Damning US corruption report on Nigeria

 
In a detailed and frank assessment that could only be described as stating the obvious, the report, entitled, “Corruption and Lack of Transparency in Government,” confirmed the often-stated view that the efforts of the anti-graft agencies are deliberately stymied by the government.


 The allegation of deliberately emasculating the anti-corruption agencies brings to mind reports last year in which the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission confessed that it was broke.
 

In one of such reports, the EFCC Secretary, Emmanuel Adegboyega, told the Senate Committee on Drugs, Narcotics, Financial Crimes and Anti-Corruption in December last year, “We (EFCC) have been complaining that no money has been released to us for operations. As of now, we don’t have up to N2 million. If we can afford to pay salaries this month that is all.”

 For an agency whose functions are defined by the number of arrests and prosecution of corrupt individuals across the country, how can those functions be effectively discharged without money for legal fees and travel expenses? How can they be motivated if salaries are not paid?

 Interestingly, one of the other cases of corrupt practices the US report cited was the curious state pardon granted a former Bayelsa State governor, Diepriye Alamieyeseigha.

 Aside from his conviction for treasury looting and money laundering, Alamieyeseigha, who is still a wanted person in the United Kingdom, served time in Nigeria and also had his tenure as governor truncated, paving the way for Jonathan, then his deputy, to replace him.

 The state pardon implies that the former governor, who, as an ex-convict, could not occupy public office, whether appointive or elective, can now do so. Indeed, Jonathan has nominated him to the ongoing National Conference. That is a dangerous signal to the outside world for a government that professes commitment to fighting corruption.

 The US report alleges that, in Nigeria, “Massive, widespread and pervasive corruption affected all levels of government and the security forces.” While alleging that judges were not left out of the massive corruption ring, the report accused the government of not implementing the law on corruption effectively, thus deliberately allowing “officials (to) frequently engage in corrupt practices with impunity.”