almost the norm. At the National Primary Health Care Development Agency, allegations of misuse of Covid-19 funds are rife. Staffers refer to the bungling of the exercise by select officials in key departments with little or nothing to show for hundreds of millions said to have been disbursed. Within the same environment, tongues are wagging that some deliveries said to have been made in respect of Covid-19 palliatives are nowhere to be seen. “So, the insinuation is that some officials have either embezzled the funds or diverted the money into private pockets”, said a staff of the Agency who spoke on condition of anonymity. “There should be an investigation to ascertain what happened to the funds approved and allocated for the project “, he added. The staff on grade level 12 suggested that searchlight should be directed at the procurement department where the bulk of the papers were said to have been prepared. At the Niger Delta Power Holding Agency, fingers point to the involvement of two key officials in contract racketeering and awards. The officials whose tenure has been renewed by the government are said to have been indulging in awarding contracts to cronies and associates with unregistered companies. “Their attitude beggars’ common sense”, said a junior staff of the company “When government appoints officers into key positions, those officials are bound to be responsible”, he said, stressing that it is a shame for some trusted people to use their position to unduly enrich themselves. “They are now so rich that they have acquired properties all over the FCT which shouldn’t be”, the officer stated. By far the most damaging allegation of corruption infraction came from the Nigerian Deposit Insurance Corporation where the Federal Character and quota system has been used to maximum advantage to the benefit of people from certain parts of the country. “For example, the MD/CEO, the Head of Finance; the Head of Procurement & Management services and several others are all from the same part of the country; “the allegation is that they are alleged to have been trading in depositors funds contrary to the rules and regulations; they are also accused of using their positions to influence secret recruitment and job placement to the detriment of people from other parts of the country. “They should be called to order”, said one of the engaged staff of the corporation. “There should be fairness, equity, and justice”, the staff disclosed. An investigation by the newspaperman reporters showed widespread dissatisfaction with the way and manner things are being done at the NDIC, THE Niger Delta Power Holding Company, and the National Primary Healthcare Agency. “This is why the country ‘s financial status is in dire straits with nothing to show despite billions of budgets”, said an anonymous staff. The staff believes that these officials are getting away with their crimes because the anti-graft agencies are not directing their focus. He explained that efforts should be stepped up to curtail these malaises so as not to plunge the nation further into chaos.
