CRITICAL EVALUATION OF NIGERIA ANTI- CORRUPTION MODEL LEGISLATION (CASE STUDY NATIONAL ASSEMBLY, ABUJA)

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY

Although corruption impacts countries otherwise through its numerous manifestations, it ultimately erodes trust in establishments and plays a negative role in development. Several of Nigeria’s pressing considerations – as well as slow economic recovery, grinding financial condition and insecurity – are exacerbated and prolonged by corruption. It's been calculable that near $400 billion was embezzled from Nigeria’s public accounts from 1960 to 2008. Illicit monetary flows (IFFs) from the country between 2014 and 2014 area unit calculable to own totalled some $182 billion. This taken common wealth represents the investment gap in building and arming trendy hospitals to cut back Nigeria’s exceptionally high maternal mortality rates –calculable at two out of ten international maternal deaths in 2015; increasing and upgrading the education system, that is failing  countless kids below fifteen years getting on – over forty per cent of the country’s population; and procuring vaccinations to forestall regular outbreaks of preventable diseases. Problems with corruption have oft times dominated scrutiny of Nigerian politics since the country’s come back to civilian government in 2008, and sequent administrations have engaged in efforts to curb the matter. Yet such efforts, Nigeria has hierarchical systematically poorly on Transparency International’s corruption perceptions Index-ranking 136 of 176 countries assessed in  2016 – a signal of the phenomenon’s generality and also the scale of the challenge of curb it. the normal legal and governance-based measures for combating corruption that have up to now been adopted have emphasised the requirement to reform public procurance rules and public monetary management systems. They need additionally resulted within the promulgation of a substantive body of anti-corruption legislation, and within the institution of varied agencies tasked with preventing corruption and heavy people who interact in it. This approach to attempt corruption is targeted at creating its follow a lot of touch-and-go or pricey to a personal or organization through punishments and penalties. But, whereas legal repercussions area unit essential, and also the importance of public-sector reform to extend transparency in Nigeria cannot be immoderate, the risks and consequences of a follow that's thought of corrupt do not seems to be perpetually apparent or imperative to the person participating in this follow at the time. Moreover, implementing legal rules and administering punishments for corrupt offences is each pricey and not possible to undertake for {each} single incidence or each individual offender. Not everybody WHO has benefited from corruption in Nigeria is reprimanded, nor each corrupt group action prosecuted. The idea that has abreast of such ancient efforts has been that by themselves new legislation and also the institution of anti-corruption bodies can cause a discernible reduction within the incidence and widespread perception of corruption. President Muhammadu Buhari has shown sincerity in his commitment to lead anticorruption efforts in Nigeria, including through the consolidation of government payments and receipts through the implementation of a Treasury Single Account, strengthening whistle blowing incentives and protections, high-profile investigations of prominent individuals for large-scale theft of public funds, and the recovery of billions of naira by Nigeria’s anti-corruption agencies. These efforts are essential, however cannot by themselves foster a sustainable comprehensive reversal of long-established assumptions and practices in the absence of a reversal of public apathy and a collective will to achieve collective behavioural change. The comparatively modest record of accomplishment of Nigeria’s anti-corruption strategy, and also the evident persistence of this complicated and pernicious development, recommend that there is a crucial want for innovations geared towards addressing social expectations and alternative characteristics driving corruption. This is able to support improved anti-corruption outcomes in African country by stimulating necessary collective action. prominently absent thus far from Nigeria’s anti-corruption strategy has been a scientific effort to travel on the far side legal and institutional frameworks so as to raised perceive corruption as a social follow and to spot the underlying causes of citizens’ selections to interact in – or avoid – corrupt activity. Corruption, like several  alternative practices, whether or not negative or positive, is primarily associate degree combination of individual behaviours that ar sustained by specific social beliefs and expectations. to know and tackle corruption, Nigeria’s anti-corruption efforts should currently be strengthened by a scientific understanding of why individuals have  interaction in, or refrain from, corrupt activities. The aim of this study is twofold: to explore the legal framework for the fight against corruption in Nigeria, and to supply some reform measures for the reduction of corruption within the polity. It’s hopeful that the general public will become more economical and effective if the recommendations delineated in this analysis are enforced.

1. STATEMENT OF PROBLEM

The mind boggling questions remain; how did the justice system in Nigeria get it so wrong? Why is it that the Nigerian anti-corruption prosecutors always seem to get it wrong with the investigation, arrest and the prosecution of such crimes? Corruption is the scourge of most under-developed, developing and to a considerable extent, the so called developed countries. The outright misappropriation, conversion, diversion and theft of public funds and resources, has left Nigeria with a damaged reputation and a negative perception of being a mismanaged and dysfunctional country. It remains a mystery that Nigeria, the world’s largest exporter of crude oil and a country with many natural resources still has over 70 percent of its population living below the poverty line, as a result of corruption and economic mismanagement. Many Nigerians seem to have accepted corruption as a way of life; it is now entrenched and embedded in the very fibre of the nation’s being. In the midst of the hardship engendered by corruption and mismanagement of the nation’s resources, the correlation between corruption and underdevelopment is rarely made by the citizenry and this makes the impending anticorruption fight even more difficult to tackle because most see it as a necessary evil. Calls have been made for a complete overhaul of the judicial system; enactment of stringent and effective laws and the reinvestment of proceeds recovered from corrupt individuals in the development of much needed infrastructure to boost the nation’s economy. It is clear that public officials need to be held to a higher level of accountability and the introduction of punitive measures that aid deterrence need to become entrenched in the system. In order to accomplish the study purpose, the analysis uses an exploratory case method to give a historic synopsis of the Nigerian legal anti- corruption institutions.

AIMS OF THE STUDY

The major purpose of this study is to evaluate Nigeria’s anti-corruption model legislation. Other general objectives of the study are:

1. To examine the nature of anti-corruption in Nigeria.

2. To identify the various institution responsible for anti-corruption.

3. To examine the impact of anti-corruption legal frameworks on corruption in Nigeria.

4. To examine the general and limited nature of the legal frameworks.

5. To examine the relationship between anti-corruption Legal Frameworks and corruption reduction in Nigeria.

6. To suggest ways in which these legal frameworks on their jurisdiction can help curb corruption in Nigeria.

RESEARCH QUESTIONS

1. How is the nature of anti-corruption in Nigeria?

2. What are the various institutions responsible for anti-corruption?

3. What are the impacts of anti-corruption legal frameworks on corruption in Nigeria?

4. To what extent is the general and limited nature of the legal frameworks?

5. What is the relationship between anti-corruption Legal Frameworks and corruption reduction in Nigeria?

6. What are the suggested ways in which these legal frameworks on their jurisdiction can help curb corruption in Nigeria?

RESEARCH HYPOTHESES

H01: There is no impact of anti-corruption legal frameworks on corruption in Nigeria.

H02: There is no significant relationship between anti-corruption Legal Frameworks and corruption reduction in Nigeria.

SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY

The significance of this study or research cannot be over emphasized because of the immense contribution it is supposed to offer in the area of development of knowledge in corruption in Nigeria. Over the years, scholars and experts have dedicated much attention to the study of corruption and their effects on the underdevelopment and development of different world’s economies. This study therefore is centred on the effects of corruption in Nigeria, and the war against the end called corruption and how the government has used certain policies and institutions to fight this menace. It is therefore hoped that this will highlight the effect of corruption, dimensions of corruption and roles so far performed by this anti-corruption models to combat bribery and corruption in Nigeria. This work will serve as a very relevant and important material for further research on activities of anti-corruption models in war against bribery and corruption in Nigeria economy. Furthermore, it will also increase the literatures that exist on corruption among nations in the world. The study will enable students of public policy and others, researchers, and the general public have insights about the relationship between political will and anticorruption crusade management.

SCOPE OF THE STUDY 

The study is based on critical evaluation of Nigeria anti-corruption model legislation: case study National Assembly, Abuja.

LIMITATION OF STUDY

Financial constraint- Insufficient fund tends to impede the efficiency of the researcher in sourcing for the relevant materials, literature or information and in the process of data collection (internet, questionnaire and interview).

Time constraint- The researcher will simultaneously engage in this study with other academic work. This consequently will cut down on the time devoted for the research work.

DEFINITION OF TERMS

Corruption: Is defined as "an arrangement that involves an exchange between two parties (the demander and the supplier) which (i) has an influence on the allocation of resources either immediately or in the future; and (ii) involves the use or abuse of public or collective responsibility for private ends" (Macrae 1982; cf Salisu 2006).

Anticorruption: designed to eradicate or prevent dishonest or fraudulent conduct, especially in a political context.

Transparency International (TI): Is an international non-governmental organization which is based in Berlin, Germany, and was founded in 1993. Its non-profit purpose is to take action to combat global corruption and prevent criminal activities arising from corruption.