Nigeria's fight against corruption is failing not because of weak laws, but because society has lost its moral compass. That's the argument from Babafemi Badejo, chairman of the Nigerian Bar Association's Anti-Corruption Committee.
Speaking on Sunday in Lagos at the inaugural Magodo Associates Seminar Series, Badejo said corruption has moved beyond isolated misconduct to become deeply embedded in public institutions, private organisations and communities. His paper was titled 'Re-awakening the Nigerian Conscience Against Corruption.'
"Corruption in Nigeria has evolved from a deviance to a norm, from an exception to an expectation, and from a secretive transaction to a publicly celebrated achievement," he said.
Badejo, a professor and former Deputy Special Representative of the United Nations Secretary-General for Somalia, argued that the problem is fundamentally moral, not legal. He said families, religious institutions and communities often celebrate wealth without questioning how it was acquired.
He pointed out that individuals widely believed to have enriched themselves through corrupt means are frequently given leadership positions in religious and community organisations because of their financial contributions. He described this as "moral anaesthesia" — prolonged exposure to corruption without consequences has dulled society's ability to distinguish right from wrong.
"When society consistently rewards the fruits of corruption while neglecting integrity, corruption becomes normalised, socially endorsed and actively encouraged."
Badejo acknowledged that Nigeria has a strong legal framework, including the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC). But he said enforcement alone can't work if society continues to admire corrupt public officials.
"The EFCC can arrest a thousand corrupt officials, but if society celebrates such people as heroes, the war is already lost," he said.
He traced corruption through Nigeria's history, noting that traditional societies in the Oyo Empire, Benin Kingdom, Sokoto Caliphate and Igbo communities had communal sanctions that checked abuses of power. He also referenced controversies involving founding political leaders like Nnamdi Azikiwe, Obafemi Awolowo, Ahmadu Bello and Abubakar Tafawa Balewa. He argued that early debates over ethics weren't resolved and contributed to the collapse of the First Republic.
Successive military administrations, Badejo said, deepened corruption despite often seizing power on anti-corruption platforms. He cited wartime procurement under Yakubu Gowon, the Structural Adjustment Programme under Ibrahim Babangida and the looting linked to the late Sani Abacha as periods that entrenched graft in state institutions.
Civilian administrations have also struggled, he said, with inconsistent enforcement and political interference weakening public confidence despite institutional reforms and prosecutions.
The costs have been enormous. Badejo said corruption has caused massive losses in the oil and gas sector and weakened healthcare, education, infrastructure and other public services. He also linked corruption in the defence sector to worsening insecurity. He argued that diverted resources have reduced the capacity of security agencies to tackle terrorism, banditry and kidnapping.
The resulting insecurity, he said, has displaced communities, disrupted economic activities and eroded public trust in government.
Badejo argued that laws are most effective when they reinforce existing moral values. Countries with weak ethical foundations, he warned, require unsustainable levels of enforcement to combat corruption.
He called for a moral reawakening — a return to the values that once held communities together — as the only real path to defeating corruption.