Remedy for corruption

Many Nigerians wonder why people who run for office shout about anti-corruption before they get into office and when they get in, they become quiet.  If I were to ask many of you, you would probably say the further down the list you go the more corrupt the allegations against them. President Muhammadu Buhari was a strong advocate of anti-corruption. However, when he got into office, he failed to be effective.   Recently, a list of looters were published by the Buhari regime and it only listed members of the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and not his party, the All Progressives Congress (APC).

Here is my analysis of how corruption has evolved. The most corrupt element is the salaries that politicians in Nigeria get. Anyone that collects the salary and the benefits that come with it shares in the national loot because the pay package was raised to make the majority of decent politicians to keep quiet in the spirit of keeping their job, a job that is clearly over compensated deliberately to allow their bad colleagues to continue their corrupt acts without upsetting the decent ones. People like the convicted former governor of Delta State may have done the actual stealing but 90 per cent of the decent politicians have also been taken care of, which explains the lethargic reaction to the corruption saga.

• On Nigerian leaders and promises

The second issue relates to democracy. If Buhari and Vice President Yemi Osinbajo were independent candidates, they would have been more successful in fighting corruption. But they are not. A candidate cannot go against his party, otherwise the would become an outcast. The corrupt politicians know this and that is why when grace allegations are brought against a corrupt politician, he joins the party in power and the allegations are dropped. This is what Buhari’s problem is today and the reason a lot of our politicians are corrupt. The system itself is designed to be corrupt and forces every politician to either be passive or active in corruption.

Party affiliations prohibit effectively tackling  corruption. It is clear that corruption cannot be addressed from within Nigeria.  As a result, an international body will be charged with this responsibility; it will have no affiliation to any of the parties and the candidates concerned. This is the only way we can address corruption without bias. Politicians are overpaid given the nature of the Nigerian economy and if we are to maintain the current salary scale, then we need to make it performance-related. We should reduce the standard salary and the rest is earned if we are to meet our performance targets.

The salaries of politicians should be performance-based. If we create jobs and enhance in our constituents, then we can claim the full amount. I am not ashamed to speak my mind. I am not a coward. I am  a genuine and honest Nigerian who wants true change for his motherland. So, I call on all Nigerians home and abroad to rise up and fight for what is just by being a part of the system. Get involved in your own special way; register to vote, speak your mind, support credible candidates, reject anyone in this administration and the previous that has contributed to our decayed society and infrastructure. My prayer is that religion and tribalism will be a thing of the past for Nigeria to move forward come 2019. Finally, it’s time to stop voting parties but personalities. May God bless our youth, may God bless Nigerian citizens all over the world and may God bless the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

• Fagbenro writes in from Virginia, United States.