Integrity advocates in Nigeria have identified the lack of stern consequences for wrongdoing as a major challenge to Nigeria’s development while calling for more public recognition of honest citizens.
The call for more public naming of acts of integrity and shaming of corruption was made during an anti-corruption radio program, PUBLIC CONSCIENCE, produced by the Progressive Impact Organization for Community Development, PRIMORG, Wednesday in Abuja.
The integrity act of a member of the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) serving in Akwa Ibom State, Ojeleye Joseph, who returned a misplaced purse containing cash and Automated Teller Machine (ATM) cards, was spotlighted and commended during the radio programme.
Speaking during the programme, the Media Manager at Lux Terra Leadership Foundation, Dr. Inya Ode, lauded the actions of Ojeleye Joseph despite challenging times in the country, adding that more Nigerians have continued to display integrity in their dealings amid unfair economic times in the country.
Ode called for the stories of more Nigerians of integrity to be told and made to go viral to encourage others while reminding citizens of the vital role they need to play in framing a better society.
“Oyeleye Joseph is just one example of many others that happen daily and we don’t even hear about. Nigerians are good people, and we want to project that goodness wherever we find ourselves. Yes, the rotten eggs are there and a lot of negative stories about us, but at the end of the day, we still have good people, and that’s what this guy (Ojeleye) has projected is the true Nigerian spirit of being honest, telling the truth and not taking what does not belong to you
“I think moving forward, we (Nigeria) have gotten to that point of naming and shaming corrupt acts, Naming those who have held integrity just like the NYSC person to say that when you see something good, you should praise it and Keep going against the tide.”
She insisted that Nigeria must ensure people face the consequences for their actions; leaders must play their role and be held accountable by those who must not abdicate their responsibilities of raising a good society. Adding that, the Nigerians must also eschew ethnic and tribal sentiments and nepotism if the country must develop.
“Citizens should hold leaders to account. If someone commits a crime, we should leave the tribal and ethnic bigotry lines and focus on what is the crime and let people be punished based on what they did first. If we do that, we will make headway – What is wrong is wrong, and it must be punished, and it must be seen to be punished because this will make everybody else adjust,” Ode stressed.
She disclosed that she was worried by the paucity of integrity and worsening corruption in Nigerian society. The Lux Terra Leadership Foundation launched a project tagged “the Integrity Model,” which identified and profiled 48 persons from both formal and informal sectors across the country who have demonstrated the virtue of integrity in their private and public conduct.
On his part, the Programme Director of Integrity Organisation, Emmanuel Boash, joined the call for more Nigerians of integrity to be celebrated as they face enormous problems with their chosen lifestyle.
Bosah alluded that the current economic dire straits in Nigeria were enabling corruption and declining citizens’ integrity, lamenting that anti-corruption institutions in the country are not supported enough to do their work.
“Anti-corruption agencies require support to reach their capacity and expand their reach. The opportunity we have here regarding integrity is that we all, in one way or the other, are holding leadership positions in this country”.
To fix the rising integrity deficit in Nigeria, Bosah had these suggestions to make: “The cost of living crisis has pushed people into the dire strait. People are struggling to feed. People are struggling to survive. Beyond the conversation about integrity, what does that do for crime and national security when people are so hard up that they must do anything just to survive?
“Integrity is a whole consistent thing. The private sector has the role of making sure that they do not mistreat staff or damage the environment and the communities in which they operate, and we, the citizens, must hold the government accountable through citizens’ activism, making sure that when things go wrong, we stand up and speak.
“The government, through regulation and enforcement of rules, must have the political will to ensure that even those who are at the top when they do wrong, they must go down for it. That is the system we need”.
Public Conscience is a syndicated weekly anti-corruption radio program PRIMORG uses to draw government and citizens’ attention to corruption and integrity issues in Nigeria.
The programme has the support of the MacArthur Foundation.