THE Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), through the Special Control Unit against Money Laundering (SCUML), has called on non-profit organisations (NPOs) in the Northeast to join hands with it in combating the financing of terrorism and money laundering in the region.
The Director, SCUML, Daniel Isei, gave the charge on Wednesday, April 12, 2023, at a two-day workshop for NPOs in the Northeast.
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The theme of the workshop, held at Pinnacle Hotel, Maiduguri, was, ‘Collaborating to Fight Terrorism Financing.’
This was disclosed in a statement on Thursday, April 13, signed by the EFCC spokesperson, Wilson Uwujaren.
According to the statement, Isei, while addressing the participants on the report of the ‘Risk Assessment of the Non-Profit Organizations Sector in Nigeria’, said the document is the outcome of engagements with relevant stakeholders and provides a sort of roadmap on how NPOs can insulate themselves from the vulnerabilities in the sector.
“We are aware that some NPOs are at a higher risk than others because each and every NPO’s area of operation is not the same. Therefore, the report is for us to take in, digest, and see the findings, how they affect each and every one of us,” Isei said.
He emphasised the critical role of NPOs in the fight against terrorist financing and charged them to ensure their businesses were not used as conduits for terrorism financing.
Isei also urged the participants not to consider visits by SCUML as suggestive of the discovery of any wrongdoing, adding that the agency has a statutory mandate to monitor the organisations.
“The visit is to check your processes to ensure that actions and mechanisms are put in place, and to prevent the possibilities for NPOs to be misused for terrorist financing,” he said.
He warned that errant NPOs would face requisite sanctions.
The head of the Maiduguri Zonal Commander of the EFCC, Oshodi Johnson, accompanied by his deputy, Okeckuku Obiageli Ethlynda, stated that NPOs were critical in curbing the menace of terrorism financing.
He urged the organisations to be wholly committed to their humanitarian work and resist every temptation to be involved in activities that are against the laws of the land.
The Executive Secretary of the Borno State Agency for Coordination of Sustainable Development and Humanitarian Response, Bunu Monguno, expressed confidence that the risk assessment report would help NPOs to deliver on their mandate.
SCUML is charged with the responsibility of monitoring, supervising and regulating the activities of Designated Non-Financial Institutions (DNFIs), in line with the Money Laundering (Prohibition) Act ML(P)Act 2011 and the Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA) 2011.
A reporter with the ICIR
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