The President Buhari led federal government has expressed readiness to combat money laundering and terrorists financing in the country, in a bid to end financial crimes, Igbere TV reports.
The Minister of Interior, Rauf Aregbesola disclosed this on Thursday in his office in Abuja when the Director of the National Financial Intelligence Unit (NFIU), Mr. Modibbo Hamman Tukur, visited him.
In a statement obtained by Igbere TV, the Minister said he would continue to provide the leadership required for the Ministry, Immigration Service and Civil Defense to perform optimally to meet their obligations as members of the Inter-Ministerial Committee on Anti-Money Laundering and Counter Terrorism Financing.
“I assure you of my commitment to ensure that appropriate strategies are put in place to meet the global standards for combating Money Laundering and Terrorists Financing”, Rauf Aregbesola said.
He added that, “if terrorism financing is arrested in Nigeria, the confidence of foreign investors will be boosted and also enhance socio-economic activities for the benefit of Nigerians”, stressing that, “terrorists financing was a major threat to internal security in Nigeria.”
The Minister commended NFIU for its roles, with regards to coordinating national legal, regulatory and operational frameworks for combating money laundering, terrorist financing, threats to the integrity of the international financial system and maintenance of internal security in Nigeria.
The Director/CEO, NFIU, Mr. Moddibo Hamman Tukur said his team was in the Ministry in recognition of its importance as one of the three key Ministries that have strategic roles to play in combating the challenges of money laundering, terrorism financing and proliferation of arms.
Hamman who also said that his team came to brief the Minister on the forth coming mutual evaluation exercise by the Inter-Governmental Action Group Against Money Laundering in West Africa, identified other parties in this regard as the FMoF, Budget & National Planning & Justice.
He further intimated Aregbesola on the proposed assessment of the Ministry and 34 other Federal Government Agencies by the global community under the auspices of Financial Action Task Force, billed for October, 2019.
The global task force is saddled with the responsibility of reviewing various countries of the world to see their compliance with their national legislations in the area of criminalization of crimes, money laundering and related crimes to ensuring that a particular country’s system is not threatening itself to undermine peace and development of the country and that of the global community.
