*The Nigerian Communications Commission affirms its willingness to collaborate with the Public Complaints Commission to boost the government’s anti-corruption crusade towards curbing corruption and negative tendencies among the youth

Isola Moses | ConsumerConnect

Consistent with its recognition as an ethically-compliant public institution by the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC), the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) has reaffirmed its commitment to collaborating with other government agencies towards supporting Federal Government’s anti-corruption campaigns.

ConsumerConnect reports Mr. Usman Malah, Director of Human Capital and Administration at NCC, stated this when hosting a delegation from the Public Complaints Commission (PCC), which paid a courtesy visit to commend NCC for its role in enabling embrace of digital culture in the West African country.

Malah, who represented Prof. Umar Garba Danbatta, Executive Vice-Chairman and Chief Executive Officer (EVC/CEO) of the Commission, noted that the NCC earned a score of 81.15 percent in the year 2020, putting it in the 10 top Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) of government among 352 MDAs assessed on Ethics Compliance and Integrity Scorecard (ECIS) by the ICPC.

The NCC Director of Human Capital and Administration told the PCC delegation that “with this performance, the Commission also emerged as the Most Ethically Compliant Government Regulatory Agency for the year 2020 under the Ministry of Communications and Digital Economy.”

He stated that it was natural for the telecoms sector regulatory Commission to support efforts at tackling corruption in Nigeria. Malah, therefore, said NCC was willing to collaborate with the PCC to boost anti-corruption campaign of the Federal Government, aimed at curbing corruption and negative tendencies among the Nigerian youth.

The Commission further acknowledged the PCC’s enlightenment programme on anti-corruption, targeted at the Nigerian public, the youths and students.

According to him, these categories of Nigerians can be great stakeholders for the sustainability of the anti-corruption campaign, and support for telecoms sector initiatives to boost the national economy.

“NCC also strongly associates with the central objective of PCC, which is to redress all forms of administrative injustice in Nigeria, and the noble goal of promoting social justice, especially in a world that is increasingly complex and sophisticated for the average individual, given the rapid advancements in technology and diversity of practices,” noted Malah.

Earlier, Philip Enyali, Secretary of PCC, who represented Abimbola Ayo-Yusuf, Chief Commissioner (Ombudsman of the Federal Republic),  commended Prof. Danbatta for maintaining zero tolerance for corruption, and the noble achievements of the Commission under his leadership.

Ayo-Yusuf said NCC strides had advanced the telecommunications sector, contributing immensely to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP), and overall economic growth of the country.

The Chief Commissioner as well disclosed the PCC’s purpose of visiting the NCC was to intimate the telecoms regulator with the scheduled Anti-Corruption Marathon at the Eagle Square, Abuja, FCT, as well as the National Youth and Students Summit, which will take place later December 2022.

Ayo-Yusuf said: “We are here to request the support and partnership of the NCC in hosting the two events targeted at curbing anti-corruption tendencies among the Nigerian youth as well as create opportunity to discourage young people from indulging in corrupt practices.”