Daily Trust - the online edition

Road construction companies working in collaboration with the Federal Road Maintenance Agency (FERMA), will henceforth be blacklisted and have their licenses withdrawn if found perpetrating corrupt practi-ces, the Desk Officer of the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC), in the Agency, Mr. Lucky Nwogu, said.

He made the call while speaking on the dangers of corruption and its consequences to national development during a one-day sensitization workshop organized for the FERMA staff in Gombe.

Mr. Nwogu who explained what necessitated the campaign to the doorsteps of FERMA, said the agency was highly prone to corruption taking into cognizance that contracts were awarded, retainership agreements were entered into as well as embarking on direct labor projects by the agency.

Mr. Nwogu added that the only remedy to corruption was by exposing and eventual prosecution of the perpetrators, adding that where a company was involved, it should be prosecuted and squarely sanctioned.

Also speaking the Chairman of the Anti-Corruption and Transparency of the Agency, Mrs. Stella Anukam, represented by Mrs. E.B. Angela-Jones, stated that, though it was acknowledged corruption could not be completely eradicated but that did not mean a prosperous nation could not be built, in as much as the basis of establishing ethics and morality was created.

She further made a passionate appeal to the staff to uphold a high sense of discipline, integrity and honesty at all levels in their work places for the simple interest of keeping FERMA free from corruption.

Responding, the State Controller of FERMA, Mr. Adedoyin Aina, said with what they were able to learn during the workshop, corruption would not have a surviving place among the members of the agency.