Some days back, the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) Chairman made it to the headlines of all national dailies when he disclosed that a whopping sum of 2.67 billion naira school feeding funds have been siphoned to private accounts, this huge amount was released when the beneficiaries are not even in school and that another 2.5 billion was appropriated by senior civil servants to himself at the federal ministry of agriculture, and one wonders why some people can be this greedy at a time when the country itself needs help.
According to the United Nations office on drugs and Crime, close to $400 billion was embezzled between 1960 and 1999 an average of $5000 dollars per Nigerian as of 2010.
We must not forget the ridiculous story of a mysterious snake that swallows N38 million naira at jamb office in 2018, not to mention the richest gorilla that snuck into an office and swallows 6.8 million at kano zoo in 2019.
The nation in 2016 reported that between (2006-2013) seven years, 55 people from different sectors have stolen a cumulative sum of money grand totalling N1,354,132,400,000.00 (One trillion, three hundred and fifty-four billion, one hundred and thirty-two million, four hundred thousand Naira).
The break downs and sectors of the stolen funds are as follows (15) Ex-Governors, four(4) Ex-Ministers, five (5) Ex-Legislators, seven (7) Ex-Public Servants federal, five (5) Ex-Public Servants state, five (8 ) Banking Industry, eleven (11) Businessmen.
The 2017 Auditor General of federations audited reports is a manifestation of disaster to transparency and accountability as published in its website that in 2018, 109 agencies had not submitted their audited accounts beyond 2013, and 65 agencies have never submitted any account since their establishment.
The number of the defaulted agencies dramatically grew in 2016 to 160 due to inability to take necessary actions and make examples of the 65 agencies of the previous year at the expense of the country and its people, therefore its wasn’t a surprise that the number of agencies who defaulted the 2017 audited accounts rose to 276 and 11 never submitted since inception.
In summary of the report, it further stated that 16 revenue-generating agencies did not remit a total of N19,025,384,100.29 billion to the Consolidated Revenue Fund, with the Bureau of Public Enterprise topping the list of unremitted revenue, with the sum of N7,585,116,400.00 billion. The revelation of this level of ongoing misappropriation for a country going through financial difficulties and an official national debt of N28.63 trillion is a calamity.
Many agencies have been established and dedicated to fighting corruption and embezzlement in Nigeria;
The Public Complaints Commission established by the Federal Government of Nigeria in 1975 through Decree Number 31 of 1975.
Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) backed with the ICPC Act 2000.
The Economic and financial crimes commission (EFCC) with the legal backing of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission Establishment Act of 2004.
It’s paramount to know that the strategies put in place by the above anti-corruption agencies is not enough to curtail the mismanagement problems of this country they have more to do at large, nevertheless like many other citizens I am of the opinion that the plan next level of transparency and establishing a new agency called Proceeds of Crime Recovery and Management Agency, is not a solution to our problems.
We should rather consider the passage of the federal audits bill, empowering the existing actors with the intended powers of the new agency, enhanced their reach, putting special courts in place to facilitate financial prosecutions, allocation of larger budgets to the agency to enable them financial independence, continued political will, citizens support and participation, capacity building training sensitisation for to the general public on corruption, utilizing all media communications mediums for regular campaigns, provision of safe and anonymous reporting mechanisms to the public such as a 24 hour national Number for reporting mismanagement cases without fear of consequences, rewarding more officers and good men in all sectors who have demonstrated excellent commitment to curbing corruption.
And I am optimistic that despite all our challenges as a nation, we have survived 60 years and God willing we will live more fruitful ones ahead if we still have people who joined armed forces go to the bushes to defend this country and its citizens without certainties of coming back alive, then we must be bold and courageous enough to believe in the power of hope that this country would be better.
I do not judge those who called it a failed state and understood those who lost confidence but we must, as citizens of this country come together and give our own quarter in fighting this artificially created monster that has to sate us on dangerous routes to be sentenced by undesirable destiny.
God bless the federal republic of Nigeria.
Musa Gambo is a JCI Nigeria Ambassador, President, Junior Chamber International Nigeria, El-kanemi, Maiduguri, Borno State, Nigeria.
He can be reached via Mgambo78@gmail.com.
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