By Ikenna Uwadileke
Abuja – Former Technical Secretary of the Nigerian Society of Engineers (NSE), Mr Olunoh Sharafadeen on Monday urged the Federal Government to invest more in ICT to effectively win the war against corruption.
In an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Abuja, Sharafadeen decried the non-existence of a functional data record of Nigerians.
While commending Federal Government’s efforts in improving the technology sector, he said that Nigeria would make more progress in the fight against corruption and other social vices with more investments in ICT.
According to him, ICT will reduce corruption by promoting transparency, opening government data to public scrutiny and automating government processes.
“The role of ICT will go a long way in combating corruption in key government processes such as procurement, taxation, human resource management, open data and service delivery.
“Most things are internet-based. Although government has invested a lot in ICT, the capacity has not yet been exhausted.
“There should be a good data record of Nigerian citizenry in order to curb a lot of issues bedeviling the country.
“Aside using a functional data base to address insecurity, financial crimes, armed robbery, kidnapping and many more, it can assist government to plan its budget and ensure that resources are appropriately channeled for even development.
“Technology is supposed to be a problem solver, so we need to invest more in the sector so we can benefit from the numerous potentials.
“With the right technology in place, it will be easy to trace anybody who commits a crime because you have his data and can extract his picture when need arises.
“This is the level we ought to be.
“E-governance has gained popularity in recent years, with many countries resorting to ICT to modernise government, increase efficiency and improve public service delivery, ’’ Sharafadeen added. (NAN)