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NIGERIA: Counting Corruption Cuts By Muhammad Hassan-Tom
The problem with Nigeria, to correct Chinua Achebe’s famous postulation, is not leadership but corruption. Leadership is superlatively the indispensable spring and strength of every civilised society and it is only when power corrupts, as Lord Denning famously put it, that things fall apart, as Achebe also titled his most celebrated novel. Power and politics are necessary even if the two are often used against rather than for the peace and progress of the populace in general. Therefore, the task before every sensitised stakeholder in the power-system is to checkmate the proliferation of the blood-sucking virus called corruption at least in all the most important socioeconomic and political organs of the state. Corruption is clearly the chief malaise that has denied Nigerians the benefit of their country’s enormous human and natural resources through misappropriation, embezzlement, unauthorised diversion of funds, failed contracts, forgery, fictitious claims, ghost-workers, money-laundering, over-invoicing, product adulteration and other economic and financial irregularities. Growing gradually from the timid ten per cent collectors of the First Republic to the barefaced billionaires who bought up the best national assets especially in the last eight years, the sleaze soldiers have become seemingly unstoppable. In between, there was what late Fela Anikulapo-Kuti called the International Thief-Thief (ITT) consisting of criminal conspiracies between Euro-American and Nigerian corporate crooks. One World Bank estimate is that in collaboration with Western institutions, so-called public servants stole almost $400 billion crude oil revenue over the past 40 years and stashed most of it in Swiss and other unscrupulous banks. This is in addition to the fact that 80 per cent of all government income are spent to provide jobs, offices, houses, vehicles, fuel and furniture to just two per cent of the population. Given such a scenario, anyone could become an instant hero in Nigeria if they battle and batter corruption. For example, late General Murtala Muhammed who was just a military dictator with a dark past like others before and after him became a continental icon because he sincerely confronted the scourge in 1975 and rather incompetently at that. For the same reason, the General Muhammad Buhari regime’s relatively ruthless approach to the war against indiscipline and corruption between 1984 and 1985 is still being hailed in many quarters and accounts for much of his popularity among the masses in the last two consecutive presidential contests. It is also on account of the hundreds of years of jail sentences clapped on corrupt politicians under his military regime that prospects of a return of Buhari to power is rattling some rich and powerful politicians with a shady past. In between the reigns of Murtala and Buhari, even the surprisingly unsuccessful Shehu Shagari administration launched its feeble Ethical Revolution between 1979 and 1983. The General Ibrahim Babangida regime concentrated its efforts on a bogus mass mobilisation for self-reliance and economic recovery and even allegedly fast-tracked corruption into the digital age. So when former President Olusegun Obasanjo established the Independent Corrupt Practices Commission (ICPC) in 2000 and the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) in 2002 as two of his first major measures to move the nation forward, he endeared himself with many naïve Nigerians to no end. The names alone sounded like the definitive death-knell for the cancerous syndrome eating up the country’s vast resources and tearing its international integrity into tatters while officially over 70 per cent of its 140 million citizens live on less than a dollar a day. Ironically, it is this deprivation that drives an increasing number of the people especially the youth into desperate, get-rich-quick scams for which Nigerians are now renowned. Yet, poverty is not even the worst consequence of corruption when we review recent gory episodes in Angola, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Liberia and Sierra Leone and see the devastation that economic crimes, especially those fuelled by fights for “free” mineral resources, can create. The violence and lawlessness in the oil-rich Nigerian Niger-Delta foreshadow how such sleazy situations spiral out of control if not sanitised. Therefore, when the simple and sprightly Nuhu Ribadu took charge as Executive Chairman of the EFCC with a reassuring commitment to the anti-corruption crusade, he was tremendously supported from home and abroad both in terms of operations and capacity-building to ensure that the nation is no longer a safe-haven for corrupt public officials and fraudsters. It was highly hoped that the agency could make the difference between democracy which Nigerians were rooting for and the kleptocracy that the ruling People’s Democratic Party (PDP) seemed poised to impose on the country. The Commission’s mission statement avers that “The EFCC will curb the menace of the corruption that constitutes the cog in the wheel of progress; protect national and foreign investments in the country; imbue the spirit of hard work in the citizenry and discourage ill-gotten wealth; identify illegally acquired wealth and confiscate it; build an upright workforce in both public and private sectors of the economy and; contribute to the global war against economic and financial crimes.” Its massive mandate also includes investigating illegal bunkering, advanced fee fraud, terrorism, capital market, cyber-crime and economic governance. An Adamawa State-born lawyer-cum-policeman, Ribadu’s first few weeks in office were really riveting. The anti-graft agency almost instantly became an integral part of the criminal justice system and Ribadu a hero to revere. So far, his outfit has reportedly secured 200 convictions in competent courts of law and recovered about $5 billion in looted funds. The bulk of the cases were money-laundering and Advanced Fee Frauds or “419” as they are popularly called. Apart from these con-artists and the Yahoo-boys who have banked on increasingly available Information Communication Technologies (ICT) to intensify the cyber-crime industry, some of the EFCC’s classic catches include former Inspector-General of Police, Tafa Balogun and ex-Governor Diepreye Alamieyeseigha of Bayelsa State. In 2006, Ribadu told the Senate that 31 of the 36 state governors in the country were under investigation by the Commission. He subsequently sent a list of indicted public officials requesting the Minister of Justice and Attorney-General of the Federation to disqualify them from contesting the 2007 general elections. Recently, four other former governors were arraigned before the courts on multiple charges of embezzlement and money-laundering involving hundreds of millions of Naira. To date, the majority of these gaoled governors including Joshua Dariye of Plateau State, Saminu Turaki of Jigawa State, Orji Uzor Kalu of Abia State and Chimaroke Nnamani of Enugu State could not secure bail to face trial out of prison. Former Governor James Ibori of Delta State whose seized $35 million pounds are the subject of current transfer negotiations between the British and Nigerian governments is even set to surpass the sad lot soon. Even though a few other governors are touted to be consecrated cows because they decamped to the ruling party almost at the end of their tenure in return for immunity against indictment, the general belief is that big bandits are being bludgeoned one at a time. The fear of the EFCC was becoming the beginning of wisdom as foreign trips by state governors, commissioners and even councillors in search of foreign investment suddenly became very unattractive. Accountability and due process were resurrecting. Perhaps as a result of all these efforts, Nigeria has now improved 14 notches in the latest corruption ranking of 180 countries by Transparency International (TI), the global organ leading the crusade against public sleaze. The Corruption Perception Index (CPI) 2007 released last month rated Nigeria the 33rd most corrupt country in the world, and placed it 147th with two other countries out of the 180 assessed. Nigeria had in 2006 ranked the 17th most corrupt country, following its rating of 146 out of 163 countries surveyed. It was graded the most corrupt in 2003, second most corrupt in 2004, and third most corrupt in 2005. TI was established in 1993 in Germany to lead the fight against corruption. It ranks countries yearly in terms of the degree to which corruption is perceived to exist among public officials and politicians. However, all the good news is still cold cheer compared to the corpus of criminality that needs to be curtailed before the wheel of progress could start rolling back the country’s under-development driven by decades of corruption. The ICPC and EFCC’s admirable anti-graft wars started developing k-legs under Obasanjo’s watch; now the disease is worsening into rickets. The strategy was first selective and later vindictive justice if ever there could be such a thing.
For instance, following the return to
democracy in 1999, Julius Makanjoula, then permanent secretary in the
Ministry of Defence and the ex-President’s cousin, was the first to be
caught with his hands in the public purse big time –
So does the EFCC’s silence over the Nigerian
National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) accounts before and after
establishment of the Nigeria Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative
(NEITI). This is a mystifying matter especially in view of reports of
missing billions of dollars. Only recently, the Federation Account
Allocation Committee (FAAC) in its September 2007 monthly report disclosed
that the NNPC whose accounts had not been audited in years is yet to remit
or even account for So, is Ribadu really above board enough to rescue the sinking ship of state via a concrete crusade against corruption? The answer, for the sake of the peace and prosperity of this country, has to be yes. There should be no giving up on or by Nuhu no matter the time and sacrifice entailed in the exercise. Arabs have a saying that everyone acquires at least one outstanding attribute from their namesake. In Nuhu’s case, it has got to be patient perseverance in preaching the gospel of probity and putting its violators into prison. With the collaboration of citizens in a patriotic partnership, the nation’s titanic struggle against the trend would not have to end in disappointment or a deluge. Nigeria really has no option in the matter better than stepping up and winning the anticorruption war. The only alternative is all-round anarchy and a full-blown failed state by 2020 or before. According to the EFCC’s own summation, corruption has continued to cost the country in the following far-reaching terms:- Loss of Government Revenue Negative National Image Poor Governance Failure of State Institutions Brain Drain Electoral Malpractices (Election rigging) Absence of Law and Order Civil Unrest Poor Investment Climate Business Failures and Unemployment Poverty These are the major effects of corruption and the outstanding obstacles against rapid national development. Therefore, it is crystal clear that the country cannot make headway in improving the standard of living of the generality of the people until it wins a decisive victory against graft especially in government. This cannot be a task for the EFCC alone. The nation also needs the optimum services of the ICPC, the Code of Conduct Bureau, the National Agency for Food and Drugs Administration and Control (NAFDAC), the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), Money Laundering Act of 1995, the Advance Fee Fraud (Otherwise Known As 419) and Fraud Related Offences Act of 1995, the Standards Organisation of Nigeria (SON), the Failed Banks Act of 1996, Banks and Other Financial Institutions Act of 1991, the Foreign Exchange Act of 1995, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), the Nigerian Deposit Insurance Corporation (NDIC), the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), the National Insurance Commission (NAICOM), the Nigeria Police Force (NPF), the Customs and Excise and the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC). At the moment, it seems that only the EFCC, NAFDAC and the NDLEA are up to speed. The trio are daily destroying criminal gangs, fake drugs and dangerous substances while their agents battle for their lives against their deadly quarries. For instance, NAFDAC’s Dr. Dora Akunyuli was the target of failed assassins in a dramatic encounter a couple of years ago that drew massive public sympathy leading to calls on her to run for president! The NDLEA has recorded 12,879 convicted drug traffickers since its inception in 1990. On its part, the ICPC is also reportedly prosecuting 131 persons in 248 on-going cases. In contrast though, the police have even been rated as the second most corrupt national institution right behind the public utilities. However, the setting up of the multimillion dollars Police Equipment Fund is bringing massive investment in the welfare and equipping of its members to enable them function meaningfully. Nigerians must also not despair because corruption is actually a global problem with Asia rather than Africa widely reputed to be a home of the phenomena. According to Transparency International, Indonesia’s former President Suharto is the most corrupt leader in recent history for embezzling between $15-$35 billion after 32 years in power. The second place position would go to former Philippines’ President Joseph Estrada, who recently earned a life-sentence for amassing $80 billion in tax waivers and kick—backs. Thailand whose former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra had $1.63 billion in his accounts when the military threw him out of office a couple of years ago is regarded as the sex-trade capital of the world and is so corrupt that citizens actually sell off their children into prostitution. The recent execution of the chief executive of China’s food and drug safety commission over bribe-for-licensing-of-uncertified drugs conviction also clearly underscores the prevalence of the plague in the world’s most populous continent. South America is another basket-case where former Presidents Augusto Pinochet of Chile and Alberto Fujimori of Peru were recently indicted in some of the most outrageous instances of corruption imaginable. Even in Nigeria, the biggest corrupt deals are cut with foreigners. The recent investigation into the activities of Panalpina Welttransport Holding AG, the parent company of Panalpina in Nigeria by the United States Justice Department reveals bribes being paid at dozens of oil firms that use Panalpina to win or keep contracts in the country. Earlier, Halliburton, an American oil services firm fronting for US Vice President Dick Cheney was indicted for bribery in a similar incidence in 2004. TI Chairperson, Huguette Labelle, who launched the latest CPI in London, also admitted that corruption by high-level public officials in poor countries has an international dimension that implicates the CPI's top scorers. She said bribe money often stems from multinationals based in the world's richest countries. Labelle stressed: "It can no longer be acceptable for these companies to regard bribery in export markets as a legitimate business strategy. In addition, global financial centres play a pivotal role in allowing corrupt officials to move, hide, and invest their illicitly gained wealth.” According to her, offshore financing, for example, played a crucial role in the looting of millions from developing countries such as Nigeria and the Philippines, facilitating the misdeeds of corrupt leaders and impoverishing those they governed. Fortunately, other developments on the international scene are already heading towards zero-tolerance for sleaze and its kingpins. On September 17th, the UN and World Bank unveiled a new Stolen Assets Recovery (StAR) initiative in Switzerland to help developing countries set up institutions to detect and deter flow of illegal funds. It is also to put world leaders on notice that they would not escape the extended arm of the law. The StAR similarly calls for the ratification by all countries of the UN Convention Against Corruption (UNCAC). Similarly, the African Peer Review Mechanism (APRM) established under the auspices of the African Union’s New Partnership for African Development (NEPAD) seeks to examine and enforce standards in good governance across the continent. One indication of the interesting developments ahead is the on-going investigation of Jackie Selebi, the powerful chief of the South African Police, who is to be arraigned for racketeering, corruption and being accessory after the fact of murder and also having links to organised crime. By tasking states to be transparent, the mechanism is expected to lead to better service delivery and improvement in the lives of citizens of African countries. The fastest path out of the corruption maze is for past leaders who looted the nation’s resources to return the proceeds even if through plea bargains and profusely apologise to the people. Since this may be a tall order for now, Ribadu needs to religiously stick to his ‘Nobody is above the Law’ rule and to muster all the courage to live true to his words of making the ultimate sacrifice if necessary to rid the country of the rot. One of his memorable statements in this regard was “No one is better than any other person in the country. We should love our country and do what is right even if it means sacrificing our lives because we have no other country than Nigeria.” Meanwhile, society should be ready to expose corrupt leaders for prosecution and cooperate with all anti-corruption agencies. Apart from citizens’ collaboration, the anti-corruption agencies need the appropriate environment to eliminate vice. Elaborate economic reforms that empower the people with water-supply, educational facilities, employment, electricity, healthcare, roads, and security must be the anchor for a successful war against corruption. Wages must reflect the globalised prices of basic essentials. Politically, the demonetisation of politics is the only way that Ghana-must-go bags would be replaced with Nigerians-must-enjoy policies. Perhaps, after eighth years of a northern presidency, the profligate Presidential system of democracy should be jettisoned in favour of the Parliamentary model which is more cost-effective. Socially, the society must devalue richness and rich people and refuse to respect or revere those who flaunt their ill-gotten wealth for a sustainable and successful struggle against the scourge.
Muhammad Hassan-Tom, 3 Sultan Bello Road, Kaduna. E-mail: hassantom@yahoo.co.uk
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