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That TI’s Corruption Index Rating

Published

4 years ago

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Again, the Special Adviser on Media and Publicity to President Muhammadu Buhari, Femi Adesina, did not disappoint Nigerians. In fact, a great number of people would have been surprised had he reacted differently to the latest corruption perception index rating by Transparency International (TI) which ranked Nigeria 154th out of 180 countries surveyed and the second most corrupt country in West Africa.
The 2021 report which was released on Tuesday saw the country scoring 24 out of 100 points, a drop from 25 points from 2020 and falling back five places from the rank of 149 in 2020.
But Adesina, during a televised current affairs programme, said people should discountenance the report because it was a foreign statistic without much validity, adding that corruption is not peculiar to Nigeria, rather it is a universal problem. He claimed that statistics abound to show that the current government, through the various anti-corruption agencies has fought and is still fighting corruption to a standstill.
“We don’t need TI’s report to authenticate or validate what the government is doing. Government is working and anti-corruption is one of the key pillars of this administration. Globally, there is no place that has eradicated corruption. It is a national issue. This administration is fighting corruption and we are getting results,” he asserted.
Indeed, corruption is a global challenge. There is hardly any country that does not have some corruption issues to deal with. But what makes the difference between some of these countries and ours is the willingness to fight corruption and punish offenders and sincerity to do so. It is good that Mr Adesina pointed out that one of Buhari’s campaign promises was that he was going to tackle the problem of corruption headlong. With his reputation as a man of integrity, Nigerians trooped out to vote for him. But what do we have today? Corruption is now the order of the day in both public and private places.
Perhaps, we may need to look at some definitions of corruption in order to have a proper perspective of what we are talking about.
The World Bank provides a detailed definition of the act. It sees corruption as the abuse of public office for private gains as well as using public office for personal benefit even if no bribery occurs, through patronage and nepotism; it includes the theft of state assets or the diversion of state revenues.
The level of nepotism and favoritism seen in the current government is unprecedented. The norm now seems to be that people from the same ethnic group with the head of some ministries, agencies and parastatals should ‘own’ such organs. That is why you go to some offices and virtually everybody is from one tribe or ethnic group. There has been this continuous outcry that the majority of the federal agencies and parastatals are headed by people from a particular part of the country despite the federal character principle. Same goes with the appointment of service chiefs. Yet, nothing has changed.
The issue of the recruitment process is another thing. Merit has been thrown to the winds and favoritism and nepotism is now the order of the day. A very brilliant applicant may not secure a job despite his excellent performance at both written and oral interviews. But the job will be given to another person who may not have attended the interviews or may have performed poorly during the exercise just because he has a note from one senator or any other influential person in government. The issue of job racketeering is also there staring us at the face.
Yes, the current administration should be given credit for the sentencing of the former chairman of the House of Representatives ad-hoc committee on fuel subsidy, Hon. Farouk Lawan, to seven years imprisonment over the $3 million bribery charges preferred against him by the federal government, the sentencing of the former chairman of the Pension Reform Task Team, Abdulrasheed Maina, to eight years’ imprisonment for money laundering offences involving N2 billion in pension funds, the fight against internet fraudsters, and a few other cases. But we all, including those in authority, know that there is more to fighting corruption than this.
But I tend to agree with Adesina that the TI report should not be an indictment of the government alone but of all Nigerians. Corruption is not restricted to only politicians or those in authority. It has permeated all facets of the society, including the police, judiciary, business sector, the education and health sectors, the civil service, the military and so on.
A plumber tells you that a part of your water pumping machine that went bad will cost N30,000 for the original one and N15,000 for the substandard ‘Taiwan’ equivalent. You give him money for the original one and he buys the part and couples the machine. After a short while, the pumping machine parks up again, you call another plumber who finds out the first plumber bought neither the original part you paid for nor the ‘Taiwan’. What he bought was a refurbished engine part which did not cost more than N5000. 00.
Your house help cries to you that she just got a call from home that her grandmother has kicked the bucket, and that she needs to travel to her village for the burial. You take pity on her and give her money for transportation and some burial expenses. Later you find out that she was not bereaved and that she instead spent the time and money with her boyfriend in another part of town.
The list is endless. We recall how some people in a viral video on social media were allegedly vandalising the newly rehabilitated rail track of the Nigeria Railway Corporation along its Warri-Itakpe axis.
In all these cases, did we see President Buhari or any governor, lawmaker, minister or top politician or government official perpetrating the fraudulent act? No. They were all ordinary citizens engaging in dishonest, fraudulent acts which they feel will benefit them, not minding the consequences of such actions on their fellow human beings and the nation.
Therefore, the sooner we began to look inward and think of how we can fight this cankerworm starting from ourselves, the better.
The general election is around the corner and many candidates are already indicating interest to lead us both at the national and state levels, let us not shy away from this important civic duty. Let us get our voters cards ready to make the desired change. Nigeria is in dire need of a selfless, detribalised, visionary, committed, honest leader who will unite this great nation and put measures in place to tackle the numerous problems facing the country and lead a rebuilding process so that this country can grow. To achieve that, ethnic, religious and tribal sentiment should not be a major consideration.

By: Calista Ezeaku

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Opinion

Agony In  Ivory Tower 

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6 days ago

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March 9, 2026

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Quote: A university that tolerates missing scripts, result manipulation and ‘sorting’ is not merely failing students—it is quietly destroying the moral foundation of education itself.”
The sad cases of missing scripts, compulsory Sorting, inputting of wrong results and other obnoxious practices in some public universities, leave much to be desired. One cannot imagine how a student will be compelled to suffer consequences of the flagrant negligence of a Head of Department, a lecturer, Department staff or an ICT staff.Many academic and non academic staff in several public universities seem to be performing far below standard, thus unproductive to the university system. The unacceptable cases of sorting, missing scripts, missing results, inputting of wrong grades to students, should not be mentioned in a university, not even in any academic community. This is because people who are employed to work in various positions should have cognate work experience and unquestionable competence. They should not be seen as  certificate welding illiterates but people who have been proven to be worthy in learning and character, diligent and competent to carry out assigned responsibilities with minimal or no supervision.
The university as a citadel of learning should boast of men of integrity, people  who are repositories of applied knowledge and competence to drive the much desired holistic development in a nation that functions on quality teaching and learning. A situation where a student having gone through the crucibles of learning and written a prescribed semester examination or class-based evaluation test, is told that his or her script is missing or that he or she did not participate in that academic exercise, or must sort to pass, is an unpardonable error and a height of callousness. In fact some lecturers and staff of Departments are using the seeming systemic defect (which is their architecture) as an opportunity to extort  students. Sometimes it is discovered much to students chagrin that the supposed missing script was later discovered when a ransom was paid.
Since a lecturer, or Head of Department has in their disposal both Yam and the knife and determines who takes what (if they wish to give without strings), students have no alternative but to submit to their importunate demands in order to graduate at record time.Such practices should be unheard of in an institution that should be a vanguard of moral and ethical values and conduct. What people learn in school constitute their behavioural patterns in the society. Where the school as an agency of socialisation cannot drive positive change first in its immediate environment, then the objective of education as a bedrock for the development of society, is inevitably compromised and counter-productive. The German Reformer, Dr. Martins Luther was quoted as saying, “I advise parents not to put their wards or children in any school where the Bible is not being used as a rule of life because such institutions will unnecessarily be corrupt”.
 Gleaning from Luther’s sentiment one can deduce that the lack of respect and regard for values as well as the absence of the fear of God is the greatest undoing of most public schools. Another major challenge is that lack of Information, Communication and Technology literacy or compliance on the part of some lecturers and heads of department, may have informed the decision to give students’ scripts to secretaries to compile and input students results thereby making the secretaries the determinants of students’ fate. It is not saying a new thing that some of the secretaries in the process of compiling results have inputted wrong results, omitted names or down graded some students or given unmerited grades to others.Society today is ICT-driven and ICT-literacy enhances efficiency, speed and a reasonable degree of accuracy if the person behind the computer is level headed, articulate, competent, alive to responsibilities and is aware that negligence on his or her part is not only tantamount to a disservice to the university but to the students who may not graduate at record time because of his or her (computer operator’s) gross ineptitude or carelessness.
The ICT era makes the carrying of hard copy of results obsolete as lecturers through the  Heads of Department  can log on to the central server of the Exams and Records (if any) or ICT unit and input students’ results directly. By so doing the incessant cases where result on spread sheet is different from the one published online, more often than not, caused by abject negligence, will be avoided. The process will also end the intermediary services of some staff in the universities’ Information, Communication and Technology Department which has become a money spinner-a lucrative source of income to many of them. In fact some ICT staff reserved the power to award grades to students depending on students’ degree of compliance to terms and conditions. They can dubiously make or unmake a student. The university community should be considered too lofty to have careless, negligent, immoral  and academic or professionally deficient people as academic or non-academic staff.
The Governing  Councils and Senates of universities should be proactive in addressing the menace of missing Script,  inputting of wrong results and sorting.  This is  necessary to end the slogan “Education is scam” so the system can produce quality students who are truly found worthy in learning and in character by operators who exemplify diligence, moral and ethical values. The much-needed reform must begin within the institutions themselves, because the future of any society is shaped in its classrooms.
By: Igbiki Benibo
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Opinion

Strength of Emotional Equality

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6 days ago

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March 9, 2026

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Quote: “Love thrives not when one gives more, but when both give fully — not in competition, not in performance, but in partnership.”
In every healthy relationship, there exists an invisible balance. It is not measured in grand gestures, expensive gifts, or public displays of affection. It is measured in something quieter and far more significant: emotional equality. When couples stand on equal emotional grounds, love becomes less of a negotiation and more of a partnership. Emotional equality does not mean both individuals express love in identical ways. It does not require matching personalities or mirroring temperaments. Rather, it speaks to balance — a shared willingness to invest, to communicate, to be vulnerable, and to grow. It is the difference between two people walking side by side and one person constantly trying to catch up.
 In many relationships, imbalance begins subtly. One partner initiates most conversations. One apologizes more frequently. One carries the emotional labor — remembering important dates, managing conflicts, sensing tension, and attempting reconciliation. Over time, this uneven distribution of emotional effort breeds exhaustion. The partner who gives more begins to feel unseen. The one who gives less may grow comfortable in emotional passivity. Love, in such a space, starts to tilt — slowly at first, then significantly. Resentment can creep in quietly, disguising itself as patience. Silence may replace honest dialogue. What once felt effortless begins to feel heavy.
When couples stand on equal emotional grounds, responsibility is shared. Both people are accountable for the health of the relationship. If conflict arises, neither hides behind silence nor dominates through control. Instead, they engage. They listen. They speak honestly without weaponizing words. Equality creates safety — and safety strengthens intimacy. It allows both individuals to express needs without fear of ridicule or rejection. One of the most overlooked aspects of emotional equality is vulnerability. True connection requires courage. It demands that both partners risk being misunderstood. But when vulnerability is one-sided, it becomes exposure rather than intimacy. If one person consistently opens up while the other remains guarded, trust cannot fully deepen.
Equality ensures that emotional risks are mutual. Where one shares fears, the other shares too. Where one admits weakness, the other responds with openness rather than judgment. In such a space, authenticity flourishes. Another crucial element is validation. In emotionally balanced relationships, both partners feel heard. Their concerns are not dismissed as “overreactions.” Their feelings are not minimized or compared. When couples operate on equal emotional ground, they acknowledge each other’s experiences as legitimate. They may not always agree, but they always respect. Validation does not mean surrendering one’s viewpoint; it means recognizing that another’s emotional reality matters.
Equality also protects individuality. Contrary to popular belief, healthy love does not erase personal identity — it enhances it. When both partners are emotionally secure, they do not feel threatened by each other’s independence. Personal ambitions are encouraged, not resented. Friendships are respected, not restricted. Growth is celebrated, not feared. Standing on equal emotional grounds means neither person shrinks to accommodate the other. Instead, both expand, knowing the relationship is strong enough to hold their evolution. Power dynamics often expose emotional inequality. When one partner controls communication — appearing and disappearing unpredictably, withholding affection, or using silence as leverage — imbalance emerges.
 Emotional dominance weakens intimacy. It creates anxiety instead of assurance. But when couples share emotional power, there is consistency. There is clarity. There is no need to decode affection because it is offered freely and intentionally. It is important to understand that equality does not imply perfection. Couples will still disagree. They will face stress, miscommunication, and moments of frustration. However, when emotional footing is equal, conflict does not threaten the foundation. Instead, it becomes an opportunity for understanding. Both partners approach challenges as teammates rather than opponents. They choose resolution over ego and repair over pride.
Time often reveals whether emotional equality truly exists. In the early stages of love, intensity can disguise imbalance. Enthusiasm feels mutual. Effort appears equal. But as routine settles in and novelty fades, the structure of the relationship becomes clearer. Who still initiates? Who still invests? Who still shows up consistently? Sustainable love requires sustained balance. It is built not merely on attraction, but on deliberate reciprocity. Standing on equal emotional grounds requires intentionality. It demands honest conversations about needs and expectations. It requires both partners to examine their habits — whether they withdraw during tension, avoid accountability, or rely on the other to carry the emotional weight. Emotional maturity is not about avoiding conflict; it is about handling it responsibly and returning, again and again, to shared ground.
Perhaps the greatest benefit of emotional equality is peace. There is no constant anxiety about where one stands. No guessing games about commitment. No fear that affection may suddenly disappear. Instead, there is stability. There is reassurance. There is mutual effort. In a world where relationships often blur the lines between attention and commitment, equality offers clarity. It reminds us that love should not feel like competition or performance. It should feel like partnership. When couples stand on equal emotional grounds, they build something resilient. They build trust that does not fracture easily. They build respect that does not depend on mood. They build a connection rooted not only in passion but in balance. And in that balance, love finds its strength — not in who gives more, but in how both give fully.
By: Sylvia ThankGod-Amadi
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Opinion

NDDC: Time To Illuminate Homes 

Published

2 weeks ago

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March 2, 2026

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Quote:“Twenty-five years on, the Niger Delta cannot celebrate illuminated streets while families sit in darkness. Development must begin inside the home — where children study, businesses grow, and lives are built — before it glows on the roadside.”
The Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) was established in 2000 with a clear and urgent mandate: to facilitate the rapid, even, and sustainable development of Nigeria’s oil-producing Niger Delta region. The creation of the Commission followed decades of agitation over environmental degradation, infrastructural neglect, and socio-economic marginalization in the region. Its core mandate included the development of roads, bridges, electricity, water supply, health facilities, education, housing, environmental remediation, and economic empowerment initiatives. At inception, expectations were high that the Commission would transform the Niger Delta into a model of regional development. Over the years, the NDDC has indeed implemented numerous projects across the nine Niger Delta states. Roads have been constructed and rehabilitated in several communities, easing transportation challenges.
Schools have been renovated, and new classroom blocks have been provided in underserved areas. Health centres have been built or upgraded, improving access to primary healthcare services. The Commission has also awarded scholarships to students, including foreign postgraduate scholarships, empowering thousands of youths academically.Skills acquisition and youth empowerment programmes have helped many young people gain vocational competencies.Through various interventions, the NDDC has contributed to job creation and local economic stimulation.Solar-powered street lighting projects have been widely implemented in urban and semi-urban communities. These streetlights have improved visibility at night and contributed to enhanced security in some areas. Markets, highways, and public spaces illuminated by solar lights have experienced extended business hours.
For these efforts, the Commission deserves acknowledgment and commendation. However, development must always align with foundational mandates and pressing grassroots realities. A growing concern among residents is that while streets are illuminated, many homes remain in darkness. Rural electrification and household power access remain inconsistent and inadequate across large parts of the region. In riverine and remote communities, families still rely on generators, kerosene lamps, or complete darkness after sunset. The irony of brightly lit streets juxtaposed with powerless homes cannot be ignored. Electricity at the household level directly impacts education, health, and small-scale enterprise. Students cannot effectively study at night without reliable indoor lighting.Families cannot preserve food or power essential appliances without stable electricity.
Micro and small businesses struggle to grow without dependable energy access. While street lighting enhances public aesthetics and security, it does not substitute for domestic electrification. The proverb “charity begins at home” is especially relevant in this context. True community development must first empower households before beautifying public spaces. The Commission’s original mandate emphasizes integrated and sustainable development, not isolated infrastructural gestures. Balanced development requires that energy interventions prioritize homes alongside streets. Solar technology presents a unique opportunity for decentralized household electrification in off-grid communities. Extending solar solutions to individual homes would have a transformative social impact. Home-based solar systems could power lights, fans, small appliances, and communication devices.
Such interventions would reduce poverty, improve living standards, and stimulate grassroots productivity. By broadening its energy focus, the Commission would better reflect the spirit of its founding legislation. This is not a call to abandon street lighting projects, which have their merits. Rather, it is an appeal for balance, inclusivity, and alignment with core developmental objectives. Strategic planning should ensure that rural electrification and household access form a central pillar of ongoing interventions. Community engagement and needs assessments can help determine priority areas for household solar deployment. Twenty-five years after its establishment, the NDDC stands at a reflective moment in its institutional journey. The people of the Niger Delta say: thank you for the efforts so far—but not very much—because true appreciation will come when development begins at home and radiates outward, not merely when streets shine while houses remain in darkness.
By: King Onunwor
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