EFCC Presses For Revamp Of BPP Act To Crack Down On Corrupt Officials

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has called for an overhaul of the Bureau of Public Procurement (BPP) Act.

The commission emphasized that the current law has not been effective in aiding the prosecution of corrupt officials.

The EFCC Chairman, Ola Olukoyede, stated that the BPP Act requires restructuring to strengthen the anti-corruption campaign, citing its lack of significant convictions since its inception.

The plea for a comprehensive reform arose during the EFCC Chairman’s meeting with the management team of BPP, headed by Mamman Ahmadu, at the EFCC headquarters in Abuja.

The EFCC boss said, “Over the years, you have been able to define certain scopes that are helping to drive our contract and procurement award processes, but we still notice that there is still much more to be done.

“In fact, the law has not been fully operationalized. We also discovered that the law as it is has not aided prosecution much. It has to be reviewed.

“I am not sure that I can remember any specific case where we secured a conviction using the provisions of the Bureau of Public Procurement Act. I am not sure that the EFCC has secured any conviction using the BPP Act.

“If we really mean business about sanitizing our contract and procurement award processes, we have to do something about the BPP Act and review it in such a way that it can address some of these concerns.”

The EFCC Chairman expressed concern over the issuance process of the Certificate of No Objection by BPP and urged a review of their procedures.

He emphasized the necessity for collaboration between EFCC and BPP in prevention efforts against corruption.

Olukoyede highlighted the prevalence of corruption cases in contract and procurement processes and stressed the importance of addressing these issues for effective anti-corruption measures.