From Magnus Eze, Abuja
The Federal Government has said that it would deploy latest technologies in fighting financial crimes.
Minister of Science and Technology, Dr. Ogbonnaya Onu, who stated this in Abuja yesterday, said an agency in the ministry would fabricate and deploy relevant technologies to assist in the fight against financial crime in the country.
Playing host to the Association of Forensic and Investigative Auditors in Nigeria (AFIAN), the minister posited that the National Biotechnology Development Agency (NABDA), has the capacity to provide the necessary forensic sciences and technologies to assist the association in its fight against financial crimes and crime investigations.
He said the fight against fraud and financial graft became imperative if Nigeria was to utilize its resources for the public good of its citizens, as according to him, the stolen resources could be best used to provide quality education for the youths, provide adequate healthcare, construct good road networks and houses as well as ensure the security of the country.
President of the association, Mrs. Victoria Erape, said the body was formed to provide forensic and superior investigative skills, techniques and mechanisms in audit of financial records and fraud investigation in Nigeria.
She bemoaned that the country lost huge sums of money over the years to fraud and financial crimes due to the inadequacies of traditional auditing process and reporting.
“The association is well-placed to fight the future ‘cyber war’ and corporate crime that can only be fought by an army of forensic and investigative auditors,” she said.