The Senior Special Assistant to the President on Student Engagement, Sunday Asefon Dayo has commended the Executive Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, Mr. Ola Olukoyede on his worry and concerns about the prevalence of internet crimes among youths across the country.
He gave the commendation in Abuja on Thursday, January 18, 2024, while on a courtesy visit to the Corporate Headquarters of the EFCC. Dayo said that internet crimes have assumed disturbing trends among youths and urgent measures should be taken to tackle them.
He expressed regret about the misrepresentation of Olukoyede’s statements regarding the rising involvement of youths in internet crimes blaming it on skewed media reporting. “We need to put an end to internet crimes. It is even worrisome that some lecturers and campus workers are also getting involved in the crimes. We must do something drastic to tackle them”, he said.
Dayo lamented that internet fraudsters are getting their strength from drugs. “Cybercrimes are getting worse because youths indulging in them are propelled by drugs. I think the EFCC and National Drug Law Enforcement Agency, NDLEA, need to come together and create more awareness against the menace”, he said.
He urged the EFCC to consider giving internet fraudsters serving jail terms amnesty to ease their reformation and re-integration into the society. He also called for the establishment of EFCC Clubs on every campus in Nigeria to aid in the sensitization of students on the dangers of corruption.
Speaking further, the Presidential aide applauded the Commission’s new protocol on night operations, stressing that criminals have been hiding under nocturnal operations to perpetrate heinous crimes in the name of the EFCC. He lauded Olukoyede for his “courage, boldness and professionalism in tackling corrupt practices frontally since he assumed office. The investigation of Betta Edu and others by the EFCC is a credit to President Bola Tinubu and the EFCC. Your prompt actions and the fact that the EFCC Chairman is always on his toes are commendable”, he said.
Responding, the EFCC’s boss said the Commission was open to every interest group, especially student unions with genuine interests for collaboration to fight corruption and other related financial crimes. He explained that his concerns about the prevalence of internet crimes among youths were misconstrued, stressing that “youths can survive and succeed by doing the right things”.
He appreciated the sincerity of Dayo in espousing all the issues involved in internet crimes, maintaining that the sad trajectory of youth involvement in the crimes should not continue. “We want our youths to be properly focused. They are the future leaders we will hand over to”, he said.
He also commended members of the team for their vision and patriotism to partner with the EFCC in the fight against financial crimes and corruption, stating that the fight against fraud required collaborative efforts of all and sundry.
