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Tuesday, 02 December, 2008 02:25 am
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| PRESS RELEASE BY TRANSPARENCY IN NIGERIA |
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| Written by News Hound | ||||||
| Wednesday, 26 September 2007 | ||||||
     Today, 26th September, 2007, Transparency International, the international bulwark against corruption, released the 2007 Corruption Perceptions Index. This year 180 countries, including Nigeria, were surveyed. The Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI) ranks countries in terms of the degree to which corruption is perceived to exist among public officials and politicians. It is a composite index, making use of surveys of business people and assessments by country analysts. In this years ranking, Nigeria took the position out of 180 countries that were surveyed, with a total score of 2.2 out of a maximum of 10 points. This score translates to 22%. Denmark, Finland and New Zealand scored 9.4 points each. The following table shows Nigeria’s score on the TI-CPI, 1999 – date. Year CPI Scale No. of Countries Sampled CPI Score 1999 10.0 99 1.6 2000 10.0 N.A 1.2 2001 10.0 91 1.0 2002 10.0 N.A 1.6 2003 10.0 133 1.4 2004 10.0 146 1.6 2005 10.0 159 1.9 2006 10.0 163 2.2 2007 10.0 180 2.2 Nigeria, therefore, did not record any improvement in her score in 2006. Furthermore, it goes without saying that 22% is a failure grade. No reasonable person in Nigeria would have expected a higher score. The last general elections alone are eloquent of the level of corruption in Nigeria. It was virtually a case of election without voting. The constitution of Nigeria which vests sovereignty on the people of Nigeria was completely subverted with contempt and impunity. It is on record that since the inception of Nigeria’s Fourth Republic in 1999 the Federal Government has stated that fighting corruption would be one of the major policy thrusts of the administration. New anti-corruption laws were enacted. New anti-corruption institutions were set up. Several new measures were adopted at the Federal level. Some high profile persons have been arrested and successfully prosecuted, though the sentences have been very light considering the gravity of the offence. However, the interventions have been sporadic, and almost exclusively at the federal level. Much has not happened at the state and local government levels. Furthermore, the nation is yet to adopt a coherent anti-corruption strategy. As the CPI reveals, and as the average Nigerian will agree, the level of corruption in the country is still intolerably high. A number of gaps still exist in the anti-corruption programme of the government. Corruption is best fought by building an integrity system. This means building some insitu parapets for transparency and accountability into the structures of governance. We have to move away from a system which is top down i.e. one in which an autocratic elite gives orders which must be followed by those down the line, to a system of horizontal accountability i.e. one in which power is dispersed, where none has a monopoly, and where each is separately accountable. Under a system of “horizontal accountability” a virtuous circle is perfected: one in which each actor is both a watcher and is watched, is both a monitor and is monitored. The gaps in the anti-corruption programme of the government includes: 1.Lack of freedom of information law 2.Lack of a law for public access to asset declarations 3.Lack of independence of the anti-corruption agencies 4.Lack of National Anti-Corruption Strategy 5.Lack of Independent Electoral umpire 6.Lack of whistleblowers protection law 7.Lack of virile, apolitical and accountable public service 8.Lack of Independent, impartial and incorruptible judiciary 9.Lack of incorruptible police force. Nigeria also needs credible political parties with democratic internal structures. Another important issue is the issue of wage dichotomy between political office holders and public servants. The remuneration of Nigeria’s political officer holders, from a recent research, is one of the highest in the world. This makes political offices highly prized, as a result of which people want to attain by all means and at all costs. On the other hand, the remuneration of the Nigerian public servants is one of lowest in the world. This position accentuates petty corruption. It is pertinent to observe that the activities of the anti-corruption agencies has slowed down since the inception of the present regime as a result of government interference. There is need to strengthen the National Integrity System. There is also urgent need to put in place all the preventive measures prescribed by the United Nations Convention against Corruption and the African Union Anti-Corruption Convention. It is also imperative that States and Local Governments start adopting anti corruption measures.  Quote this article on your site | Print | E-mail
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