Nigeria is at the risk of economic decline if it fails to manage its resources prudently. This warning was given by President Muhammadu Buhari during a meeting with members of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.
According to a statement by his Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Mr. Femi Adesina, Buhari urged accountants to take their audit reports seriously.
He urged them to support his administration’s efforts to restore probity, prudence and transparency.
Buhari said with declining prices of oil exports, Nigeria must begin to properly manage its available resources or face developmental stagnation and decline.
The President stated that accountants should help the government “to go back to the days of real accountability in the management of public funds.
“The annual audits of government ministries, agencies and departments, which your members undertake must be taken more seriously. People must be made to properly account for whatever government funds are entrusted to their supervision.
“Let your audit reports on our MDAs be thoroughly, professionally and dispassionately done to ensure greater probity in the management of our national resources.”
The ICAN President, Olufemi Deru, in his speech, hailed the renaissance of the nation’s value system and the reinvigoration of the war against corruption by Buhari.
He stated, “The values you hold dear – those of integrity, transparency and accountability – are the foundation of the accountancy profession.
“It is therefore heartening and commendable that you are engaging our members and their firms in the anti-corruption crusade.”
Deru, who also spoke with journalists, said, “Accountability is our business and we uphold the tenets of transparency and we must be transparent in what we do. We also have the whistle-blowing fund so that anybody who misbehaves and they want to penalise our member, we have N50m set aside to fight such course.”
By Dike Onwuamaeze
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