EFCC on Thursday in Abuja charged students of tertiary institutions to steer clear of internet fraud to accelerate national development.

EFCC spokesman Wilson Uwujaren quoted the anti-graft chairman Abdulrasheed Bawa as giving the charge at the inauguration of the Zero Tolerance Club at Baze University, Abuja.

Mr Bawa warned that the penalties against internet fraud were stiff and urged students to avoid all temptations that might lead them to join fraudsters.

“Every variant of internet fraud such as romance scam, business email compromise, hacking, impersonation, Forex scam and others are corrupt practices, and you must not engage in them,” he warned. “As undergraduates, you are expected to channel your creative energies into useful engagements and not into dishonest and dubious means of cheating others of their resources.”

EFCC’s public affairs director, Osita Nwajah, stressed the importance of joining the club and encouraged the students to acquaint themselves with the ‘Operational Manual for Integrity and Zero Tolerance Clubs’, which he presented to the school as a guide for the club’s activities.

Another EFCC official, Aisha Mohammed, heading the enlightenment and reorientation unit, told the students that the essence of the club was to teach virtues of integrity, honesty, discipline, tolerance and patriotism in them.

The university’s registrar, Ibrahim Mohammed, emphasised the essence of being upright and charged the students to avoid crimes and criminality at all costs.

“There is nothing more important than integrity. Integrity may not give you money today, but it is going to put you on the path to success. Money always comes,” stated the registrar.”

He added, “It may not come in your early life, but if you work hard with integrity and are steadfast, you will succeed; you will make money than you ever believed in your life. You will be able to afford all the things you want and walk with your head high up as an important and respected member of society without engaging in fraud.”

(NAN)