It is indeed a welcome development to have the Federal Government of Nigeria move into developing an advanced Artificial Intelligence (AI) platform aimed at combating corruption by instantly verifying the assets of public servants and flagging unexplained wealth.
Dr Abubakar Bello, the Code of Conduct Bureau (CCB) Chairman revealed that the Bureau is at an advanced stage of developing a fully online asset declaration platform, expected to be ready by the first quarter of 2026.
However, the recent update has it that according to Dr. Abubakar in an interview with newsmen on Sunday, the AI platform will allow public servants to declare their assets from anywhere in the world, replacing the manual system which only addresses the problem of availability, not deep verification.
The new platform will connect to vital national databases, such as the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC), the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS), the Bank Verification Number (BVN) system, land registries, and other pertinent government records.
Bello praised the digital system as a “game changer” due to its direct linkage with essential government databases for immediate verification.
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Additionally, Artificial Intelligence will be utilized to analyze the declarations. The AI platform is intended to assess a public servant’s net worth at both the start and conclusion of their tenure, automatically flagging cases of unexplained wealth or potential violations of the Code of Conduct for further examination.
As part of ongoing reforms, Dr. Bello confirmed that the CCB has begun inviting ministers, permanent secretaries, and other senior officials for physical asset verification, emphasizing that “verification is not investigation.”
He revealed that the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Lateef Fagbemi, personally attended the Bureau to verify his assets, an act Bello characterized as a strong demonstration of leadership by example.
The CCB Chairman remarked that the verification process has already resulted in interim forfeiture orders in instances where public servants failed to declare or could not justify the origins of their assets, including properties both within and outside Nigeria.
