OPENING ADDRESS BY THE HONOURABLE MINISTER OF INFORMATION AND NATIONAL ORIENTATION, MOHAMMED IDRIS (FNIPR) AT THE ICPC ROUNDTABLE ENGAGEMENT ON AGENDA SETTING FOR STRATEGIC INTEGRATION OF STATE COMMISSIONERS OF INFORMATION IN THE FIGHT AGAINST CORRUPTION HELD AT THE FOUNTAIN HALL, ROCKVIEW HOTELS ROYALE ON WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 3, 2025

OPENING ADDRESS BY THE HONOURABLE MINISTER OF INFORMATION AND NATIONAL ORIENTATION, MOHAMMED IDRIS (FNIPR) AT THE ICPC ROUNDTABLE ENGAGEMENT ON AGENDA SETTING FOR STRATEGIC INTEGRATION OF STATE COMMISSIONERS OF INFORMATION IN THE FIGHT AGAINST CORRUPTION HELD AT THE FOUNTAIN HALL, ROCKVIEW HOTELS ROYALE ON WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 3, 2025 

 

Protocol

 

I am delighted to be invited and to serve as a Special Guest of Honour, even as I also appreciate the privilege of delivering the opening address at this momentous occasion, organized by the Independent Corrupt Practices Commission (ICPC). I remain grateful to the ICPC Chairman, Dr Musa Adamu Aliyu, SAN.

 

The theme of the roundtable, Partnership for Strengthening Transparency and Accountability at State and Local Government Levels Through Strategic Communications, amply justifies the presence of all State Commissioners of Information, who have the onerous task of distilling and cascading information to other strata of the Nigerian society. 

 

Honourable Commissioners, thank you for attending this event, and I am confident that at the end of the day, a solid partnership will be forged in our renewed commitment to the fight against corruption.

 

To this end, the ICPC must be commended for its creative approach to achieving development communications in a way that identifies with key stakeholders in the states and local government councils who are expected to communicate government policies to the grassroots. 

 

Distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen, transparency and accountability constitute strong pillars of democracy, and are unarguably at the centre of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s grundnorm of administration. 

 

Fighting corruption is indeed one of the 8-Point priorities of the Tinubu administration, and that is why the President is strengthening the institutional framework to fight corruption, especially through the ICPC and the EFCC. By its policy of non-interference, the Tinubu administration has made it clear that anti-corruption agencies are not instruments of political witch-hunt. They operate with independence and professionalism in line with the rule of law. 

 

However, the President has vowed that "there will be no safe haven for corruption in Nigeria,” and he is also advancing far-reaching judicial reforms aimed at curbing unnecessary delays in corruption trials, ensuring that justice is neither denied nor endlessly deferred.

 

In addition, I wish to implore you all, Honourable Commissioners, that irrespective of the political party you belong to, it is important you identify with the massive opportunities inherent in the Renewed Hope Agenda of President Tinubu, who is relentless in reshaping our economy to address years of neglect, and its limitations, and in turn achieve inclusion, diversification, growth and steady development. 

 

I also want to draw our attention to the need to leverage the vast and effective assets of the agencies under the Federal Ministry of Information and National Orientation, to achieve effective outreach across Nigeria. 

 

I hereby declare this roundtable open, and I wish us all successful deliberations. 

 

Thank you.