The Chairman of the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC), Dr. Musa Aliyu, SAN, will deliver the Verbatim 2026 Lecture titled, “The Power of Integrity in Service Delivery” at the Musa Yar’Adua Centre, Abuja, on Tuesday, September 29, 2026. This lecture is part of the Verbatim Annual Ethics and Integrity Awards, an initiative organised by Verbatim Magazine in partnership with the ICPC. The event aims to recognise the top 100 performing Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) based on the ICPC Ethics and Integrity Compliance Scorecard (EICS) 2025.
The occasion will be chaired by His Excellency, Senator Ambassador Professor Iyorwuese Hagher, OON, a distinguished diplomat, scholar, and former Nigerian Ambassador to Canada. Professor Hagher also served as Minister of State for Power and Steel. The event, scheduled for 2:00 p.m., is expected to attract senior government officials, heads of MDAs, public-sector leaders, policymakers, diplomats, civil society representatives, academics, members of the media, and other stakeholders in governance and national development.
The awards ceremony will formally honour the 100 MDAs ranked in the EICS 2025, with their respective chief executives receiving the Pillars of Integrity in Public Service Award. This award recognises the institutions’ performance in the ICPC’s ethics and integrity compliance assessment. The Publisher and Editor-in-Chief of Verbatim Magazine, Tobs Agbaegbu, announced Professor Hagher as Chairman of the Occasion, highlighting the importance of bringing distinguished public servants and diplomats into the national conversation on integrity, leadership, and institutional performance.
Agbaegbu described Professor Hagher as a public servant whose career in government, diplomacy, and academia brings a wealth of experience to an occasion devoted to the values of integrity and responsible leadership. He stated that the participation of the ICPC Chairman as Guest Lecturer would further deepen the conversation around the relationship between integrity and effective public service. The theme, “The Power of Integrity in Service Delivery,” reflects the central objective of the initiative: to promote a public-service culture in which ethical conduct, transparency, and institutional responsibility contribute directly to improved service delivery and public trust.
The Verbatim Annual Ethics and Integrity Awards are anchored on the ICPC Ethics and Integrity Compliance Scorecard (EICS) 2025, with technical guidance and validation data provided through the Commission’s engagement with Verbatim. The event will also feature the official unveiling of the Verbatim 100 Most Integrity-Compliant MDAs and their CEOs, alongside the presentation of the Pillars of Integrity in Public Service Awards and special commendations to selected institutions and personalities.
According to Agbaegbu, the initiative represents part of Verbatim’s broader commitment to developmental journalism, public accountability, and the documentation of leadership, governance, and institutional performance in Nigeria. He emphasised that integrity is not merely an ethical ideal but an essential foundation for effective governance, public trust, and quality service delivery. By recognising institutions that demonstrate commitment to ethical standards, Verbatim seeks to encourage a culture in which integrity becomes an integral part of public-sector performance.
The Verbatim 2026 Lecture and Ethics and Integrity Awards is expected to provide a significant platform for reflection on how ethical leadership and institutional integrity can strengthen public institutions and improve the quality of services delivered to Nigerians. Verbatim Magazine is an Abuja-based public affairs publication dedicated to credible journalism, investigative reporting, policy analysis, and the documentation of leadership, governance, and national development. The Verbatim Annual Ethics and Integrity Awards is part of the publication’s emerging Verbatim 100 Series, a developmental journalism initiative designed to identify, document, and celebrate institutions and individuals whose contributions have significance for Nigeria’s national development.
Key points
- The ICPC Chairman, Dr. Musa Aliyu, SAN, will deliver the Verbatim 2026 Lecture on September 29, 2026.
- The event will honour the top 100 MDAs ranked in the ICPC Ethics and Integrity Compliance Scorecard (EICS) 2025.
- The awards ceremony will be chaired by His Excellency, Senator Ambassador Professor Iyorwuese Hagher, OON.
