Abuja: Anti-corruption expert, Dr Emmanuel Uche, has called for the unbundling of the Code of Conduct Bureau (CCB), contending that its current centralised structure is grossly inadequate for a nation of more than 200 million people.
Uche made the call in Abuja on the sidelines of a seminar reviewing the CCB’s newly designed Online Assets and Liabilities Declaration System (ALDS), organised by the Bureau.
Speaking exclusively with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), Uche questioned how a single tribunal with limited personnel could effectively adjudicate cases from across the country.
The Anti-Corruption Programme Manager for the European Union-funded Rule of Law and Anti-Corruption (RoLAC) programme.
The expert insisted that decentralising the Bureau, at least to zonal levels, would build the critical capacity needed to strengthen accountability and improve the fight against corruption.
“How do you have a CCB that can only prosecute in a Code of Conduct Tribunal of very few people, adjudicating over a country of 200 million people?
“The Code of Conduct Bureau, at some point, will need to be unbundled, even if it is to the zones, so that there will be critical capacity to deal with a country the size of Nigeria,” he said
He also called on the CCB to expand its operational scope beyond mere asset declaration to the strict enforcement of ethical standards and mandates.
According to him, while the digital migration of asset declaration was a significant step, the Bureau must prioritise its foundational objective: mainstreaming ethical behaviour across the Nigerian public service and society.
He noted that asset declaration is merely a “tool” designed to achieve the broader goal of checking abuse of public office and trust.
“The CCB’s job is not just asset declaration; it is about helping to mainstream ethical behaviour in society. A breakdown of the rule of law starts with the breakdown of the moral value system.
“The CCB must increase its bar in setting ethical standards through enforcement and reprimand systems,” Uche said.
The expert also highlighted the need to upgrade the CCB’s declaration system to reflect modern realities, noting that the definition of wealth has evolved.
He noted that the system must be optimised to account for “non-conventional assets,” including cryptocurrencies and virtual assets, saying wealth is no longer stored solely in “brick and mortar or gold bars.”
Uche commended the new CCB Chairman, Dr Abdullahi Usman, for his visionary leadership in transitioning the platform from a simple Asset Declaration system to an “Assets and Liabilities Declaration System.”
He explained that capturing liabilities was crucial to closing loopholes that allow public officials to hide unexplained wealth or game the system.