Corruption in Nigeria is a spiritual mystifer which cut cross all faiths, religious dominations and political system (Agada, 2014).

There are many unresolved problems in Nigeria, but the issue of the upsurge of corruption is troubling. And the damages it has done to the policy are astronomical. The menace of corruption leads to slow movement of files in offices, police extortion, tollgates fees and slow traffic on the highways, port congestion, queues at passport offices and gas stations, ghost workers syndrome, election irregularities, contract scam, among others. Even the mad people on the street acknowledge the setback caused by corruption. Corruption in Nigeria is a spiritual problem which means it is also found or cut cross all faiths, religious dominations and political system.

Since corruption is not new, and since it is a global phenomenon, it is not peculiar to Nigeria (in many European, African and Asian nations). However, in Nigeria, corruption pandemic cuts across the leaders as well as the followers. If there is a lack of control of corruption in every sphere in the nation, it is then like the old saying: when water chokes you, what do you take to wash it down? Corrupt practices span a wide spectrum, ranging from petty corruption whereby bribes are required before normal bureaucratic procedures are accomplished to large scale corruption whereby considerable sums of money are paid in return for preferential treatment or even appointment and access. 

The outbreak of COVID-19 highlights cracks in global trust, the pitfalls of global interdependency and the challenge for global governance which some scholars and opinion analysts see as a means of enriching some selected bourgeoisie at the detriment of the larger society. 
The outbreak presents an opportunity for scammers and businessmen to defraud citizens, often with the complicity of government officials who see this season as a means to cash-out either for self or their masters. There are also accounts of citizens evading quarantine by bribing officials at borders despite various measures even with CCTV during the lockdown, which will inevitably lead to further disease spread.
 
One will wonder how six million face masks ordered by Germany to protect health workers from the coronavirus went missing at an airport in Kenya. Investigations on how the masks ended up in Kenya and how they went missing are going on (ICJ Report, 2020).

As COVID-19 pandemic crept into Nigeria with the Italian citizen, something strange happened. Something busted in the minds and thoughts of the bigwigs. Immediately, there were donations from every crane and corner of society. People threw their financial power to the limelight what we have never experienced as a nation before. A nation bedeviled as the poverty capital of the world raced into an atmosphere of donations while the proletariat is left at the mercy of their creator.

Throughout March 2020, there has already been a wave of corruption-related incidents, decreasing transparency and accountability, as well as manipulative political propaganda from all over the world. In Nigeria, the Governor of Edo State allegedly pronounced he has spent One Billion Naira (N1Billion) so far on COVID-19. The question that comes to mind is how and what the money was used for? Who is accounting for such spending? Several questions bugging the minds of Nigeria, and Edo people. Such is not far fetch from Kano when the Governor requested for Fifteen Billion Naira to combat COVID-19, many opinion experts see it as another clandestine move to enrich himself and his cohort, but the president in his wisdom decided to rescind such request, instead provided the state with medical kits. One will wonder how humans can descend so low to make money out of a pandemic at the detriment of the whole country.

Also so, there is another form of low-level corruption being perpetrated by patients which also contribute to further spread, such as bribing enforcement officials to evade quarantine. This has already been reported in Uganda, where foreigners that were supposed to be placed under quarantine were able to evade it through corrupt means. Similar incidents, of “connected” people evading quarantine, have been reported in Cameroon. This could have dire implications for containing the spread of the disease.

Several corruption typologies are showing what kind of corruption occurs under normal circumstances in many low- and middle-income countries. During an outbreak, it is possible that attention and funding for other health operations are deprioritised. This can lead to several consequences, such as emergency procurement that increases corruption risks. Pilfering available supplies, price gouging, and resale on the grey and black markets increase in substandard and falsified products entering the market this is my fear. Who monitors the procurements of this medical equipments? Who gives authorizations for spending? Are receipts made available after purchase? Are the suppliers’ conniving with government officials to supply low standard products? Many questions without answers. The Nigerian saying: ‘see no evil, say no evil’.

Procurement of goods and services for disease management Evidence from audits of international aid spending during the 2013–2016 West African Ebola outbreak indicate that procurement procedures were widely disregarded. In the case of SARS-CoV-2, considerable funding will be required to procure the equipment and other infrastructure needed to provide intensive care. European countries are currently scrambling to acquire more ventilators to deal with the crisis through domestic production as well as outsourcing. The cost of a standard ventilator is US$25,000 and they require frequent maintenance. The scarcity and demand for ventilators and other equipment for intensive care will increase the risk of corruption in the procurement of these goods (ICJ Report, 2020).

We must as a matter of urgency, transparency, honesty and necessities safeguard the justice system and deter fraud, the justice system must be allowed to continue to function to enforce sanctions and rule on cases of corruption, thereby maintaining systems of accountability during a state of emergency. The relevant anti-corruption and criminal justice agencies should issue strong warnings against fraud and corruption in crisis response measures and prepare to launch investigations against those who are abusing their public positions to profit from the crisis.

I am convinced as Nigerians we can be better if we keep the family system free from corruption because society is the reflection of the family. If our family value systems are correct and accurate, corruption will be reduced to a minimum. Also, if our justice system is effective, free from manipulations, the best brains get the job, I still believe corruption will be knocked out.

God bless Nigeria.

By Agada Stephen Michael

[email protected]

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COVID-19 Pandemic: Corruption Mystified – Agada Stephen Michael