By Olasunkanmi Akoni

Lagos—Governor Akinwunmi Ambode, Lagos State yesterday, called on members of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria, ICAN,  to support the ongoing anti-corruption efforts of President Muhammadu Buhari.

Ambode who made the call at the opening ceremony of the 45th Annual Conference of the ICAN, held at the International Conference Centre, Abuja, noted that the pivotal role played by accountants daily in the running of government, calls for them to be above board in discharging their duties.

According to him, “I once heard someone say that “Only accountants can save the world through peace, goodwill and reconciliation. That tells me that the people who can save Nigeria are in this hall today.

“We must kick-start that process now by developing mechanisms that will make it compelling for members of the Institute to exhibit a high level of integrity wherever we find ourselves.

“As custodians and managers of financial resources, we must be above board and resist the temptation to compromise our professional ethics and personal integrity. This, I believe, should be our focus as we begin the journey of another 50 years”, he said.

He also tasked accountants in the country to commence the process of raising the bar of integrity through pragmatic rebuilding of the nation’s value system so as to redefine the vision of the profession.

Earlier, in his opening address, the ICAN President, Otunba Femi Deru, said accountants must use their skills and expertise to drive the renaissance of the nation’s value system.

He said, “The virtues of selfless leadership, open governance, accountability and integrity must be entrenched in our system.”

Deru said the institute has set up a N50 million endowment fund to help in the fight against corruption, adding; “We have set up  framework to reposition the institute for greater service delivery.”