By Hilary Okoronkwo

IN the eyes of the average Nigerian, a full frontal war against corruption is being waged by the current administration of President Muhammadu Buhari. Reservedly so, there are a few of us who strikingly reminisce what appears to be the same choosy confrontation on corruption staged by preceding administrations including Buhari from 1983 to 1985.

A war against corruption, any war for that matter being pursued by any individual or a government for that matter must have clearly stated objectives. The objectives should be conveyed to all and sundry. In this case, only President Buhari and those close to him knows what the scope and strategy is.

Corruption by elected and selected officials in Nigeria is a cancer that has practically destroyed the entire rudiments of the Nigerian society.
Nigerians opportunely grumble about the unsavoury effects of corruption but seems to stop there for all undetermined and exhibited intents and purposes.

When it is time to hold our leaders accountable for their actions, our pejorative predisposition automatically switches into selective, confused and sometimes irrational mode. Privately we all agree that corruption is bad and should be eliminated. However, depending on who the culprits are and the circumstances, there appears not to be a generally accepted template for which all corrupt exploits are viewed and measured.

In my treasured realm of Nigeria, you may not be duplicitous in the eyes of the law even after it is apparent that you invented nothing and are living above your means. Even if you illegally acquired or diverted public wealth, the following are some of the many available options that allow looters to enjoy the loots of their labour.

How not to pursue the war

•While in office it appeared you “performed” and stole just a “little”. The definition of little may well be in billions of Naira. The political landscape you “served” may have received trillions of Naira in revenues for the eight years of your administration and no one cares that a good amount of it were unaccounted for. Accusations of helping yourself by exploiting public funds to create a personal website fell on deaf ears and your nomination as minister scaled through the Nigerian Senate with relative ease.

•You can convince the perpetually susceptible Nigerians that you were already rich before assuming office.

•You can be bold enough to declare that you don’t really give a damn about corruption and go as far as declaring that corruption is not stealing. You are connected directly to the proprietors of the media houses who are receiving huge subventions from misappropriated arms funds.

• You possess the staying power to ignore your “loser” critics and remain relevant by being solidly connected with those that matter in the system. As an important member of the political party in power, no one in their right thinking EFCC mind could accuse you of being corrupt let alone visualise holding you accountable for anything. You are simply relevant enough and too important to be disgraced.

• You characteristically grease the palm of the influential media operators and pay your tithe to spiritual merchants.

• You ignore Nigerians who are jealous of your grand accomplishments. Seek and obtain immunity from prosecution from a friendly federal high court in Nigeria.
Nigerians have wide-ranging scales and dislocated viewing lenses to measure corruption. Since we cannot agree on what corruption really is and who the corrupt may be, we the people, by default empower every government including the Buhari administration to establish low bars in fighting corruption.
Unless there are moves and ideas that the Buhari administration is yet to share with Nigerians, it is my every measured estimation that this government is blowing hot air wasting our collective time fighting a partisan, selective, unacceptable and imprudent war against corruption.

Not too long ago, when Olusegun Obasanjo was president, most of us were hoodwinked to believe that corruption was finally being confronted. In an unprecedented turn of events, a former Inspector General of Police was charged and convicted of stealing from the Nigerian Police funds. At least one serving Governor was removed from office, charged and convicted of embezzling public funds. Through all of these, while Nigerians cheered more corruption was being perpetuated inside government and public offices.

It was as if former President Obasanjo allowed corruption to thrive. He manipulated the looters and intimidated them in a way that almost propelled him to an illegal third term. We later found out that those who challenged Obasanjo or are considered too close to his enemies were prosecuted to the full extent of the law. Those who openly did his bidding were allowed to enjoy their loot.

The point here is not to make any comparison between Obasanjo and Buhari’s approach to fighting corruption. A recognizable parallel is that both are grossly inadequate and are a complete waste of time and resources. It is true that no amount of retribution will serve as a deterrent to eliminating corruption in a society that offers no other reasonable alternatives.

Our institutions are too dependent on the government of the day and they need to be encouraged to become a force for good that serves all Nigerians. The ICPC and EFCC were virtually on an extended leave of absence under the Jonathan administration. Things were so bad, the immediate past Chairman of EFCC was accused of converting looted assets recovered from corrupt officials.

As Nigerians we pretend to be smart but the rotten state of social and political environment says exactly the opposite. This verdict also portrays us as self-serving individuals without any appreciation of what collective interests are. When our failures are presented to us, we become evasive, defensive or even angry. Most Nigerians are excited that the former National Security Adviser, Sambo Dasuki is being exposed. Every time a new recipient of the $2.1 billion bounty is exposed, it seems to confirm what we suspected to be true all along.

Through all of experiences leading up to now, I am yet to confront manyNigerians who share the big picture mentality. Some will say, if it wasn’t for President Buhari, we will never know. Knowing that Dasuki diverted funds meant for arms procurement is one thing but then what?

Olu Falae, Tony Anenih, Emmanuel Iwuanyanwu, Iyorchia Ayu, Jim Nwobodo, Bode George, Bola Tinubu, Raymond Dokpesi, and Nduka Obaigbena among many others have all been sharing public funds for a very long time. In return, they are national awardees for their participation while we cheered.

In 1984, Nigerians woke up one morning to the rude awakening that a former Director of the National Youth Service Corp (NYSC), then Army Colonel PK Obasa and a few privileged others misappropriated about 200 million Naira. Adjusted for inflation and exchange rate fluctuations, that amount in 1980s could be worth more than Colonel Sambo’s $2.1 billion dollars. To put this into better perspective, the exchange rate of the Naira was at par with the British Pound when the crime was committed. I have no idea what became of Obasa. He could well be holding a traditional chieftaincy title that is immune to any form of prosecution or public ridicule.
This administration will have wasted our time again if the following are not looked into.

• The government should as a matter of immediate exigency come up with strict campaign finance policies and collaborate with the National Assembly to pass them into law if the existing laws are not tight enough .

• Both APC and PDP should disclose how much they raised along with the sources to prosecute the last general elections.
• Initiate complete overhaul of all institutions so that they can self regulate.

• All Naira notes are printed and appropriated with equal values. There is no difference between a Naira that should have been used to purchase arms and another meant for road construction or a hospital project. We should attach the same level of disgust and disdain to all misappropriated public funds.

• This administration is acting like an island on its own. The Nigerian people are being entirely kept in the dark. A few weeks ago, we were told that corrupt Nigerians were returning looted funds that are being deposited in the Central Bank. As of this moment, we do not know who those faceless Nigerians are and how much have been returned.

I have to presume that all Nigerians concur with me that President Muhammadu Buhari rode to power on the financial backing of corrupt Nigerians. To convince us that he is serious about fighting corruption, he needs to come out publicly and disclose how much was donated either directly to him or his presidential campaign and who those people are.

This selective inarticulate or quarter loaf approach to fighting corruption is not going to get us anywhere. My name is Hillary Okoronkwo and I am not and have never been affiliated with the Peoples Democratic Party. I actually endorsed Muhammadu Buhari for President.

*Hillary Okoronkwo lives in Michigan,USA.