Some Nigerian banks are on the brink of collapsing, Ibrahim Magu, the acting Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) Thursday raised the alarm.
In a statement by Mr. Wilson Uwujaren, the Head of Media and Publicity of the commission, Magu spoke this in Lagos during an interactive session with Association of Chief Compliance Officers of Banks in Nigeria.
The EFCC boss charged banks’ compliance officers to always provide the commission with necessary information to assist it in carrying out its responsibilities.
He said: “We must work together to save this country. Most of the banks are sitting on water. In fact, some of these banks are almost collapsing.
“We need to find a common ground to work together. You have a responsibility to fight corruption.”
He stressed that compliance officers in various banks in Nigeria must also take ownership of the fight against corruption, which he described as one of the problems bedeviling the banking industry.
“The Commission is ready to partner you to ensure a healthy economy.
“We are ready to assist the banks in recovering their debts, but compliance officers must ensure due diligence, especially when giving out loans to customers.
“I know you sometimes need to protect some of your customers. But it is sometimes better that you do without some of these people; otherwise, you will be seen as conspiring with them to steal public funds,” Magu said.
