Nigeria’s Budget Proposal Filled With D
Nigeria scored 25 out of 100 points in the 2023 Corruption Perception Index (CPI), compared to 24 points in the 2022 CPI.
Also, it ranks 145 out of 180 countries in 2023 compared to 150 on the 2022 CPI results.
According to the Executive Director of Civil Society Legislative Advocacy Centre (CISLAC), Auwal Ibrahim Musa, activities that spiked the ranking include, electoral corruption, judiciary corruption and security corruption.
“Nigeria’s 2023 general elections dashed the hopes of Nigerians who were hoping for a better electoral process despite the passing of the 2022 Electoral Act. “According to the European Union (EU) Observation Mission1, the 2023 general elections did not ensure a well-run transparent, and inclusive democratic process as assured by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
“Public confidence and trust in INEC were severely damaged during the presidential poll and was not restored in state level elections.
“This abysmal performance by Nigeria’s electoral umpire saw numerous litigation cases being sent to the courts in Nigeria. The poor performance of the election fails to justify the huge resources allocated to INEC for the conduct of the elections,” he said
Ibrahim Musa also noted that the judiciary conspiratorially aided INEC’s corruption in its poor handling of the election cases.
“With the disappointing conduct of the 2023 general elections in Nigeria, the Nigerian judiciary was expected to display independence and dispatch justice transparently as well as in equity and fairness. However different conflicting rulings by the different courts have questioned the independence and integrity of the judiciary as an institution. This has thrown up the discussion on the need for effective judicial oversight” the Executive Director, said
Again, he identified security corruption as a dangerous activity capable of undermining development in the country
“In 2023, the defence and security sector accounted for 13.4 per cent of the budget which was about twice the sum of the next two sectors, education (8.2 per cent) and infrastructure (5.7 per cent).
However, the security situation of the country continues to be a challenge and the corruption in this sector is worrisome. In October 2023, a military court martial sitting in Abuja sentenced a Major General to seven years imprisonment for stealing, forgery, misappropriation, and conspiracy.
“He was also ordered to refund US$ 2 million and N1.69 billion. This is just one incident of many. Corruption in the security sector is worrisome because aside its impacts on the peaceful coexistence of citizens, it also impacts the economy with over 400,000 barrels of crude oil stolen daily as stated by the National Security Adviser (NSA).
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