The Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission, ICPC, has called for the handover of constituency projects to local government authorities after completion.
According to the anti-corruption body, this will ensure ownership by beneficiaries and promote effective maintenance and sustainability.
A statement issued by the Commission’s spokesperson, Mrs. Rasheedat Okoduwa, said the advice was given by Chairman of the commission, Prof. Bolaji Owasanoye, at a media roundtable in Abuja.
The statement quoted him as saying: “If somebody had nominated a project and succeeded in getting the project to the community, it is not the duty of the person to maintain it.
“Communities need to understand that it was public funds that was used. They need to take ownership.
“We recommend that the project needs to be handed over to the local government for the community to take over.”
According to the statement, Owasanoye lamented that a lot of the projects completed were executed in “shoddy ways due to poor technical designs, impositions and other sundry irregularities”.
READ ALSO: Constituency Projects: Buhari Berets National Assembly Members For Squandering N1tr
He reiterated the commission’s commitment to tracking of constituency projects as long as government kept funding them.
He, therefore, called on local communities to demand accountability and transparency in project award and execution.
Director-General of the National Orientation Agency, Dr. Garba Abari, in his remarks called for citizens’ participation in constituency projects.
He was quoted as saying that the active involvement of the communities in planning and execution of constituency projects would remove the issues of corruption and abuse and also ensure that contractors did not use substandard materials for the projects.
