Chairman, Senate Committee on Anti-Corruption and Financial Crimes, Distinguished Senator Suleiman Abdu Kwari says his team has delivered on the pledge made to ensure that all sector-specific bills are passed by the National Assembly.

The Kaduna North lawmaker made the disclosure in a statement on the passage of the Terrorism Prevention Amendment Bill by the Senate on Wednesday.

The bill among others seeks the prohibition of payment of ransoms to abductors, kidnappers and terrorists for the release of any person who has been wrongfully confined, imprisoned or kidnapped.

Other sector related bills sponsored by the lawmaker were also passed by the upper legislative chamber. They are Money Laundering Prevention and Prohibition Bill, Proceeds of  Crimes Management Bill, Public Interest Disclosure (Whistle Blower) Bill, Witness Protection Bill, and Terrorism Prevention Amendment Bill.

While thanking the Senate President and his colleagues for their support throughout the legislative process, Senator Kwari said with the passage of the Bills, Nigeria will be on course to exit the International Co-operation Review Group (ICRG).

Nigeria News House (NNH) recalls that the lawmaker made an undertaking during the ICRG Joint Task Force Meeting on the AML/CFT programme in the United Kingdom in November 2021 to ensure that all sector-specific bills are passed.  He also made significant contributions to the 9th Legislative Anti-Corruption Strategy (LACS 2021), a document that outlines stages to success in the anti-corruption fight.

The AML/CFT programme sets out the internal policies, procedures and controls necessary to detect money laundering and financing of terrorism (ML/FT) and to manage and mitigate the risk of it occurring.