Dike Onwuamaeze
The Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria, (ICAN) has pledged to partner with the Special Control Unit Against Money Laundering (SCUML), the Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit (NFIU), the Financial Reporting Council of Nigeria (FRC) and other stakeholders to checkmate corruption in the country.
The pledge was made by the President of ICAN, Institute, Dr. Innocent Okwuosa, in Lagos, during the weekend, at a retreat of the governing council of the ICAN that was attended by representatives of the SCUML, NFIU, FRC and the big four accounting firms in Nigeria.
Okwuosa, explained that the retreat was organised to review the ICAN’s processes in view of its current poise to deepen its advocacy and thought leadership in Nigeria’s national development, among other initiatives.
He appealed to SCUML to review some of its operational processes that have made direct registration difficult and constraining stakeholders to register through consultants.
He also promised that the ICAN would leverage the template received from SCUML to implement market entry control checks on licensed firms.
In his response, the representative of SCUML, Mr. Matthew Enu, who stood in for Mr. Daniel Isei, a director at SCUML, stated that self-regulatory bodies like ICAN should take the necessary measures to prevent criminals, or their associates, from being professionally accredited or hold a significant, controlling interest or management function in accounting firms.
Enu, further urged ICAN to always partner law enforcement agents or relevant authorities in conducting background checks on intending licensees.
Similarly, the Executive Secretary of the FRC, Ambassador Shuaibu Adamu Ahmed, traced the origin of the council to ICAN’s establishment of the then Nigerian Accounting Standards Board (NASB) that later metamorphosed to Financial Reporting Council.
Ahmed commended the ICAN for its immense roles and collaboration with FRC.
He said: “A good cordial relationship with relevant stakeholders in the accountancy profession is important for growth and development of the profession in our country.
“The FRC is, therefore, urging the professional accountancy bodies in the country to work with it for the good of the profession and the country at large.”
Similarly, the Head of Sanctions, NFIU, Mr. Chinedum Odenyi, pointed out that the Designated Non-Financial Business and Professions (DNFBPs) are the most crucial and vulnerable to money laundering and terrorism financing.
Odenyi, therefore, solicited for more interaction with ICAN to strengthen compliance with the relevant Anti Money Laundry/Combating the Financing of Terrorism/Counter Proliferation Financing (AML/CFT /CPF) laws, regulations and guidelines to ensure there is clear understanding of obligations.
He also recommended the establishment of an effective system to identify ML/TF risks and have measures in place to mitigate those risks, and file Suspicious Transaction Reports (STRs) to the NFIU.
He said these were part of the requirements for Nigeria to exit the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) grey-list.
Odenyi further urged Financial Institutions and Designated Non-Financial Business and Professions (DNFBPs) to develop and implement robust processes and procedures for implementation of AML/CFT/CPF obligations with particular emphasis on risk assessment on money laundering and associated predicate offences, standalone Counter Financing of Terrorism (CFT) risk assessment, and establish measures for effective detection of politically exposed persons/their family members/close associate, among others.
At the end of the retreat, SCUML and NFIU sought the institute’s collaboration in ensuring that Nigeria exits the grey listing by the Financial Action Task force (FATF)
The immediate past Country Partner of PwC, Mr. Uyi Akpata, in his submission assured that the Institute of PwC’s partnership would promote high accounting standards, enhance the competence of accountants’, discourage proliferation of accounting bodies and strengthen the profession’s role in national development.
