Opinions

How to reduce corruption in Nigeria’s public and private institutions

It is an undeniable fact that in Nigeria today, corruption is becoming something inevitable in our public and private institutions respectively.

The term ‘Corruption’ can generally be defined as dishonest behaviour by those in positions of power, such as managers or government officials. Corruption can include giving or accepting bribes or inappropriate gifts, double dealing, under-the-table transactions, manipulating elections, diverting funds, laundering money and defrauding Investors.

In every country or society, there are bad eggs. And, that is why efforts towards having ‘corruption free’ institutions seems like a difficult task . However, if we are intentional, it can be reduced to the barest minimum. In this article, we explore how corruption can be reduced to the barest minimum in public and private institutions in Nigeria.

Exemplary leadership

Leaders should lead by good example. So, their subordinates will copy them. Leaders should try as much aspossible to be corruption free so that they will have a voice when any subordinate is caught engaging in any corrupt practices. In a situation where the leaders and the subordinates in the institution are corrupt, no one will report one to another. Thereby, increasing, rather than reducing the rate of corrupt practices.

Prompt payment of salaries/wages

Payment of salaries/wages as at when due is key as far as curbing corruption is concerned. Today, the delay of salaries is what we have, especially in public institutions. Workers or staff in most public institutions do not always get their salaries on time. I am not trying to justify their actions. I am just stating the fact because, these people also need to satisfy their needs and when the reverse is the case, they engage themselves in corrupt practices and refer to the public funds as “National Cake”.

Reward for honesty

Appreciating and rewarding workers or staff in private/public institutions is a good approach towards reducing corruption to the barest minimum. This is because he or she who gets rewarded for working hard, being contented, committed and giving an accurate record of funds will be glad and he or she will be willing to do more good things for the institution. Other colleagues will also feel motivated and will want to be corruption free too. Again, people who are being appreciated for being honest cannot be easily manipulated.

Educating the citizens on Anti-corruption advocacy

Educating the citizens on anti-corruption advocacy is very important. Not all citizens are literate, so they need to know that there are things which they do not have to pay for and sometimes they need to pay little for these things. For example, in Nigeria a citizen is not expected to pay a dime to get his or her voter’s card. Some citizens are ignorant of these things so they end up paying not knowing, they are actually paying for their rights. This awareness can be through radio, television or a peaceful demonstration on the street, rural areas or even at a market square by various agencies.

Increasing the number of employees

The workload in some public/private institutions is much. Thereby making the work slow. Consequently, these employees then indulge in bribery in return for faster delivery of service. However, these corrupt practices can be curbed, by bringing in more employees in public and private institutions.

Technology

We are in a world where technology has changed and is still changing so many things. Installation of cameras in public and private institutions can help in reducing corruption. Installation of audio recorders can also go a long way in reducing corruption to the barest minimum. Cameras and audio recorders can help to ease investigation of any kind in the institution. Hence, there should be an independent body in the institution maintaining these cameras and audio recorders. In fact, there should be an effective platform where customers can tender their complaints or report any form of corrupt act by an employee. With this, many individuals in the institution would refrain from indulging in corruption due to the fear of being caught.

Protecting the whistle-blowers

A whistleblower is an individual who without authorization reveals private or classified information about an institution usually related to wrongdoing or misconduct. A whistle-blower can be an employee or officer of a public or private institution. The value of whistle-blower cannot be overstated. A study from Australia showed that employee whistleblowing was “the single most important way in which wrongdoing was brought to light in public sector organizations” (UNODC, 2015). Whistle-blowers protection is crucial for the success of anti-corruption detection and enforcement and should be a key aspect of any whistle blowing system. Instead of admitting to corruption and mending their ways, persons implicated in corruption can choose to attack or retaliate. Hence, a vital component of any plan to handle corruption reports is developing a protocol for maintaining confidentiality and protecting the people who report corruption.

On the whole, the above are the things that should be done concurrently if we are to make the greatest semblance of progress in reducing corruption to the barest minimum in public and private institutions, as far as Nigeria as a country is concerned.

Fatima Zakariyya, a 200level student of Mass communication, wrote from Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria.

Note: This article is (without any alteration to its original form) completely an opinion of the writer and does not convey or represent the thoughts of, or a shared belief with NIGERIAN TRIBUNE.

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