The Diplomacy and Management of Official Corruption in Nigeria: Budget Padding as a Tip of the Iceberg

On May 10, 2016, the then British Prime Minister, David Cameron, discussed the issue of anti-corruption summit holding in the United Kingdom then with the late Queen Elisabeth II during a tête-à-tête at the Buckingham Palace, London, at an event organised to mark the Queen’s 90th birthday anniversary. Mr. Cameron told the Queen that ‘we’ve got some leaders of some fantastically corrupt countries coming to Britain… Nigeria and Afghanistan, possibly the two most corrupt countries in the world.’ President Muhammadu Buhari (PMB) expressed ‘shock’ and ‘embarrassment,’ while it was not a big deal for most Nigerians that were used to Nigeria’s systemic corruption. Why should PMB be shocked or embarrassed when it was a truism that in 2015, both Nigeria and Afghanistan were ranked 136th and 167th in the Transparency International’s 2015 Corruption Index?

Without any whiff of gainsaying, corruption in Nigeria is systemic and also dates back to 1967. Professor J.S. Cookey noted in his Political Bureau’s Report in 1987 that societal corruption and indiscipline dated back to 20 years ago, that is, in 1967. Since 1967, Nigerians have been grappling with this societal indiscipline to no avail. Even when this social ill was recognized by PMB in 2016 and he promised to fight tooth and nail the ills, media reports have it that many PMB’s Ministers are now secretly refunding under compulsion their ill-gotten funds to Government. Secret refunding is an element of the conduct and management of official corruption in Nigeria. Embezzlement of public funds is done in the open, but the trial and investigation is officiously done. The report of whatever outcome is always thrown into garbage of history, hence, corruption and societal indiscipline remains recidivist.

In Nigeria, there is never a thief or a robber. There can be one if the ‘thief’ decides to be selfish with the loot. When the loot is for all the stakeholders, there is no thief and there will never be any person found guilty. This is where the exegesis of the diplomacy and management of corruption is quite challenging.

NAVC and Corruption-fighting in Lagos

Based on what PMB stated in 2016, following his election as President of Nigeria, and considering the appointment of Professor Bolaji Owasanoye, SAN, OFR, as the Chairman of the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC), I joyfully accepted my unanimous election as Coordinator of the National Anti-Corruption Volunteer Corps (NAVC), Lagos State Chapter. The NAVC, though established in 2008, only functioned until 2014 when the then Chairman of the ICPC, Ekpo Nta, ordered the suspension of all the NAVC activities nationwide. As noted in a published public notice, some of the state Coordinators of the NAVC ‘had become high-handed in their activities while some were consumed by the same ill they were supposed to fight… Some state Coordinators even resorted to arrest and interrogation of citizens, while some even set up detention centres… It got so bad that the Commission arraigned some Coordinators and members to court for corrupt practices.’

The implications of this quotation cannot be far-fetched: corruption was not only at the governmental level, but also existed at the level of the people. Those who were to contain corruption took advantage of their anti-corruption position of volunteerism to deepen the societal ill. In other words, how do we prevent corrupt and indecent people from gaining access to public offices? This was the first immediate challenge that cannot but require special management. Besides, does the system of recruitment in Nigeria reckon with the known attitudinal disposition of people before their engagement into the civil and public service? Do people bother much about the corrupt or criminal antecedents of candidates for election?

Whatever is the case, the NAVC could not function as from 2014, as a result of the suspension of activities, until 2019 when a new NAVC was put in place. I was unanimously elected and officially inaugurated as the new Lagos State Coordinator on 30 July, 2019 at the Lecture Theatre of the Nigerian Institute of International Affairs (NIIA), Kofo Abayomi, Victoria Island, Lagos. It was Superior Evangelist Michael Olubajo of the Celestial Church of Christ, National Headquarters, Makoko, Yaba that suggested my name to the NAVC members, arguing my case of integrity and honesty of purpose.

The ICPC, under the leadership of a new Chairman, Professor Bolaji Owasanoye, SAN, OFR, was only prepared to renew the activities of the NAVC on the condition of availability of any reliable man of integrity, not only acceptable to all other NAVC members, but particularly also acceptable to the Management of the ICPC. When my name was mentioned by Superior Evangelist Olubajo to both the NAVC members and the ICPC, I was unconditionally accepted by the ICPC. It was on this basis that some NAVC members, led by Superior Evangelist Olubajo, came to plead with me to accept the leadership of the Corps.

True enough, I knew well Professor Owasanoye as an academic colleague and as another man of dint of hard work and integrity. I therefore strongly believed he should be assisted in his official mandate to fight corruption and societal indiscipline, by especially looking at what the best approach should be. I adopted a bottom-top methodology as the necessary strategy in fighting corruption. And with due respect to Superior Evangelist Olubajo and Professor Owasanoye, I took up the challenge of leadership of the NAVC, Lagos State with much enthusiasm and unflinching commitment. I considered that, while the ICPC was fighting corruption at the top level, though selectively, the NAVC under my watch, should begin the anti-corruption campaigns at the grass root level, by educating, enlightening the people, especially the market men and women, road transport unions, etc. on the destructive disadvantages of engaging in sharp practices.

And true enough, the NAVC started well, writing letters to well-placed people and organisations to support our anticorruption campaigns in Lagos State. Even the Chairman of the Lagos Mainland Local Government, Mr. Kayode Omiyale, offered to fund the first outing ceremony of the NAVC. Letters were written to some automobile companies requesting for donation of buses for campaign and training. And perhaps more interestingly, an NAVC Governing Board, comprising very seasoned retired Permanent Secretaries, security officers, senior civil and public servants, and chaired by Honourable Erewa Abike-Dabiri, was not only set up unprecedentedly, but also rented a 3-bedroom flat as an office at 59 Queen Street, Alagomeji Yaba. The ICPC also graciously commissioned the office, which was well equipped and joyfully appreciated by the ICPC Chairman’s representative from Abuja and by ICPC Lagos delegation.

The flat was, and still is, owned by Mr. Sola Akinsanya, a barrister at law and a correct and well-understanding gentleman. The yearly rental cost was N1.5 million. For the first two and a half years, nothing was paid to the landlord, and yet, he showed good understanding in the strong belief that we were truly prepared to fight corruption in all its facets. All these steps were taken following the official inauguration of the new NAVC executives by the ICPC at the NIIA. Indeed, some corruption complaints from the general public were sent to us and they were redirected appropriately to the ICPC Head or Commissioner in Lagos.

Most unfortunately, however, it was precisely at the point of holding the first anti-corruption lectures and workshops that an order came from the Chairman of the ICPC in Abuja, Professor Owasanoye, that all the various chapters of the NAVC nationwide should discontinue all their activities. The official reason given was that there were some Coordinators and leaders of the NAVC using the name of the ICPC and that of the NAVC to engage in criminal activities and by so doing, seriously tainting the good name of the ICPC. This simply meant that there was a return to the status quo ante. Neither Professor Owasanoye nor any other ICPC official was interested in the continuation of NAVC activities. The main dilemma for the ICPC headquarters in Abuja was not simply the bad manners of some coordinators but the fact that the Lagos State chapter of the NAVC had its head above board. The Lagos chapter was commended everywhere and the ICPC challenge remained how to lump the accused with the innocent. The Lagos State was not part of the chapters in trouble. The final decision was to make the suspension of activities temporary. The suspension and its character of temporariness never implied non-payment of rents due to Mr. Akinsanya.

Believing in the purpose of the NAVC, I kept on pleading with Mr. Sola Akinsanya to exercise patience that the NAVC would soon begin to operate and generate funds to pay its rent. Even though we were told that some amount would be given to us, we never relied on it. We only waited for directives lifting the suspension of activities to enable the continuity of activities. We never knew that Government was most unserious about corruption fighting. Mr. Akinsanya was much interested in the payment of his rents and not in the giving of excuses. I, as guarantor and who rented the flat for the NAVC, as well as Superior Evangelist Michael Olubajo, assumed responsibility to offset the thirty months’ rent (N3.75m). This amount did not include the costs of equipping and maintaining the NAVC office. I was compelled to pay the lion share being the one directly held responsible by the landlord. I coughed out not less than N2.5m while Superior Evangelist Olubajo coughed out about one million naira. The Central district, and of course the only district, contributed about N60K, All other financial promises, individually or by the districts, were not honored, and so, corruption could not be fought. It was corruption that was waging war on us. But how is corruption managed?

Diplomacy and Management of Corruption

From my foregoing experience as Coordinator of the NAVC for three years, I am not left in any doubt that PMB’s policy of anti-corruption was, at best, a smokescreen. It was selective in design, very dishonest in application, and very discouraging for the true patriots who are committed to the anti-corruption struggle. PMB’s management style of fighting corruption is to openly condemn every alleged act of corruption, but adopting a laisser-faire attitude at the level of implementation of the policy. What is an act of corruption in this case?

In the eyes of the ICPC, corruption is about bribery, graft, misuse of office, gratification, false pretence, and dealings, etc. When people also live above their means, an act of corruption can be alleged. Stiff punishment is provided under the 2000 ICPC Act.

“Another management style is to first deepen corruption and then come back to pretend that it is being fought. When a Governor is travelling officially to any part of his state or the President is visiting a State, all access roads that had been neglected are urgently repaired. When potholes are still within manageable sizes, they are not repaired. It is when they become terrible and requiring contractors’ attention, prices are hiked, government officials then run helter-skelter, seeking to officially commission what ought to have been routinely done. This is management of corruption by corruption. What about the attitude to election? The practice is to seek to win election by all means legal and illegal and then allow the losers to go to the court. The National Assembly also protects fraud. Hearings are commendably organized, but the moment critical questions are asked from the official being investigated, he stylishly suddenly slumps and would be quickly taken out of the chamber. That ends the matter. No one is told about developments thereafter. Again, how can a snake swallow millions of naira and everyone keeps quiet? Padding of the budget “is a tip of the iceberg. Nigeria is more than fantastically corrupt. Nigerian politicians should therefore remember what Jerry Rawlings did to their Ghanaian counterparts in light of the current people-instigated coups in West Africa. Nigeria may not be an exception