Corruption Still Endemic in Nigeria- Transparency International

Corruption Still Endemic in Nigeria- Transparency International

A global Non- Governmental Organisation, Transparency International (TI), has urged the federal government to muster the political will to fight corruption, noting that the monster is still endemic in Nigeria.

Head of Transparency International in Nigeria, Auwal Musa Rafsanjani said the report released by the body indicates that Nigeria has neither improved nor progressed in the perception of corruption in the public administration in 2018 because Government has not mustered the political will in the fight against corruption.

According to Rafsanjani, Nigeria scored 27 out of 100 points in the 2018 Corruption Perception Index, CPI, maintaining the same score as in the 2017 CPI.

The report further said although Nigeria ranks 144 out of 180 Countries this year as opposed to 148 out 180 Countries in the CPI, Nigeria is thus still perceived as highly corrupt.

The global anti-corruption body notes that since the current administration came into power on the anti-corruption ticket, a very few politically exposed persons have been duly sentenced on anti-corruption charges while many, despite some indisputable evidences have not been diligently investigated, neither prosecuted nor convicted.

Said Rafsanjani “Many low performing countries have several commonalities, including weak political rights, limited press freedoms and a weak rule of law.

“In these countries, laws often go unenforced and institutions are poorly resourced with little ability to handle corruption complaints.”

He urged government to “Strengthen the institution responsible for maintaining checks and balances over political power, and ensuring their ability to operate without intimidation, while closing the implementation gap between anti-corruption legislation, practice and enforcement.

He also appealed to government to effectively supporting civil society organizations to enhance political engagement and public oversight over government spending, particularly at the state and local level.

By PRNigeria