An Assessment Of Anti-Corruption Crusade Under Goodluck Jonathan And Muhammadu Buhari Administration In Nigeria
An Assessment Of Anti-Corruption Crusade Under Goodluck Jonathan And Muhammadu Buhari Administration In Nigeria
Abstract
Corruption has been an accepted cancerous disease that overtime has eaten deep into the soil of Nigeria. Corruption practices are not longer hidden, as it takes place in the schools, workplaces, worship centres and the family. Integrity has been gradually sacrificed for mundane things. Even the status of the country has been trampled under foot because it has lost both national and international honor as a result of her records in corrupt practices. Several corruption ranking organizations have ranked Nigeria high in terms of corruption. The effect of this is the national dishonor it bestows on the country and her citizens. However, governmental administrations in one way or the other has tried to combat this menace by instituting policies and carrying out anti-corruption crusades. It is based on this implemented anti-corruption crusades that this study is hinged. This study aims to assess the anti-corruption crusade by the former administration led by president, Goodluck Jonathan and the Current administration led by Muhammadu Buhari. Our focus is not to take sides with any administration but to bring to bare their reactions to corruption in Nigeria. The study is expository and it is undertaken to provide enough insight into the anti-corruption crusade carried out by these administrations.
Chapter One
Introduction
1.1 Background of the Study
Corruption has destroyed the basic concept of the Rule of Law in Nigeria. In Nigeria the law has lost much of its operational force as people breach the law with impunity. The concept of the Rule of law is fast becoming a mantra in the Country as many people are fast losing their fear of the law. The law regulates the conduct of affairs in a nation; it spells out the rights and duties of the citizens. It also defines the way of doing things20. Appropriately, the law can be said to be the oil that ensures the smooth running of the engine of every nation. Where there is no respect for the law, there will be chaos and anarchy The effects of corruption have debilitating impact on the economy of Nigeria which in turn has a negative effect on the well-being of her citizens. The country has continued to grapple with the problem of balance of payments, weak and decaying infrastructure, bad and inconsistent political and economic policies which renders the Country unattractive to both foreign and local Investors. The return of the Country to democratic governance in 1999 ushered in hope that the economic decline of the Country would be halted but since then, many Multinational Corporations have had to close shop in Nigeria and relocate their investments to other Countries that have clement investment environment. Many other companies that remained in the Country have resorted to mass job cuts and raise in prices of their products and services to remain afloat. The result of this is high rise in unemployment which in turn promotes restiveness and rise in criminality. According to the National Bureau of Statistics, 42.24 percent of Youths in Nigeria were unemployed as at the First Quarter of 2016 23. This percentage represents close to half the Youth population in the Country. This level of unemployment portends grave danger to the security of the nation as no nation can long endure and prosper which wastes the talents of so many of their citizens more especially the Youths Usman24 stated and rightly so, that no economic growth or political stability is possible in Nigeria unless this cancer of corruption is tackled and largely overcomed. On her part, Dachung lamented that corruption is Nigeria’s “prime economic malady”25 Quoting Essien, she stated: Corruption is the biggest and the fastest growing industry in Nigeria. While petroleum is the largest revenue earner (accounting for between 90-95% of National wealth), corruption is the largest consumer of revenue. Unfortunately, its consumption is into the accounts of a few individuals and corporate persons while the nation wallops (sic) in abject poverty, hunger, disease and debt…. Corruption should be attacked with the same velocity with which HIV/AIDS has been tackled26 From a historical perspective, the problem of corruption is not a new phenomenon in Nigeria. Before the amalgamation of 1914, Nigeria did not exist as a country. It evolved from the different Empires, Kingdoms and Chiefdoms which existed before the advent of colonialism. Many of these Empires and Kingdoms grappled with the problem of corruption notably amongst their Rulers and Nobles. Some of these Rulers and Nobles were accused of using the public treasury to finance opulent and ostentatious lifestyles. It was not only the Rulers and Nobles that stained themselves with corruption. The rich and powerful people also used their wealth to pervert the cause of justice28. The vibrancy of the Jihad movement which Shehu Usman Dan Fodio led in 1806 had one of its anchors in the problem of corruption in the society.
In pre-independent Nigeria, at one time or the other, some of the founding fathers of the nation found themselves at the receiving end on allegation of corruption. Some of them were either indicted or convicted of misappropriation of public funds or for improper conduct resulting from their management of public funds30. Since independence in 1960, successive military interventionists in Nigeria have often sought legitimacy by claiming that the previous regime was corrupt and that their intervention was to rid the Country of the cancer of corruption. Regrettably however, all the military interventions in Nigeria failed to cure the Country of the problem of corruption. Rather, many of such interventionists leave the Country more corrupt than they met it. Lamentably also, the democratic regimes in Nigeria which symbolized the will of the people, perpetrated corruption on a large scale that brought untold hardships on the same people they represented.
In the 2016 Transparency International Corruption Perception Index in which 168 countries of the world were assessed, Nigeria was ranked 136 with a score of 26 out of a possible 100 thereby falling among the class of highly corrupt countries of the world. This unenviable position surely rubs on the country a pariah status and is a reproach to her citizens. All over the world, Nigerians are stigmatized and treated with odium and opprobrium. Thus, across the globe, even honest and hardworking Nigerians are hardly trusted. Nigeria however has a long history of legislating against corruption which predates the Country’s independence in 1960. The domestic provisions against corruption may be found in the Criminal Code, 33 Penal Code34 and some specialized or dedicated Statutes such as the Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Act 2000, 35 the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (Establishment) Act 2004, 36 Advanced Fee Fraud and Other Related Offences Act 2006, 37 Public Procurement Act38 , Money Laundering (Prohibition) Act 2011 (as amended)39 and the1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (CFRN) as amended amongst others. Soon after his inauguration as President on May 29, 1999, Olusegun Obasanjo identified corruption as a monster that must be fought to a standstill in Nigeria. He made Anti-Corruption crusade a fundamental policy of his administration. In furtherance of this objective, the administration presented the Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Bill to the National Assembly which was passed into law40 . The regime also established the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC)41 . Soon after its establishment, the EFCC effected the arrest of known fraudsters many of whom had hitherto assumed a larger than life status. In view of the personalities arrested, a source in the EFCC was quoted to have said that the Commission does not care about the status or pedigree of suspects and that once a person is found to be culpable, such person will be treated according to the law. Also, in March, 2005, the EFCC arrested some high ranking members of the Executive Arm of Government and the National Assembly for their involvement in a 50 million Naira bribe for budget scandal. Irked by the personalities involved in the bribe for budget scandal, President Obasanjo said he would not hesitate to take on more prominent Nigerians in his war against corruption. He acknowledged that corruption was endemic in the developing countries particularly Nigeria and vowed to step on more toes.
1.2 Statement of the Problem
Corrupt practices have always existed in Nigeria but became obvious in the second republic between 1979 and 1983 under the Former President Shehu Shagari’s administration ( Inamete, 2001; Ogbeidi,2012). This led to the coup d’état by the Major General Mohammad Buhari government in 1983. During General Buhari’s regime, the government fought corruption in all ramifications with Major General Babatunde Idiagbon at the war front. Nigerians were given re-orientation which changed their perceptions that eradicated lateness to offices in ministries, departments and agencies, reduced the level of bribery, fraud and embezzlement of public funds. The government arrested and detained many corrupt politicians. The convicted drug peddlers were publicly executed. Mobile courts were established to instantly try offenders and the convicted were either fined or sentenced to jail term where necessary. Huge success was recorded and sanity returned to the affairs of the nation. However, Nigerians were deeply dissatisfied with Buhari’s restrictive governance which led General Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida (IBB) to oust the government in August 27, 1985 (Adediji, 2013; Ekundayo, Obasaju, Lawal, & Ise, 2013).Gen. IBB lessened the governmental control of the press and released a number of political detainees from the former government. During the IBB regime, corruption was celebrated and it grew in an unprecedented manner (Inamete, 2001).Other regimes attempted to fight corruption but without the desired result. In Nigeria between 2001 and 2016, various corruption indications were exposed ranging from outright embezzlements, election malpractices, budget padding, and money laundering cases to stealing of government properties. In Nigeria every one condemns corruption yet most public servants and key political office holders have contributed to further its course (Aiyede, 2016; Bello & Ahmad, 2017). This study is therefore undertaken to assess the anti-corruption crusade by two recent administrations, the Goodluck Jonathan-Led administration and the Muhammadu Buhari-led Administration.
1.3 Objectives of the Study
In order to create a direction to the study’s path, the following specific objectives are raised:
- To determine the impact of Anti-corruption crusade on corruption level in Nigeria.
- To assess the effectiveness of Jonathan-led anti-corruption crusade in Nigeria.
- To assess the effectiveness of Buhari-led anti-corruption crusade in Nigeria.
1.4 Significance of the Study
The need for evaluation is steam from the understanding that for any task to fulfill its objective, then it must constantly be reviewed, assessed, controlled and redo. This is also the case which this study attempts to submit. The study serves as a weigh scale to enhance the understanding of the forgetful populace of the anti-corruption fights by governments by presenting their victories and their woes in form of a constructive assessment.
Also, the study is an addition to several literatures on corruption and furthermore, it will serve as a research reference for further studies
1.5 Research Questions
The study attempts to provide sufficient answers to the following research questions:
- What is the impact of anti-corruption crusade on corruption level in Nigeria?
- Was the Goodluck Jonathan-led anti-corruption crusade effective?
- Was the Muhammadu Buhari-led Anti-corruption crusade effective?
- What are the challenges hindering the effectiveness of Anti-corruption crusade in Nigeria?
1.6 Scope and Limitation
The study examined the anti-corruption crusade in Nigeria but was restricted to two recent administrations, the Goodluck Jonathan Led Administration and the Muhammadu Buhari-led administration. The study was limited in literatures as there was a scare academic literature on the assessment of ant-corruption crusade for the two administration.
1.7 Organization of the Study
This study was structured and divided into five chapters. This is to enable clarity and effective consumption of the idea communicated in this research work. Also, the organization was in line with the departmental guideline for such works.
The first chapter, Introduction, gives a strong background to the study. The statement of the problem, significance, research questions and scope were highlighted in the chapter. Chapter two dealt with a review of related and relevant literatures. This is of essence as the ideas, inputs and contributions of scholars and authors were acknowledged and duly represented.
The third chapter, assesses the Goodluck Jonathan-led anti-corruption crusade. The beginnings, successes and failures were examined in this chapter. The fourth chapter assessed the Muhammadu Buhari-led anti-corruption crusade. The impact, successes and failures were constructively examined in the chapter. The fifth chapter drew a conclusion on the study, gave a summary and recommendation.
Chapter Five
Summary, Conclusion and Recommendation
5.1 Summary
The work was undertaken to assess the anti-corruption crusade in Nigeria by the former administration led by Former President, Goodluck Jonathan and the Present administration led by President, Muhammadu Buhari. We described corruption through a brief overview in the first chapter of this study where the statement of the problem, study significance and objectives were examined. We proceeded to the second chapter to review related literatures.
This review was to enhance our understanding about the subject matter. The third chapter gave a sufficient data on the former administration pattern on how it responded to corrupton and the practical steps it took to reduce, minimize to the barest minimum the effect of corruption in the country. The fourth chapter took it further by examining the current administration’s methods of dealing with corruption in the country.
On the part of the researcher, the student would like to opine from the foregoing, that even though the war against corruption is loud and profound in this administration, little results are been brought to the table. Also, the President’s fight against corruption is one sided. This is because, the President has some corrupt people in this party and he has done nothing about them. In one statement, the President’s Party Chairman, Comrade Adams Oshomole, was quoted to have said, that when a sinner crosses over from the opposition party to the All Progressive Congress (APC) he is received as a saint. This comment and attitude paints black on the President’s integrity of fighting corruption. There has been so many cases that the President has blatantly refused addressing and denied some on confrontation. This is not the type of fight needed for corruption.
However, we applaud the two administration for the fight the have put on so far against corruption in our beloved country.
5.2 Conclusion
Corruption and stealing have been part of human society from the Bible time. (KJV Joshua 7 generally). In particular, corruption has survived from then and till now. It has become a sickness like malaria fever which has no permanent cure. By extrapolation, corruption is a sin against humanity and it is the root of man’s inhumanity to his fellow man. Undoubtedly, traditional, moral and modern antidotes and measures to fight against this phenomenon called corruption, which differ from country to country, have not been able to eradicate corrupt practices in human society. This can be traceable to human imperfection. By extrapolation, corruption can only be managed in developing and under-developing countries based on effective implementation of sectoral policies through rule of law and best practices.
5.3 Recommendation
All over the world, governments seriously desirous of tackling the menace of corruption usually adopt a holistic strategy which encompass some or all of the under listed benchmark:
- Enacting enabling laws, which clearly define what corruption is and spell out punitive measures
- Establishing an executive agency, which is transparent in its operations and is subject to the rule of law
- Creating by law, the enabling environment for whistle blowing (FOI).
- Enhancing the judicial process such that existing laws, processes and procedures do not hamper the dispensation of justice
- Plugging all socio-economic loopholes within the system by eliminating bottlenecks and increasing access to social goods and services
- Gradually reducing incentives for corruption prevailing in society through institutional reforms, combating poverty, developing manpower and empowering citizens.
- Putting up efficient and effective well co – ordinate policies and programmes to combat poverty, create wealth, develop manpower and empower the youth through job creation.
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