The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission(EFCC) has urged working journalists to embark on investigative reporting that will lead to exposing those that financing terrorism and other fraudulent activities in the North-East region.
Mr Abdulrashed Bawa, Chairman of the commission, gave the charge during a workshop on Financial Crimes Reporting held in Maiduguri, Borno State capital, on Thursday.
Bawa, who was represented by the North East Zonal Commander, Mr Oshodi Johnson, noted that the region had witnessed the proliferation of NGOs, where some engage in fraudulent activities and terrorism financing.
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He stressed that such reportage on fraudulent activities perpetrated by some NGOs in the region would help the commission to reduce criminal elements in society.
He said, “As a consequence of the insurgency in this region, we now have a proliferation of Non-governmental organisations doing charity work in the region which is commendable, unfortunately, the activities of a very few charlatans have called the altruistic commitment of others to question,” Bawa stressed.
While collaborating on the account, Assistant Director public affairs of the Commission, Mr Dele Oyewale, who presented his paper titled ”Investigative Journalism and Nigeria’s Fight against Money,” said investigative reporting would help in exposing those engaging in public funds embezzlement and money laundering in Nigeria.
He charged the Nigerian media to focus on investigative and developmental journalism rather than sensational news.
According to him, journalists should intensify efforts in investigative skills to facilitate the fight against corruption by exposing incidences in society.
“The fight against corruption can be won if you journalists discharge your responsibilities professionally by engaging in investigative journalism with a focus on social justice and accountability.
“This workshop was organized as a way of interfacing with journalists and deepening the relationship between the Commission and the media,” he said.
In his remarks, State Chairman of the Nigeria Union of Journalists, Comrade Dauda Iliya, said the training was timely.
He described it as the first of its kind in the state and requested the Commission to organise more capacity building for journalists to further equip them with skills required to carry out investigative reports.
