Shun corruption, FCT minister warns new FCT-IRS staff

Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Malam Muhammad Bello has advised the newly recruited staff of FCT Inland Revenue Service (FCT-IRS) to shun all acts of corruption no matter how tempting the situation might be.

The minister, who gave this advice during the induction ceremony of the new staff Tuesday in Abuja, also advised them to “resist the temptation to diminish or write-off payments due to the government in exchange for mundane gratifications or to think of it as an act of kindness to reduce the revenue due to government on your account or at your level.”

Represented by the FCT Permanent Secretary, Olusade Adesola, the minister told the newly recruited staff to learn to justify every expenditure and ensure that the economy is always maintained by discouraging wastage of public funds on ill-advised purchases at any time.

“As a public servant, you are expected to imbibe core values of the service codified in the acronym; STEP, which means Stewardship, Trust, Engagement, and Professionalism.

“The manifestation of these values would require that you perform your duties properly and efficiently and display professional discipline, dignity, integrity, equity, impartiality, fairness, public-spiritedness and courtesy in the discharge of your functions, notably in your relations with superiors, colleagues, and subordinates, as well as with the public.

“You should ensure at all times that public property under your responsibility is managed most appropriately and efficiently. Your conduct shall be deemed to be appropriate only when you behave in a manner that enhances public confidence and boosts the image of the Service,” he said.

The chairman of FCT-IRS, Mr. Abdullahi Attah, while speaking with journalists, said the agency was able to recruit about 500 new staff cutting across the 36 states of the country, with the hope of using them to boost revenue generation in the nation’s capital.