TI rating: Do not be discouraged, EFCC tells anti-corruption agencies

Despite Nigeria’s low ranking on the international corruption index, the Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Olanipekun Olukoyede, has called on anti-corruption agencies to remain resolute in their efforts to enhance government processes in the country.

The Corruption Perceptions Index, released last month by Transparency International, ranked Nigeria 140th out of 180 countries in 2024, with a score of 26 out of a possible 100. This marks a slight improvement from 2023, when the country scored 25 points and was ranked 145th.

Speaking in Abuja at the unveiling of the report Facts Behind the Corruption Perception Index, commissioned by the Technical Unit on Governance and Anti-Corruption Reforms, TUGAR, Olukoyede emphasized the need for continued commitment to the fight against corruption.

The report which reviewed six years (2019-2024) of Transparency International Corruption Perception Index (TI-CPI) assessment on Nigeria, concluded that in the past six years the country has recorded no overall change in its CPI score.

According to the report, Nigeria scored 26 points and was rated 146 in 2019; 25 points and 149 in 2020; 24 points and 154 in 2021; 24 points and 150 in 2022; 25 points and 145 in 2023; and 26 points and 140 in 2024.

But despite the apparent lack of progress in the fight against corruption, EFCC Chairman, Olukoyede said the focus of anti-corruption agencies should be on value addition.

According to him, “We can say that it is a slight improvement in relation to our efforts. But again, I have said it before and I will say it again. For us as Nigerians, we must be more interested in adding value to our economic and social lives than getting discouraged by any international rating. If we don’t appreciate that, it will be a major problem for us.

“Whatever we are going to do, the priority should be to improve on our processes, to add value to our lives as Nigerians. Now, if we do the right thing, the international community will come here and copy what we are doing and borrow it from us. There is no gainsaying the fact that in the last one year, the major stakeholders, the anti-corruption department, including the legislature, including the executive and the judiciary, have made some tangible progress in our fight against corruption”.

He pointed at the recent grant of autonomy to local governments, the recovery of over 700 apartments and the arrest of 794 suspects as major achievements in the past year.

Earlier, the Head, TUGAR, Mrs. Jane Onwumere stated that it is the “expectation this report would create awareness and prepare the anti-corruption community and relevant stakeholders for better and stronger engagement with the TI -CPI annual reports”.

Also speaking, the Chairman, Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission, ICPC, Dr Musa Aliyu noted that though Nigeria’s ranking improved marginally, a lot of progress has been made.

Aliyu who was represented by ICPC Board Secretary, Barrister Clifford Oparaodu said: “We have to judge ourselves. We cannot allow others to judge us. We at the ICPC are very much aware that an anti-corruption crusade is a huge stakeholder responsibility that requires collective commitment, vigilance, and critical self-assessment.

“It is in this spirit of collective faith in anti-corruption that the Commission supports the efforts of TUGAR to undertake the analysis of the TI-CPI 2019-2024 report with logical recommendations for public consumption. Every year, Transparency International and the Global Coalition Against Corruption run surveys according to the perception of their performance on corruption. Most times, by their assessment, Nigerians perform poorly on the Corruption Perception Index. These kinds of reports, each time it is released, tend to send messages of discouragement to the government, particularly to anti-corruption agencies, who put in their best, which is not really good”, he added.

On his part, the Executive Secretary, Nigeria Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative, NEITI, Dr Orji Ogbonnaya Orji stated that as an agency at the forefront of promoting transparency in the extractive industries, NEITI remains resolute in the fight against corruption.