from EMEKA OKONKWO in Abuja, Nigeria
Nigeria Bureau
ABUJA, (CAJ News) – NIGERIA’S anti corruption agency has taken to schools its fight against students’ involvement in internet fraud.
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has inaugurated and commissioned a so-called Integrity Club at the prominent Doveland High School in the capital Abuja.
Officials of the agency warned students across the country to steer clear of internet fraud.
This warning comes on the back of a series of arrests, for alleged cyber crime, of students at tertiary institutions in the West African country.
Nigeria has a reputation for online scams, which is deterring investments.
“Corruption is an evil and bad practice which we should not allow in our environment. You (students) should know that every act of corruption is evil and must not be entertained,” EFCC Deputy Director for Publicity, Nwayinma Okeanu, said.
She was representing the Executive Chairman of the commission, Ola Olukoyede.
The school described the launch of the Integrity Club as a major step towards fostering a culture of ethics and accountability.
“Preaching the ills of corruption from the grassroots level will surely go a long way in curtailing corruption in the country,” Kolapo Emmanuel, Doveland principal, said.
Last Wednesday, EFCC participated at a conference at the University of Port Harcourt in the southern state of Rivers where officials issued a warning against internet fraud.
Youth Anti-Corruption Society of Nigeria organised the summit under the theme, “Drug Addiction, Illicit Substances and Cybercrime.”
Helen Nagberi, Head of Cybercrimes Section at the EFCC’s Port Harcourt’s Zonal Command, accused some youth of being tempted by the lure of making a quick buck.
“This has made many unserious and myopic Nigerian youths venture into cybercrime,” Nagberi said.
“Some people have even advanced further into Yahoo Plus which involves the use of diabolical means to achieve their fraudulent objectives.”
In Nigeria, internet fraud is blamed on university students and graduates, the latter who struggle to secure employment amid economic problems in Africa’s largest economy and most populous nation.
They are infamously referred to as the “Yahoo Boys.”
– CAJ News