The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) on Tuesday outlined Nigeria’s significant progress in the fight against corruption over the past year, despite global perceptions to the contrary.
EFCC Chairman, Mr. Ola Olukoyede, shared insights into the country’s strengthened anti-corruption efforts, citing the financial autonomy granted to Local Government Areas through a Supreme Court ruling as a key example.
Olukoyede made the remarks during his goodwill message at the Public Presentation of the Report on the Review of Transparency International’s Corruption Perception Index (TI-CPI) Assessments for 2019-2024, organized by the Technical Unit on Governance & Anti-Corruption Reforms in Abuja.
The EFCC boss described the financial autonomy as a significant achievement that has yet to receive the international recognition it deserves.
He said, ‘I slowly say the fact that in the last one year, the various stakeholders, the anti-corruption department, including the legislature, including the executive and the judiciary, we have made some tangible progress in our fight against corruption.
‘And we know what is going on behind that.There was this very intervention. Of course, you are all aware about the Supreme Court judgment on the financial autonomy of the local government. That is a great relief.
‘The international community does not acknowledge that. We have to acknowledge that by ourselves and form it up. It is a key development and advancement in the course of fighting corruption.’
According to him, Nigeria has been having a series of legislative interventions that have made the fight easy to execute.
He recalled that it was a legislative intervention that in this year culminated in the increase of the allocations to the anti-graft agencies to operate independently.
He said regrettably, the Transparency International would never mention the feat.
Olukoyede said, ‘And so we must also acknowledge the intervention in the legislature this year, where we increased the allocations of most anti-corruption agencies in Nigeria and the independent stakeholders doing this work. So we must also acknowledge that TI may not capture that.’
He noted that it was unprecedented for any country to seize 700 apartments as the EFCC did last year.
He added that it was from a single operation 790 suspects including foreigners were arrested.
According to him, some countries that ranked higher than Nigeria in the Transparency Index were among the arrested suspects.
The EFCC chairman admonished the stakeholders in the anti-graft agencies to remain undaunted and be determined to ignore the destructive narratives.
He urged Nigerians to be concerned about how to add value to social and economic lives.
He sought the building of an enviable country that the international community would emulate.
The review of Nigeria’s Corruption Perception Index (CPI) 2019-2024, said in the period under review, Nigeria recorded no overall change in her scores.
It said Nigeria recorded a CPI score 26 in 2019, ranking 146 out of 180 countries.
In 2024, said the review, Nigeria achieved the same CPI score of 26, and ranked 140 out of 180 countries, which represents the highest score for the period under review.
The review added that “On a yearly basis, Nigeria’s CPI score fell slightly from 26 in 2019 to 25 in 2020. It fell further to 24 in 2021. The country’s score remained unchanged in 2022 before increasing to 25 in 2023 and further to 26 in 2024.
‘This puts the country in the third lowest decile (i.e. Nigeria recorded less than a third of the total achievable score) in the CPI ranking, implying high levels of corruption. Nigeria’s persistent low CPI scores and subsequent low ranking amongst other countries shows little improvement over this six-year period’.
Meanwhile, the Inspector General of Police, Kayode Egbetokun described corruption as a global phenomenon.
According to him, no country that has no trace of corruption in her governance.
Special Protection Unit, Assistant Inspector General, Okon Effing, who represented him, however described the scourge as a threat to the sustenance of democracy.
He said, ‘Now, it is important to add that corruption is a global phenomenon. There is no country without an element of corruption in their governance.
‘And let me quickly add that corruption exists either in Nigeria or anywhere else. One of the greatest threats to the sustenance of the democratic government’.
Speaking, the TUGAR Head, Mrs. Jane Onwumere said the Technical Unit on Governance and Anti-Corruption Reforms (TUGAR) is a research, monitoring and evaluation unit set up to respond to the critical need for a rigorous approach to policy making grounded on empirical data collection and analysis, and in-depth country specific diagnostics on corruption and related governance issues.
The initiative, according to her, is part of the Government of Nigeria’s policy to design country-specific strategies to coordinate, monitor, and evaluate anti-corruption and other governance initiatives.
She added that the ‘work of the TUGAR includes conducting comprehensive diagnostic studies, deep analytical work, monitoring and evaluating anti-corruption and governance initiatives, constructing of governance indicators, and developing policy briefs on various governance issues for informing policymakers and driving sustainable reforms.
‘It is in line with its mandate, it has carried out the survey of which the report is being unveiled today’.
