It’s not geopolitics, nepotism, or religion that will be the cause of the collapse of the largest black nation on the planet if the Nigerian state crumbles. Corruption is what’s going to make that happen if something drastic is not done before it’s too late.
Countries like the People’s Republic of China execute corrupt officials and some other countries take other extreme measures to keep corruption at bay while Nigeria pays only lip service to the corruption fight.
The whole foundation of Nigeria, its identity, and its statecraft have been undermined by corruption, and the corrosion is not abating. Boundaries and red lines of statecraft have all broken down, and the country is left in free fall. The rule of law, which holds the country together as a constitutional creation, is vanishing.
In Nigeria today, justice is served to the highest bidder due to corruption. No nation that is serious about remaining cohesive, developing, and forward-thinking will tolerate the degree and kind of pervasive corruption that exists in Nigeria. In Nigeria, corruption has supplanted all norms and banished integrity from public life. Some youngsters will tell you that they want to be bandits, yahoo boys, or militants, among other unmentionables. What is more, the citizens simply carry on as if nothing can be done about corruption in Nigeria anymore.
Public service was flourishing in Nigeria before things got so bad. Then, Nigerians put in a lot of effort to achieve their wealth, credentials, and titles. Public officials, both appointed and elected, as well as those in the civil service, were guided in their acts by financial regulations and civil service rules and standards. Today, it is all about big wealth without work or morality.
Nigerians working in government were strictly governed by morality and decency in the past. However, some of them shamelessly accepted a 10% bribe for contract awards and execution. Currently, however, high-ranking government officials serve as contractors and now set the amount they desire for each contract in which they do not personally carry out the work.
Even worse, high-ranking government officials are now creating certificates of completion for projects and contracts that were never done. They then utilise registered contractors to extract funds from the treasury for these projects and contracts and divide the spoils among themselves. Yet, Nigerians feign perplexity as to why the country lacks progress, whereas the money allocated for development is syphoned off by the invading locusts. The politicians, public officials, and civil servants are syphoning off monies intended for social amenities, infrastructure, and development and have to be stopped now by the Nigerians themselves by joining the EFCC and ICPC actively in the renewed anti-corruption fight.
Things have gotten out of hand. The judiciary, which used to be the last hope of the common man, is increasingly selling judgements and injunctions, even by its admission. This inspired a well-known poet from Nigeria to recently write, “My Lord, where do I keep your bribe?”. A top Nigerian lawyer also informed me that many judges now write two judgements for the two parties in the cases they hear, and the judge’s choice of which to read ultimately comes down to who plays hardball.