Index to Nigerian Newspapers

The late Major Chukwuma Kaduna Nzeogwu warned that corruption was making Nigeria look big for nothing, and successive military rulers led the charge against it. Despite a flurry of administrative policies, none have made a dramatic impact. Corruption has become the basis for the vicious propaganda that pitted military politicians against civilian politicians, defining good and bad Nigerians and making it possible for the country to admit of ambitious men with sinister purposes in government. President Olusegun Obasanjo established the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) in 2003, but corruption remains with a smirk on its face, making it the giver of favours and creator of instant wealth with no questions asked.

Fifty-five years ago, the late Major Chukwuma Kaduna Nzeogwu warned that corruption was making Nigeria look big for nothing and that to set Nigeria on the path of unimpeded development, corruption must be eradicated. Our successive military rulers, from Major-General Johnson Aguiyi-Ironsi to General Yakubu Gowon, led the charge against corruption. General Murtala Muhammed turned the civil services upside down to rid them of corruption, and the probes were the wind that exposed the posterior of the chicken. None of our leaders has won the anti-graft war so far, but corruption continues to dare and force the commanders and foot soldiers in the war to blink first. The EFCC was set up by President Obasanjo in 2003 to fight corruption. Its first chairman, Nuhu Ribadu, was a zealous man who worked hard to expose the rotten underbelly of our political system. However, corruption remains with a smirk on its face, making it the giver of favours and creator of instant wealth with no questions asked.