Adamawa State  Governor, Ahmadu Umaru Fintiri, has lamented that corruption id one of the major obstacles to effective public service delivery and sustainable development.

The governor stated this while declaring open a capacity-building training on anti-corruption and procurement fraud organised by the Adamawa State Government in partnership with MDKODM Global Limited at the Banquet Hall of Government House, Yola.

The training, organised for the 21 local government council chairmen and relevant officials, is aimed at equipping participants with the knowledge and skills to identify, prevent and address corrupt practices, strengthen accountability and improve service delivery at the grassroots.

Represented by the Chief of Staff, Government House, Yola, the governor described the training as timely and relevant, particularly as his administration pursues reforms to improve governance and deliver tangible benefits to the people of the state.

Fintiri said corruption undermines public confidence, weakens institutions, increases the cost of governance and deprives citizens of essential services.

He noted that local government councils were closest to the people and had direct responsibility for providing basic services, stressing the need to ensure that public funds allocated for development were managed responsibly and used for their intended purposes.

The governor also identified procurement as a critical area requiring sustained attention in public financial management.

“I expect chairmen of local governments, directors of finance, procurement officers, treasurers, internal auditors and other relevant officials to take the lessons from this training seriously and translate them into practical improvements in their respective offices,” he said.

Earlier, the Commissioner for Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs, Alhaji Ibrahim Yayaji Mijinyawa, described the training as a strategic intervention designed to strengthen internal controls, equip public officers with the necessary skills and institutionalise transparency in line with global best practices and public procurement laws.

Mijinyawa said the Fintiri administration maintained a zero-tolerance policy for corruption, adding that the training was intended to ensure that ignorance was not used as an excuse for malpractice.

Also speaking, one of the lead consultants and facilitators, Kazeem Atitebi, said the governor had a vision for the state and urged local government chairmen and their officials to align their activities with the administration’s objectives.

Atitebi said the training would emphasise integrity, accountability and the efficient use of resources allocated to local government councils.

He added that participants would be sensitised to the meaning, forms and causes of corruption in public service, while the programme would promote ethical conduct, honesty and integrity in the discharge of official responsibilities.