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Vice President Yemi Osinbajo has rightly identified corruption as a threat to Nigeria’s development and called for a collective action against the menace. He also enjoined Nigerians to shun corruption, embrace honesty and unite to build a great country based on integrity and trustworthiness.
The Vice President, who stated this in Abuja at the official launch of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission’s (EFCC) Integrity and Zero Tolerance Manual for school clubs, stressed that every corrupt act is not an ordinary misdemeanor but a crime against society and the unborn generation. He observed that every public officer who steals, robs the Nigerian society of funds for health care, education, adding that the citizens must become policemen against corruption and wrongdoing, whether in government or as private individuals.
No doubt, Osinbajo has spoken well on the dangers of corruption and the urgent need for all Nigerians to embrace the war against the monster. That is why it has become necessary to strengthen the anti-graft agencies and the laws against corruption in all its ramifications. Without strong institutions and stringent laws against corruption, the war against corruption will only be a ruse. This is perhaps the second time in the year that the Vice President is drawing attention to the dangers of corruption in the development of the nation. Earlier in January, he had called for exposure and condemnation of corruption as conditions for the pursuit of the common good for the country.
We agree with Osinbajo that when public officials, whether high or low in the executive, legislature or judiciary, serve as toll gates or conduit pipes for the extortion of the populace, governance is bound to suffer. Beyond the launching of this laudable initiative, the government must be willing to apprehend and prosecute those involved in corruption and secure more convictions. It is by doing so that it will demonstrate that the war against graft is still on course. We can borrow a leaf from the Asian countries, such as China and Japan, on how best to wage the war against corruption.
In spite of the claims by government officials of having curtailed the menace, it is obvious that corruption is still on the rise in the country. Apart from bribery, corruption manifests in other ways such as inflation of contract costs, budget padding, vote rigging and deliberate erosion of the structures of governance.We acknowledge that government has made some efforts to tackle the malaise through the establishment of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Independent Corrupt Practices and other Offences Commission (ICPC) and others, which have made some successes in the fight. According to the EFCC Chairman, Abdulrasheed Bawa, the commission recorded 3,440 convictions on financial and cybercrimes across the country from January to November 2022. Last year, it secured a total of 2,220 convictions across the country. The anti-graft agency had reportedly recovered about $750 million in local and foreign currencies from fraudsters. However, there is still room for improvement.
Despite the achievements, Nigeria’s corruption perception index has worsened. As at 2021, a civil society group, YIAGA Africa, indicated that Nigeria lost at least $582 billion since independence due to endemic corruption. Out of the sum, about N1.3 trillion of public funds was reportedly laundered between 2011 and 2015 alone. About N5.2 trillion was lost to corruption at the ports within the period. Also, in the Transparency International 2021 Corruption Perception Index (CPI), Nigeria was ranked 154 out of 180 countries surveyed, making her the second most corrupt nation in West Africa. The ranking saw Nigeria drop from 149 in the 2020 index, the second consecutive year of a downward slope on the CPI ranking.
While the Vice President call for a collective action against corruption is in order, it behooves on the government, which he is the second in command, to rescue the country from the menace. Interestingly, the administration had listed the fight against corruption among its cardinal objectives.
Although no country is entirely free from corruption, ours has become endemic. The country cannot develop in the midst of widespread corruption. Government should fight the menace holistically. Let our leaders show good example in this regard and be ready to condemn corrupt practices. There should not be selective treatment on corrupt officials. It is not enough to call on Nigerians to unite and fight corruption. Let policies be put in place to check it. There is need for adequate sanctions against corruption. Corruption is growing in the country because of inadequate deterrent measures. That is why we need more stringent laws against the menace.
