GENETIC Expert Abiodun Salami has said that profiling the deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) of every Nigerian from birth will sustainably help fight the nation’s endemic problem – corruption.
He said with the database, government could track genetic footprints or fingerprints of persons involved in armed robbery, theft and other forms of criminalities such as rape.
Salami gave the advice during an interview published by the Premium Times at the weekend in Abuja.
The initiative, he stressed, could start with inmates serving jail terms at different correctional facilities nationwide.
“….people are not aware of the possibilities in DNA testing. We need to keep sensitising people. Did you know that genetics can help curb corruption and solve high-profile criminal cases?”
“When it comes to fighting corruption in this country, for example, the government can pass a law mandating that every child born in Nigeria must have their DNA profiles done. If you have the DNA profile of every Nigerian, all these issues of theft and armed robbery will be minimal because they know that their genetic footprints or fingerprints will always give them out. People will no longer rape and go scot-free in this country.”
He argued that some of the crimes the nation was grappling with were being committed by the same set of criminals who should rather be in prison.
According to him, if the Federal Government could pass a law, for instance, “mandating the creation of a DNA database of all the prisoners in this country, the crime rate will greatly reduce in Nigeria.”
The National Human Genome Research Institute describes the DNA as “the chemical name for the molecule that carries genetic instructions in all living things.”
It is no news that the country is being overwhelmed with several corruption cases. Though the anti-graft agencies, the Economic Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), and the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC), were established to curb the trend, corrupt practices across the country has continued unabated.
A senior geneticist with DNA Centre for Paternity Test, located in, Ikeja, Lagos, Salami advised every man to conduct a DNA test to be very certain he was actually raising his or child as a father.
He observed that in recent times, the rate people patronised the centre for DNA test had surged, a reason he attributed to immigration and family relationships.
According to him, six out of 10 paternity tests conducted by the centre came out negative.
“Let me give you the statistics. Before now, we do an average of 100 DNA tests in a month, but now we handle as many as 400 cases monthly.
“The statistics are mind-blowing. You discover that almost 60 percent of the tests that people come to do are negative. In fact, six out of every 10 paternity tests turn out negative. Statistically, in DNA paternity testing, most times in Nigeria, we see that six out of every 10 children might not be fathered by their biological father.”
The firm, he said, provides comprehensive DNA testing services in the area of paternity, family relationships, Immigration, and DNA tests during pregnancy.
Olugbenga heads the Investigations Desk at The ICIR. Do you have a scoop? Shoot him an email at [email protected]. Twitter Handle: @OluAdanikin