Corruption In Nigeria; A Threat To Sustainable Development

1.0 INTRODUCTION

Corruption is unarguably one of the most topical issues in the discourses of the deepening crisis and contradictions of post-independence Nigeria. The level of attention devoted to it •may not only be due to its rapid and unprecedented expansion to all facet of human Endeavour and its menacing consequences, but also because of the seeming fecklessness of successive attempts at combating it. The problem has become so endemic that, as (Omotola 2006; 2004) has pointed out, one can begin to talk about the political culture of corruption in the country. To be sure, Transparency International, an international non-governmental organization that is reputed for its exploits in its measurement of countries' Corruption Perception Index, ranked Nigeria as the most corrupt among the 52 countries ranked in 1996 and 1997.

This could be regarded as of little significance as the country was then under the firm authoritarian grip of the military. The hope that the advent of democracy in 1999 would mark an appreciable breakaway from the past, including the country's perennial problem of corruption, largely remains in the pipeline. Nigeria, in•what seems senseless squandering of hopes, ranked as the most corrupt in 2002, the second most corrupt in 2003, and the third most corrupt in 2004 (Omotola, 2006). These findings point to the fact that the anti-corruption war has hardly made a positive impact in the country, perhaps due to the depth of the phenomenon.

It is important to know that ?corrupt? acts are displayed at various sectors in Nigeria, but this work would focus more attention on exposing and proffering solutions to various means of corruption in the governmental/political body in Nigeria, both in the Federal, state and local levels, as decisions made at these levels affects every facet of life.

Nigeria is rich   in natural resources, but the problem lies with the technique at which the political leaders manage and allocate the profits realized from these resources as they are directed to the wrong sources because of the thought of retaining a portion of the budget for their personal uses. The nature reflected by these leaders is therefore that of greed; and it is evident as we see a leader deciding to carry out a particular project at the expense of another because of his/her vision of generating profits from the budget set aside for the initial project for their personal pockets.

Due to these corrupt acts and more, Nigeria is still facing problems of bad roads, low educational standard, bad electricity supply, bad and limited amount of bridges, undeveloped and obsolete railway systems and many more, because when the initial budget for a project is intentionally reduced, the result of the job done will be poor requiring attention again after a short while. This makes us know that corruption and its illicit acts pull the country backwards, thereby hampering development.

This therefore requires that the governmental body be cleaned up of all its corrupt personnel so as to allow reoriented and capable persons to take charge of running the affairs of the country. In achieving this, the question will then be:

• What are the roots of corruption in Nigeria?

• What areas of human life has corruption affected in Nigeria? How has corruption affected development in Nigeria?

• How can the problem be tackled in order to achieve the desired result?

1.1 PROCEEDURE/PLAN FOR THE STUDY

This study, Corruption in Nigeria; a Threat to Sustainable Development is organised into three (3) chapters.

CHAPTER ONE (1)

Chapter one is an attempt to bring to the fore some of the definitional and conceptual issues to be considered in studying and understanding corruption. The chapter embodies the general background to the study, statement of research problem, the aims and objectives of the research, research questions methods of data collection, scope and limitation of the study and chapter organisation.

CHAPTER TWO (2)

Chapter two consists of an in-depth review of relevant literature on corruption, reasons for its persistence and prevalence in Nigeria. The chapter would also review scholarly works of authors on the causes and typologies of corruption.

CHAPTER THREE (3)

Chapter three gives an analysis of the effect of corruption to national development, as well as the effects of corruption on some sectors of the economy. The chapter will also review the scope of corruption in Nigeria.

Chapter three would also consist of interpretation of data and an assessment of legal provisions for combating corruption in Nigeria.

The chapter more also would contain a brief summary of findings, suggested recommendations and conclusions.

The study adopts the American Psychological Association (APA) style of referencing and bibliographic citation.

1.2 BACKGROUND OF STUDY

Corruption is efforts to secure wealth or power through illegal means for private gain at public expense; or a misuse of public power for private benefit. Corruption like cockroaches has co-existed with human society for a long time and remains as one of the problems in many of the world's developing economies with devastating consequences. Corruption as a phenomenon, is a global problem, and exists in varying degrees in different countries (Agbu, 2001). Corruption is not only found in democratic and dictatorial politics, but also in feudal, capitalist and socialist economies. Christian, Muslim, Hindu, and Buddhist cultures are equally bedeviled by corruption (Dike, 2005). Corrupt practices are not an issue that just begins today but the history is as old as the world (Lipset and Lenz, 2000).

In Nigeria, it is one of the many unresolved problems (Ayobolu, 2006) that have critically hobbled and skewed development. It remains a long-term major political and economic challenge for Nigeria (Sachs, 2007). It is a canker worm that has eaten deep in the fabric of the nation. It ranges from petty corruption to political I bureaucratic corruption or Systemic corruption (International Center for Economic Growth, 1999). World Bank studies put corruption at over $1 trillion per year accounting for up to 12% of the Gross Domestic Product of nations like Nigeria, Kenya and Venezuela (Nwabuzor, 2005).

Corruption is endemic as well as an enemy within (Agbu, 2003). It is a canker worm that has eaten deep in the fabric of the country and had stunted growth in all sectors (Economic and Financial Crime Commission (EFCC), 2005). It has been the primary reason behind the country?s difficulties in developing fast (Independent Corrupt Practices Commission (ICPC), 2006). This is evident in Transparency lnternational's consistent rating of Nigeria as one of the top three most corrupt countries in the world (Ribadu, 2003).

1.3 OBJECTIVES  OF STUDY

The objectives of this study are:

1. To explore and analyze the development of corruption in Nigeria.

2. To develop insights for reducing the menace.

3. To create possible checks and balances that could see this disease to a minimum level.

1.4 STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM

The problem of corruption in Nigeria has been characterized by lack of culture of accountability, inefficiency, weak government structures, excessive concentration of power in the executive arm of government and lack of transparency.

This phenomena in governance characterize the practice of shameless act of stealing  of public funds and properties, wasteful mismanagement of national resources and public asset. The fact and ubiquity of corruption in Nigeria are not in any doubt whatsoever.

1.5 RESEARCH QUESTIONS

Can the problem of lack of or slow development be seen in the unending struggle among Nigerians to retain or gain advantages over fellow Nigerians?

• Where, with regards to institution and organization is corruption perpetuated?

• Can widespread corruption provoke resentment and promote the chances of a revolution beneficial to the society in the long run?

1.6 RESEARCH  METHODOLOGY

This research adopts the secondary method of data collection. This method involves a critical analysis of published data such as text books, newspapers, journals and other source of media information like the internet. Data will also be analyzed using descriptive method of analysis.

1.7 SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY

There is no doubt that the crime of corruption in government threatens the moral integrity of a nation and hampers development, this thus makes the topic of discourse significant especially looking at the global effect of corruption on democracy and development generally.

There are a number of reasons for focusing on the scope and impact of corruption in Nigeria and the difficulties in dealing with it. Nigeria occupies a central place in Africa as the most populous country, with an estimated population of over 149 million. It is one of the continent's richest countries and is blessed with a huge diversity of natural and human resources. It is also characterized by a multiplicity of different ethnic groups. Like many mono-cultural economies in Africa, its economy is heavily dependent on crude oil. Paradoxically, it is this important natural resource that sustains corruption in Nigeria.

The significance of this study is therefore to expose the acts of the few privileged ones who find themselves in high positions of authority and the ways at which they divert the profits gotten from these natural resources for personal uses instead of using them for public purposes and how this has hampered efforts made on development.

1.8 SCOPE AND DELIMITATION OF THE STUDY

The study examines critically the various ways through which corruption has become institutionalized in Nigeria and its subsequent impact on political culture and behavior on the one hand and its implications for development on the other hand.

It also explores the concepts associated with corruption, outlines the debilitating effects of corruption on Nigeria. It also elaborates on the conditions that encourage the flourishing of graft in the literature.

This study, due to a number of constraints involving time and resources, especially unavailability of data, shall rely solely on secondary sources of data such as internet, journals, articles etc.