From Adanna Nnamani, Abuja
The Society of Women Accountants of Nigeria (SWAN), Abuja Chapter, has urged its members to get involved in politics in an effort to increase women’s representation in the country’s political sphere.
SWAN said by doing this, accountants would be able to participate in the creation of laws that would combat financial fraud.
The group stated this at its 2023 Biennial General Meeting and Account Stewardship of its out-going Chairperson, Joy Esu held recently in Abuja.
Speaking at the occasion, Monica Nosike, the incoming 8th chairperson of the organisation said, “Some of our members are already in politics. For example, the Honorable Speaker of Ekiti State, Bunmi Adelugba is one of us. She is a SWAN member of Abuja chapter. There are a whole lot of them here that are equally into politics. We are actually encouraging our members to key into politics, of course you know for an accountant, there are so many things we can not do as a matter of policy. That is why people normally say accountants are not interested in politics, but then, I tell you again for free, that now, accountants are beginning to key into politics because by doing that, they are able to nib in the bud some of those financially loopholes.
Debunking the saying that “there is no successful fraud without the involvement of an accountant”, Nosike said, “We want to debunk the idea of the saying that without an accountant there can’t be a successful fraud. you see, it depends on the nature of an organization. Once the internal control system of an organization is weak, anybody can steal.
She also promised to build on the efforts made by the previous administration to encourage integrity among female accountants.
The outgoing chairman, Esu, appreciated the support of the women while carrying out her duties, but she also acknowledged that there were some difficulties.
According to her, “You know virtually everyone’s life journey is full of challenges but, the ability to surmount those challenges is what makes you who you are and actualise your dreams. One thing I will say is, I had my eyes on the ball. If your eyes are focused on the ball, you will not miss direction. We had a whole lot of challenges, like you have heard from my accountant and even during my valedictory speech. There were some challenges that were turbulent even in-house but we were able to quickly address them.
“How were we able to address them? We looked at what the challenges were and we tried to resolve them and God has helped us too, through prayers and asking for divine direction and wisdom to be able to carry out our duties. Though it wasn’t easy, but we were able to pull through and we achieved so much because we had a target, we had a vision and we pursued that vigorously.”
