Absence of forensic investigative auditing portends danger for Nigeria’s financial system - CIFIAN

The Chartered institute of Forensic and Investigative Auditors of Nigeria (CIFIAN) raised alarm over the impeding dangers to Nigeria financial system, with the absence of forensic investigative auditing.

Victoria Enape, CIFIAN President who disclosed this during a press briefing held in Abuja recently, argued that criminal offences in Nigeria now involve the use of digital technologies which speak to the need for a forensic and investigative auditing through the use of science and technology for fraud prevention and detection.

She said: “The absence of the appropriate legal framework for the regulation of forensic and investigative auditing practice in Nigeria portends great danger to the integrity and safety of the Nigerian system, the first noticeable consequence of such a lacuna is that Nigeria current spends hundreds of million of her scarce foreign exchange to hire forensic experts to investigate corporate fraud.”

She explained that the CIFIAN as well as other professional bodies aims to entrench excellence, proficiency, discipline and specialization and ensure best practice among practitioners as against the proliferation as alleged by opponents of the bill.

According to her, the proposed CIFIAN bill are forensic analysis of financial statements to eliminate material misstatement, whether caused by error or fraud and preventing assets misapplication scam; cyber crimes, global anti-fraud and corruption compliance and enforcement.

“CIFIAN is coming to fill a huge vacuum in its proposed area of operation, the absence of which Nigeria will continue to spend her scarce foreign exchange to hire expatriate to do forensic auditing in Nigeria, this is an era of technology and we must key into it in order to compete in the global market.

“We wish to state that the primary domain of forensic and investigative auditing is to work within the investigative processed form the scene of fraud to the curt, providing information and evidence for administration of justice and to ensure that the courts are presented with the