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American International Journal of Social Science Research 

Vol. 1, No. 1; 2017 

Published by Centre for Research on Islamic Banking & Finance and Business 

 

42 
 

 

Corruption as Cankerworms towards Economic Development in 

Nigeria 
 

Ibrahim Suleiman1 

 

1Department of Political Science, Bauchi State University, Gadau, Nigeria 

Correspondence: Department of Political Science, Bauchi State University, Gadau, Nigeria, E-mail: 

isuleiman@basug.edu.ng 

 

Received: September 13, 2017     Accepted: September 15, 2017     Online Published: September 21, 2017 

 

 

Abstract 

Corruption has been corrosively eating the fabrics of the Nigerian nation. Its persistence in the form of 

fraud, mismanagement, misappropriation, diversion of public funds, tax evasion, money laundering etc. 

has led Nigeria into unfortunate national and even international circle of criminal minded persons. This 

therefore has made the development of the country and its attendant benefits only a paper work or rather an 

illusion. This paper conceptualizes corruption beyond the point of public officers taking bribes and 

gratification, committing fraud, stealing public funds and assets to equally include, deliberate violation of 

standards for gainful ends which may be in cash or kind. It therefore, encompasses any decision, act or 

conduct that is considered pervasive to democratic norms and values. The method utilized by this work is 

incidence analysis and documentary research. The paper which is divided into five sections concluded that, 

only anti-corruption policies and programs anchored on ethical, balanced, independent, and self-sustained, 

people oriented can succeed in Nigeria and thereby ensure national economic development. The paper 

recommended among other things for a successful anti-corruption crusade in third world countries that, 

international agencies such as Paris Club, IMF, World Bank, UNO should review their policies and 

conditions to reflect war against corruption especially among third World leaders even while in office. That 

a mandatory involvement of all community based organizations be considered in annual budget 

formulation, monitoring and evaluation to avoids misappropriation and looting in the country. 

 

Keywords: Corruption, Cankerworms, Economy, Development, Nigeria. 

 

1. Introduction 

Corruption is a global phenomenon and its effect on individuals, institutions, countries and global 

development has made it an issue of universal concern. Although the concept has no universally accepted 

definition, yet, this has not debarred a collective condemnation of its practice (Ikubaje, 2004). 

With the adoption of new constitution on May 29th 1999, the civilian administration identified massive 

corruption in governance and business as one of the areas that required urgent attention. This necessitated 

the establishment of Independent Corrupt Practices and other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) and 

Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to combat the menace of corruption in Nigeria. 



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Corruption could be described as any practice, act or omission of a public official that is a deviation from 

the norm and cannot be openly acknowledge, but must be hidden from the public eye corruption diverts 

official (unofficial) decision-making from what a decision should have been to what it should not have 

been and is not limited to public sector, it permeate all our socio-economic life. In this manner, the report 

of the political bureau which the federal government of Nigeria set up in 1987 sums it up thus: 

“Manifestation of corruption include the inflation of government contracts in return for kickbacks, frauds 

and falsification of account in the public services; examination malpractice in our educational institutions 

including universities; the taking of bribes and perversion of justice among the police, the judiciary and the 

various heinous crimes against the state in the business and industrial sectors of our economy, in collusion 

with multinational companies such over-invoicing of goods, foreign exchange swindling, hoarding and 

smuggling”. 

In this vain, corruption is a phenomenon that has become a matter of great concern to Nigerians, especially 

as it has pervaded all levels of government and civil society. Thus, executive and legislative arms of 

government, the judiciary, religious institutions, the school system, law enforcement agencies, in fact no 

part of the Nigeria society is spared of the cankerworm of corruption. Therefore, combating corruption is a 

necessary step towards economic revamp. Different degrees of corruption are inimical and antithetical to 

development aspirations of Nigeria. As it has amply been demonstrated in various sections of the Nigerian 

state, the illegal and abusive squandering of state and local government resources by a few selected or 

elected political officials deeply hurt any genuine efforts to develop those states or regions. 

In this presentation, corruption is conceived in the widest possible sense, to include fiscal, environmental 

and policy fraud.  It is clear that corruption with impurity has been the bane of various regimes in Nigeria 

since independence and every attempt at checkmating abuses and wrongdoing by public office holders 

would not be happily accepted. This paper attempts to critically analyze corruption curtailment in 

transforming the Nigerian economy. In doing this, incidence analysis and documentary research were 

employed. Efforts made in transforming the Nigerian economy so far and the challenges facing the current 

reform are also highlighted. To achieve this, the paper is divided in to five sections. While section one 

introduces the paper, the second section reviews some literature and theoretical issues. Section three 

discusses the causes and effects of corruption. Section four reviews the anti-corruption programmes in 

Nigeria against expectation. The last section concludes the paper and proffers some policy 

recommendation. 

2. Literature and Theoretical Issues 

Corruption has been an abrasive and carcinogen corrosively eating the fabrics of the nation. The 

persistence of corruption and related fraud, mismanagement, misappropriation and theft that, has led to the 

unfortunate conclusion in national and international circles that Nigeria is a major money laundering centre, 

and Nigerians are criminal minded and preoccupied with crime and fraud. 

Corruption covers a wide range of behavior, which deviates from the formal duties of a public role because 

of a private gains regarding (personal, close family, private clique, pecuniary or status gain. Or it is a 

behavior, which violates rules against the exercise of certain type of duties for private gain (Nye, 1976). 

Thus, corruption include such behavior as bribery (use of reward to pervert the judgement of a person in a 

position of trust); nepotism (bestowal of patronage by reason of ascribtive relationship rather than merit); 

and misappropriation (illegal appropriation of public resources for private uses). 



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CORRUPTION 

(Violence, Crime 

and Instability) 

 

Corruption means, more public officers are involve in taking bribes and gratification, committing fraud and 

stealing funds and assets entrusted to their care. It is the deliberate violations for gainful ends, of standard 

of conduct, legally, professionally or even ethically established, in private and public affairs. Usman, (2001) 

further assert that these gains may be in cash, or kind or it may even be psychological, or political, but they 

are made from the violation of the integrity of an entity and involves the subversion of its quality and 

capacity 

On the other hand, Oboyega, (1996) notes that corruption encompasses any decision, act or conducts that is 

pervasive to democratic norms and values. It also covers any decision, act or conduct that subverted the 

integrity of people in authority or institutions charged with promoting, defending or sustaining the 

democratization process, thereby undermining its effectiveness in performing its assigned roles. It is 

obvious that corruption manifests in various forms. It occurs when one obtains a business from the public 

(private) sector through inappropriate procedure; it occurs when one is exempted from the application of 

certain laws or regulations and when one is given undue preference in the allocation of scarce resources. 

Therefore, regardless of the mode it occurs, its impact is always negative in the societal development. 

This prompted Achebe, (1988) to assert that “corruption in Nigeria has passed the alarming and entered the 

fatal stage, and Nigeria will die if we keep pretending that she is only slightly indisposed. 

Corruption ,as put by Joseph, (2002) can be viewed from the “fraud triangle” consisting of pressure, 

opportunity and rationality, which is the result of fundamental systemic and system failure, such that 

individuals, structures, and institutions, helplessly on the one hand and will fully on the other, fall prey to 

its various admittedly vagarious conflicting complex dimensions. Act of corruption became normalized to 

the extent that it is abnormal for anybody to raise any form of personal, legal or institutional alarm against 

it. The following model explained this relationship. 

 

 

 

 Figure 1  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Source: Joseph T. 2002 

PRESSURE 

CONFLICT 



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From figure 1, at pressure level, individuals and interest groups seek available system. Wide values and 

norms and directly or indirectly pressurize the system to allow corruption to thrive in manifold forms by 

providing the rationality and tacit modes of accepting it as normal and justifiable. Sadly however, cultural 

affinity, religious sentiments, ethnicity, regional and geopolitical alignment are mobilized to construct, 

deconstruct and reconstruct the reality and seriousness of corruption and allied criminal behaviours in the 

society. 

On the second side of the fraud triangle, the opportunity level, and the prevailing system, produces the 

prevailing opportunities to commit fraud and corruption as there are somewhat deliberate loopholes created 

in the way and manner life-enhancing opportunities, legal and administrative systems or machinery and 

institutional core-responsibilities and duties are administered. Even the enforcement of laws and 

administration of penal sanctions are constantly altered to benefits those in position of influence. Most 

time, those who commit crime are not punished and when they are, the punishment does not fit the crime. 

This precipitates further criminality by those who engage in or want to try the will of the law. Obviously, 

rising unemployment, poverty, social and economic injustice, political repression, community neglect, 

alienation and abuse and denial of fundamental human and constitutional right are precipitants of violence, 

crime and other social vices inclusive of corruption.  

Finally, at the level of rationality the combine forces of pressure and rationality produce the rationality and 

rationalization for corruption and allied crimes. When persons from certain cultural, economic, social, 

political, ethnic and religious backgrounds are indicted or arrested for involvement in acts of corruption, 

such primordial connections are put to work to prevent the prosecution of such individuals, because, 

according to these logic, they are „one of us/ours‟.  

All these issues arise essentially from the complex and conflict nature of our society, since all interest 

cannot be merged as one. Thus, the bottom line of all acts of corruption, especially when they persist in 

spite of existing control regimes is the conflicting interests inherent in the society.  

Therefore, corruption is not only about money, stealing public funds or receiving gratifications. It is 

corruption to deny those who won elections their victory, and award victory to those who lost. It is 

corruption to misuse the apparatus of government, particularly the security agents, to rig elections as was 

widely done in the general and presidential elections of April, 2003 in Nigeria where some candidates 

scored more than the total registered voters. It is corruption to claim the result of such elections as 

mandates from the people.  

Corruption includes the deceit of trusting Nigerians whom you promise one thing and do something else. 

Corruption includes creating situations of uncertainty and stress, for the entire populace to gain selfish 

advantage. Corruption also includes playing one religion or ethnic group against the other for whatever 

gain. 

Last but not the least, Usman (2001) describes corruption within the Nigeria context as: bribery, extortion, 

graft, embezzlement, betrayal of trust, unfair advantage, financial malpractices, dash, gratification, brown 

envelopes, tips, emoluments, greasing, softening the ground, inducement, sub-payments, side payments, 

irregular payments, payments under the table, undocumented extra payment, facilitation payments, 

mobilization fees, revised estimates, padded contracts, over/under invoicing, cash commission, kickbacks, 

pay-offs, covert exchanges, shady deals, cover ups, collusion 10% rule (bribe sub charge), 50% rule 

(sharing bribe within the hierarchy), let keep our secret, highly classified transaction, vested interest, 



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customary gift giving, tribute culture, nepotism, indiscipline and disrespect to society. 

3. Causes of Corruption 

Rose-Ackerman (1997) provided six causes of corruption: 

3.1 Bribes that equates supply and demand 

Through corruption, government officials exercise monopoly of power by determining the quantity of 

services provided. Like a private monopoly, officials may set the supply of services below the official 

sanctioned level to increase economic rents. Conversely, corrupt officials may increase the supply of 

service if the government has set the supply below the monopoly level. In other situation, the service is not 

scarce but is, like a passport, driver license, or pension available to everyone who qualified for it. 

However, corrupt officials may have sufficient monopoly of power to create scarcity either by delaying 

approval or by withholding them unless bribes are paid. 

3.2 Bribe as incentive payments for bureaucrats 

Bribes often act as an incentive payment to public officials, but tolerance of these payments, especially by 

outside lenders and donors such as the World Bank, is likely to dim the prospects for long term reform. 

Incentives payments that are widely viewed as acceptable should be legalized, but not all incentives pay 

schemes improve bureaucratic efficiency. Instead, they encourage inefficiency to maximize financial 

rewards. For example, pay offs to queue managers can be efficient because they create incentives for the 

managers to work quickly and to favour those who value their time highly. 

3. 3 Bribe to lower costs 

Governments impose regulations, levy taxes and enforce criminal laws, individuals and firms may pay for 

relief from these costs. For example, by colluding with tax collector and custom official to lower the sums 

collected. The economic impact of bribe paid to avoid regulations, lower taxes, and supersede laws 

depends on the efficiency of the underlying systems and also the western multinational cooperation 

companies are used to bribing and lobbying politicians to seek favours and profit. 

3.4 Bribes to obtain contracts and concessions and to private firm 

Bribes paid to win major contracts and concessions and to privatize companies are generally the preserve 

of big business and high level officials. Such bribes appears analogous to cases in which government 

disburses a scarce benefit. Bribing the top officials can have far reaching economic consequences. 

Consider a logging concession that a company obtains illegally over the higher bids of its competitors. 

If corruption does not restrict who bids and if the official granting the concession can not affect its size, 

then the firm that pays the largest bribe, value the concession the most. The lost revenue from the higher 

bids, however, will be felt in the form of higher taxes and cancelled public programmes. The payoff may 

be “just” a transfer, but it is harmful to the well being of the ordinary citizens. Typical examples are how 

Nigerian crude oil export records which remain questionable and many fake firms were awarded contract 

against the ethics of contract awarding policy or law. 

3.5 Bribes to buy political influence and votes 

Contrary to the principles of democracy, many corrupt politicians coming to power even through citizens 

are aware of their malfeasance. Moreover, bribes are often used to fund political parties at election 

campaign due to the fact that modern political campaign particularly in Africa require enormous amount of 

money. In the absence of the public funding, businesses that have a stake in politicians decisions are the 

most convenient source of funds. 



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Even if certain contribution from businesses is legal, firms and politicians may prefer to keep them secret 

if a quid proquo is involved and entrenchment system of illegal payoff can undermine efforts to reform 

campaign financing. For example many business tycoons had immensely contributed to the success of PDP 

and Obasanjo in particular. Notable among them are AlikoDangote who gave out two private Jets and 

token of Five hundred million approximately as a donation to clear ground for his business (Daily Trust, 13, 

2003. P.14). 

3.6 Bribes to buy judicial decision 

Through their decisions judges have the power to affect the distribution of wealth. Thus, like any public 

official with similar powers, they may be tempted to accept bribes. This temptation is stronger when judges 

are underpaid and overburdened and have poorly equipped and unstaffed offices. 

Even if judges are not themselves corrupt, clerks in charge of assignment cases and advising judges may 

demand or accept bribes. In African countries, particularly Nigeria, judicial bribe to buy decisions has been 

exposed. Election petition tribunals of the then presidential and gubernatorial elections were found wanting 

of collecting bribe from the ruling party as a reward for judging a case in their favour (Daily Trust, 

September, 20, P.18). 

Gurin, (2003) came up with three principal moral causes of corruption in society which includes; 

3.6.1 Utilitarianism 

Utility is one of the dominant moral principles of materialistic civilization. The ideas of utility is that the 

only pursuits which man should undertake in life of those that bring immediate material, gain or profit to 

him as an individual or as a member of a particular group representing certain material interests. 

In these pursuits, moral standards that could be tolerated are those that extol man‟s „freedom‟ or „right‟ etc 

enrich himself or surround himself with material largesse obtained; mostly at the expenses of others. Thus 

only such „moral‟ standards as profit, individualism, comfort and freedom is accepted as the fundamental 

norms of life. 

Higher ideals and moral principles are given to place with the result that society loses standard, moral 

value upon which to act. Values, standards and norms keep on changing according to the turns of fortune in 

the pursuit of gains and profits. People who believe in utility are always ready to compromise with every 

system; they exhibit wonderful capacity adaptability according to changing circumstances,. They can work 

for any ideology; fight under any flag and die or kill for any cause provided they have something to gain 

whether the profit to be had is negligible, or even doubtful. 

3.6.2 Material Progress 

The quest for material progress to the total neglect of all other goals of human existence is another feature 

of corruption. To achieve this goal the entire societal machinery include literature and „scientific‟ thoughts 

are geared towards convincing individuals that the man of worth is the rich man, that the ultimate purpose 

of life is to attain the limit of material and sexual pleasures. 

Consequently- theories are formulated to „prove‟ that the whole history of man is the struggle to get bread, 

eat, drink and be married; and that man is directed only by his instincts, the most important of them being 

the instincts or hunger and sex; in other words, the ultimate aim of human existence is to be materially and 

sexually happy in this world even if it involves the annihilation of the rest of mankind. 

As one scholar writes; So strong indeed is our addiction to wealth, so confirmed our belief that it is wealth 

which above all other things, confers merit upon a man and greatness upon a man and greatness upon a 



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state, that it has succeeded in inspiring two theories of the greatest historical importance with regard to the 

nature of the motive force which makes the wheels of the world go round. One of these laissez-faire 

economics, dominated in the Nineteenth century. 

It asserted that men would always act in the way, which they considered would conduce to their greatest 

economic advantages; that in short, they were inspired by, hedonism not of the passions, but of the pocket. 

The other, which bids fairs to dominate the early part of the twentieth century is Marx‟s theory of 

economic determinism, which insists that the way in which, at any given movement, a society Organizes 

its economic system to satisfy its material needs, determines its arts, its ethics, its religion, and even logic, 

no less than its form of government. 

Both these theories derive their greatest plausibility from the value which men and women, demonstrably 

place upon wealth as a criterion of merit in individuals and a sign of greatness in state. 

3.6.3 The God Denial  

Denial of God is another main feature of materialism. Materialism denies God not because He is really not 

there, but because the decrees of God conflict sharply with the interest the materials are out to protect. The 

dialogue between Prophet Shu‟aibu (A.S) and his people who were materialist and who are bent upon 

promoting their worldly interest at all cost will serve as a god example. “To the people of Madyan (we sent) 

Shu‟aibu one of their own brethren; he said “O my people! Worship God: You have not other god but Him.  

And give not short measure or weight; I see you in prosperity. But I fear for you the penalty of a day that 

will compass (you) all rounds. And O my people gives just measure and weight. Nor withhold from the 

people the things that are their due; commit not evil in the land with intent to do mischief (Corruption). 

Thus, corruption; Profiteering, cheating exploitation and confiscation of people‟s property in the name of 

business are against the law of God and are incompatible with Relief in, and worship of God. 

4. Some Effects of Corruption 

In Africa, and indeed Nigeria corruption has severely undermined national, social and economic 

development. In fact, corruption often leads to national collapse as witness by the former Zaire and 

Somalia, where nepotism led to self-immolation. 

Almost every change of government, violent or peaceful, in the continent is driven by pledges to get rid 

ofcorruption. Indeed, corruption has led to  

Africa‟s political instability and gross abuses of power. To be more specific, corruption has led to bad roads 

and decaying infrastructure, inadequate medical services, poor schools and falling education standards, and 

the disappearance of foreign aid and foreign loans and of entire projects without a trace (or their delayed 

completion, leading to higher costs). 

Corruption has meant that fewer imported goods enter the country than were paid for; foreign exchange 

earned from exports is not repatriated; national assets are run down and ruined; production capacity in 

industry; agriculture, and services have been reduced; and repairs of buildings, equipment, vehicles, and 

physical and social infrastructure have been paid for repeatedly but never performed. 

Corruption distorts the economy it led to waste and misallocation of resources. Citizens‟ fundamental 

needs- food, shelter, health, education are neglected. Thus corruption creates an artificial need for external 

assistance to compensate for corrupt and irresponsible mismanagement for local resources. Having created 

the need, corruption then impedes foreign assistance. 

 



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5. Anti Corruption Programmes in Nigeria 

In order to curb this cankerworm, various governments in Nigeria have responded to the problem of 

corruption by implementing one. Programme or the other, and these include Ethical Revolution, National 

Orientation, and Waragainstin discipline, Mass Mobilization for Self-Reliance and Economy Recovery 

(MAMSER). Despite all these efforts by various regimes to find solution to the problem of corruption, this 

problem (corruption) seems to be defiling all these curative mechanisms put in place by various 

governments. This situation prompted President Obasanjo when he came to power in 1999 to declare war 

against corruption, if Nigeria will make progress in all facets of the state. Since, the social and economic 

approaches which other regimes adopted seemed to have failed he opted for legal instrument to combat 

corruption. Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) and the 

Economic and Financial Crime Commission (EFCC) were instituted by the regime in combating 

corruption in Nigeria. 

To appraise critically the consistency or otherwise of these anti corruption programmes, the incidence 

analysis that requires the use of descriptive and inferentive tools or explained early is employed. 

Musa (1983) believed that “The most powerful civil servants, military officers, police officers, judges, 

politicians, academia and journalist who have shaped and shaping the destiny of this country, since 

independence, when they “retire” almost in all cases retired in to company board-rooms. Here, they operate 

as shareholders, directors, Chairmen, Consultants, or as Landlords, contractors, renters and other form of 

commission agents, and front-men for foreign business interest operating in Nigeria. They get these 

positions not out of charity of these business interest operating in Nigeria, when they held public office and 

continue to use their inside knowledge and contacts in government to shape public policy to serve these 

vested interest. 

The INEC Chairman in 2003 spent billion of Naira promising to get Nigerians a digital voter‟s register that 

will last 50 years, and the Data capture machine had not even arrived INEC office when some of them 

were found in political chieftains homes. Moreover, some bribe paid to members of the Na‟Abba led 

House of Representatives by the then Executive was dumped as evidence of corruption upon table in the 

House by some of its members. What was the action taken by the anti corruption agencies? What happened 

to power project contract issued and fully paid to non-existing companies? What is the explanation for 

failure to pursue and prosecute those involved? (Awoniyi, 2003). 

In another occasion, Ribadu (2006) in his report of corruption practices against the then vice president, 

Atiku stated that Globacom Limited license was paid for, after public money in the Petroleum Technology 

Development Fund had place 15 million Dollars deposit in the Equatorial Trust Bank (ETB). While 

Onyinke (2006) in her testimony before the House of Representatives Committee on Capital Markets, 

noted that Obasanjo subscribed to 200 million shares in Transcorp which were held in the blind trust by 

Obasanjo Holdings Limited. However, in support of Transcorp, President Obasanjo (2006) argued that it 

was formed as “Nigeria‟s emulation of a step already taken latest successful industrial countries like China, 

South Korea and India. 

It was argued that although, there is the need to create indigenous bourgeoisie, to compete in the global 

economy, but such need should not be done in a clientele manner. Nigerians are frowning at the 

composition of the Transcorp membership and are raising questions on the source of the huge fund being 

used to acquire the company‟s assets. The corporation, it is observed is populated by those described as 



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acolytes of the present, most of whom applaud the reform policies and supported his unsuccessful bid for a 

their term (Odunlami, 2006). 

Corruption has cost our nation an estimated 600 billion dollars ever the last 40 years (Global News, 2011). 

Economists wonder if this figure is simply hard cash or has been calculated to include the amount of 

economic value that money could have generated. When correctly invested, N1 could generate as much as 

N5 of economic values, depending on the national bank reserve rate. Therefore, if the $600bn is simply in 

hard cash, then Nigeria might have lost as much as $ 3 trillion in economic value over the last 40 years 

(The Economist, 2007). 

Courtesy of corruption, the rich are becoming richer while the poor becomes poorer. Poverty remains 

widespread in the country with as much as 70% of the total population living on less than one US dollar 

per day. Human development Index (HDI) showed that Nigerian was ranked 151st out of 174 countries in 

the world and 22nd out of 45th African countries (UNDP, 2008). 

In conducting the 2011 General Election, why did the INEC Chairman abandon the NDA finger printed 

voter register obtained in countrywide registration that took place in January/February, 2011 for the manual 

register for the election after so much money were spent getting those equipments and personnel in place? 

6. Conclusion and Recommendation 

The position of the paper is that any anti corruption policy or programme that wants to build independent, 

balanced, self-sustained and people oriented national economy should be anchored on ethical issues. How 

can we hate corruption as a people and yet process the documents that make so much of it possible on a 

daily basis? Why do we claim believing in God as Muslims and Christians yet acted against HIS 

injunctions by modifying and destroying his divine arrangements and eternal will? Is the God we worship 

not too good to do anything evil and too wise do anything foolish?If yes why hatred, animosities and even 

the killings of fellow beings by fellow beings? Is our action not opposing the God‟s we say is perfect? Are 

we not guilty of moral corruption? Can‟t we see sense in the perfect designer who made us in one nation? 

Can we change the unmistakable arrangement? Curtailing corruption lies within answers to these questions. 

Thus, unless we honestly and squarely answer these questions, every Nigerian would continue to drink 

from the evil cup of corruption. 

In conclusion, if Nigeria is to make progress, corruption must be curbed to tolerable proportions, what 

Johnson calls low-corruption equilibrium. Corruption is the major obstacle to progress in Nigeria, and that 

its effect on development is disastrous. We must act therefore, and without delay, focusing our effort on 

eradicating large scale corruption. 

 To eradicate corruption and for Nigeria to seriously progress, the following recommendations should 

be vigorously pursued. 

 A careful study of the pattern of official fiscal allocations, donations and expenditure towards the 

amelioration and overall development of the nation with a view to sanctioning previous or past 

misapplication and mismanagement of funds by all parties involve. 

 Government should make the disposable of corruption proceeds and launder of it into the 

economy and society impossible for perpetrators. That is, banks, other financial institutions and 

businesses as well as international judicial and legal institutions must be employed in an integrated 

manner to enhance the repatriation of proceeds of corruption and punishment of offenders. 

 



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 International donors like World Bank, Paris Club, Transparency International, International 

Monetary Fund (IMF) etc. should amend their policies and conditions to curb or reflect 

anti-corruption war against Third World Leaders while administering the loans. 

 A mandatory involvement of all Communities in budget monitoring and evaluation to avoid 

misappropriation and looting is equally relevant in this regard. This should be part of the nation‟s 

fiscal policy. 

 Leaders should inculcate moral discipline, accountability, consider legal and institutional reforms 

and political and economic adjustment, reducing incentives for pay offs, establishing credible and 

independent judiciary, reform civil service to suit domestic and global changes as well as ensuring 

absolute freedom for press and access of knowing government‟s financial affairs at any time. 

 

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