A former Chairman of Nigeria’s electoral umpire, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Prof Attahiru Jega, has said that no amount of disagreement can change the fact that Nigeria has been globally recognised as one of the most corrupt countries in the world.
Jega made the assertion while speaking on the topic, “Corruption and the Education Sector in Nigeria” in his keynote address at the 4th National Summit organised by the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC).
The summit was on the theme, “Diminishing Corruption in the Public Sector” at the State House Conference Centre, Abuja.
According to him, corruption drains billions of dollars yearly from the country’s economy under the present government and Nigerians struggle daily to cope with its effects.
Jega noted that Nigeria had been dubbed as one of the most corrupt countries in the world, and has also been ranked one of the most complex corruption environments and perennially ranks in the bottom quartile of Transparency International’s Corruption Perception index.
He lamented that “Corruption is the single greatest obstacle preventing Nigeria from achieving its enormous potential” as “It drains billions of dollars a year from the country’s economy, stymies development and weakens the social contract between the government and its people,” hence “Nigerians… struggle daily to cope with its effects.
