*Photo: Barr Halima Alfa Gaya Phd*
The consequences of corruption and wrong governmental processes abound globally and in the case of Nigeria, it is the bane of our development as a nation.
The former United States secretary of State stated it clearly when she stated that “Nigeria is a potentially rich country, but Nigeria’s is a very poor country”. The unbridled passion for wealth and power by the elite in the country has become a source of worry in our contemporary anarchical national system as it is today.
Our elites today are seen as the product of the circumvention of the laws and this basically is bordering on corrupt tendencies which do not really suit our national interest and also do not do our developmental inertia any good.
Corruption though it might satisfy the practitioners at the short term but it breeds insecurity that engulfs the entire nation due to the injustice, poverty, and under developments that it creates. These culminates in instability and insecurity threatening our national security today. In 2004, the global corruption perception index (CPI), by transparency international(TI), a united kingdom based non governmental organisation which pilots the affairs as an international anti-corruption watchdog rated Nigeria as the third most corrupt country in the world after Haiti and Bangladesh.
The 2004 reports estimated that billions of dollars are lost to bribery in public purchasing citing the oil sector in our country as particular example. The reports states that as corruption levels persists in the country, national development and social security are compromised as poverty bites harder, conscripting more and more citizens of our country into the unfortunate wretched class. No good citizen of this country supports corruption because it is a quagmire we must overcome to make our country better.
The report dented Nigeria’s image which has oil as the main stay of our national economy, accounting for more than 80 percent of our national earnings.
The situation became so worrying that the federal government created the Economic and financial crimes commission,(EFCC). This step which was applauded by all as commendable as it is from the beginning is today becoming a source of worry to many as it’s mode of operations is now shrouded with a lot of controversies.
The major source of worry for many is the perceptions by many of our country men and women that it’s operations has been ethnicised if the recent happenings in the country as it got to do with the commission is anything to go by. I want to state clearly here that corruption also includes the circumvention of the standardized and legally accepted process of conducting affairs do not know any regional region talk less of singling any particular set of people out. This is because it harbours anger, pains and frustrations from those been seen as singled out for persecution leading to aggression
The fight against corruption if perceived as targeting any individual,groups of person or any ethnic or regional groupings can breed injustice this becomes a threat to national stability and security.
Is the people of the north central zone not part of the country? My worry recently with other concerned citizens is the fact that most of the investigated cases and prosecutions carried out by the EFCC are mostly against politicians from that part of the country. This brings a taste of bad smell to the mouth because any anti-corruption fight that is seen as not holistic enough is injustice taken too far.
My greatest fear so far is the continuous trend whereby the other regions from the northern part of the country keeps mute to this. I can remember from history book and griot of our elders that the former premier of northern Nigeria and Sardauna of Sokoto, Sir Ahmadu Bello fought for the rights of all the people of the north irrespective of religious and ethnic differences. We are today in need of a crop of leaders from the North who can aggregate rather than aggravate the energy of our people to Foster unity and progress we need urgently.
I do not want to see a continuation of the situation where the core north keeps quite when injustices are been done to a region in the north. The questions I would want answered is whether the ” Banza bakwai factor” is still a factor still in existence in the north?. The question calls for an urgent answer because it is worrisome that the north of today is different from the Sardaunas.
This piece is not to state that the people of the north central should be exempted from the anti-corruption fight because it is a fight we must all support but this fight against corruption must be seen to be holistic in every respect.
We have seen great politicians like the former governor of plateau state prosecuted and imprisoned for corrupt tendencies and many more great politicians from the North central are still till today having cases with the EFCC, but what we are saying is that what is good for the gander is also good for the goose.
What the entire northern region needs now is to come together by reenacting the leadership of the north by the late Sardauna of Sokoto and premier of northern Nigeria, Sir Ahmadu Bello of blessed memory who through his inspirational leadership built an eternal motto for the people of the north to remember and work on as his memento.
The”One people, one north and one destiny”leadership slogan and template of the late premier must not today and ever again be lost on us. We must continue to be our brother’s keeper as always because it is through the spirit of togetherness and brotherliness that our griot built a region for which we are all proud.
The north has always been” A one for all, and all for one” people and that ideal we must not forget by always standing together in making sure that no part of the north is allowed by all of us to be persecuted.