EFFECTS OF CORRUPTION IN A SOCIETY BY @gentlejenny

Corruption as defined by World Bank is a form of dishonesty or criminal offence undertaken by a person or organization entrusted with a position of authority, to acquire illicit benefit or abuse power for one's private gain. Corruption may involve many activities which include bribery and embezzlement, and it may also involve practices which are legal in many countries.

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Corruption can be seen in the electoral processes to political office holders, security agencies, judiciary, legislature and every other public sector in a country.

In Nigeria for example every government that comes to power will make million promises on how it will tackle the issue of corruption, but at the end of the day, it will be worse than the one before it. The current Nigeria leaders rose to power in the assurance that they will fight corruption. Ironically, they have through their actions shown that they are more corrupt than the previous administration.

From massive rigging of 2019 election as confirmed by international and local observers, to continuos borrowing from foreign countries without any significant result, widespread insecurity, lopsided appointments, interference in judicial processes and so on.

There are plethora of evidences to show that Nigeria is a country where corruption is almost official. One can't get federal government jobs without having connections from well known politicians. Merit is never a prerequisite in getting government jobs. This contributes to the reason why Nigeria is not developing the way it should.

Corruption takes place because of some factors which includes:

Political Environment

The rate at which corruption will thrive in a country is highly dependent on political environment. This is the reason corruption is very pronounced in Nigeria. The political environment in Nigeria is such that the ruling party protects their members from being persecuted for corruption and this has resulted to the increase in corruption among many politicians in Nigeria.

Low Salaries of Government workers:

A lot of government workers in Nigeria earn paltry sums as salaries. The current rate of inflation in Nigeria has made life so difficult for these civil servants and the resultant effect is involvement in a lot on unethical practices to make ends meet. The unprofessional practices could be in the form of asking for bribes before rendering services to the public.

Nepotism:

One of the major reasons why corruption has continued to blossom in Nigeria is nepotism. This has affected both productivity and commitment. Because people favour those that are related to them, they look the other way when these people are involved in corruption thereby indirectly encouraging them to do more. This is a daily occurrence in Nigeria.

Bad Leadership:

When a good leader is in power, the people rejoice. But when the reverse is the case, corruption sets in. Nigeria as a country has not been lucky with good leaders and this always reflects in the high rate of corruption in many sectors of the country. A good leader will ensure that anybody who engages in corruption will face the music. But in a situation where the leader himself is corrupt, it gives room for more corruption.

THE EFFECTS OF CORRUPTION

Unemployment

This is one of the major effects of corruption. Money voted or provided for the building of industries is diverted to private pockets which makes people that should be gainfully employed to be unemployed.

Poor Infrastructure:

Most developing countries like Nigeria don't provide enough infrastructure for her citizens. This is due to the fact that most corrupt politicians will rather convert the money provided for infrastructures for private use or even deposit them in foreign banks than providing a befiting infrastructure for the country.

High rate of crime:

Due to unemployment which resulted from corruption, many young men who could not find suitable employment resort to crimes. This is a typical example of the Nigeria situation.

Dwindling Economy:

One of the major effects of corruption is a dwindling economy. Corruption affects the economy as virtually every office holder is always interested in what they will gain. These are people who could have ensured things are done the right way, and protect the economy of the country. But most of them end up siphoning a high percentage of the available resources which adversely effects the economy. This worrisome situation is what is obtainable in Nigeria today.

However Nigerian government has set up agencies to fight this cankerworm called corruption. One of such agencies is Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC). This agency has made it almost impossible for internet fraud to thrive. They arrest and detain young people that involve in this cyber crime. They also arrest and try politicians who are also culpable.

ICPC: Independent Corrupt Practices and other Related Offences Commission. This agency just like EFCC have ensured that Nigeria is rig of corruption. They work in conjunction with EFCC to correct the wrong image Nigeria has abroad because of corruption.

Corruption is a common phenomenon. It is common in most countries but if we can all work together as individuals in our own little ways we will make our country a better place.