The Discordant Tunes in the Anti-Corruption Landscape of Nigeria’s Oil and Gas Industry, and the National Fight Against Corruption

It was the legendary American musician, Marvin Gaye, who in 1971 sang the classic song, “What’s Going On?”. This song aptly describes the current state of affairs in the anti-corruption landscape in the Nigerian Oil and Gas industry, and in the larger society. There is rife uncertainty and palpable confusion as to what is really happening – and there is nothing as potent as confusion or uncertainty for enabling corruption to breed.

At the onset of the present administration in May 2023, there was real hope that the hydra-headed problems of persistent crude oil theft, non-functioning State-owned refineries, an opaque fuel subsidy regime, uncertainty as to the actual quantity of crude exported out of the country, and gasoline consumed locally would be addressed. The reality, however, is still the same.

Things have become somewhat more complicated. The scourge of crude oil theft has continued unabated, and although the pipelines surveillance contract (which was awarded to a private firm) has been renewed, there is nothing significant to show for the colossal amounts expended on it. Curiously, where there have been arrests of vessels involved in illegal bunkering of crude from various trunks, pipelines and terminals, there has not been any prosecution of the perpetrators. Rather, in some instances the offending vessels have been blown up, along with their stolen contents.

Ordinarily, corruption thrives where there is absence of political willpower to confront and deal with the endemic problem. To have the requisite political willpower, the government and its related institutions must have the necessary legitimacy to rule.

Legitimacy is a real concern for the present administration, and the result of the 25 February 2023 Presidential elections was hotly disputed by the major opposition parties up to the Supreme Court, where a final decision affirming the validity of the declaration of the President was made in October 2023.

In the intervening period following the election in February to the swearing-in of the President in May and the final affirmation of the Supreme Court in October 2023, there has been huge disarray in the anti-corruption landscape, which requires a brief analysis.

The chief anti-corruption czar and chairman of the foremost anti-corruption agency, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) was suspended in June 2023, and was subsequently arrested and detained by the Department of State Services (DSS) on serious corruption allegations, for a period of four months. Despite the length of said detention and subsequent release, there has not been any formal prosecution of the former chairman of the EFCC.

This was a similar scenario as for the governor of the Central Bank, who was arrested on 10 June 2023 by the DSS, ostensibly on grounds of corrupt practices, and who has been in the custody of the DSS ever since without any formal prosecution.

The arrests of such high-profile individuals who are meant to be the bastion and defenders of due process and compliance is alarming, to say the least.

Never in the recent history of Nigeria has the country been faced with the current conundrum in its anti-corruption fight. The basic requirement for success in any concerted effort at curbing corruption and its ancillary ills is for the protagonists to be seen as transparent, upright and people of integrity.

There seems to be an obvious lack and gap in the number and quality of personnel saddled with addressing corruption issues. The current President has long been dogged by corruption allegations from when he was a State Governor, and issues have swirled around his true identity and actual academic qualifications.

Equally, the Senate President of the national assembly has had several probes instituted against him by the EFCC, and after rebuffing several invitations to attend the EFCC for questioning was subsequently arrested and detained in May 2023, just before he emerged as the Senate President.

There are several senators and House of Representatives members who were previously indicted for corrupt practices or have ongoing suits against them for alleged corruption, filed by either the EFCC or the Independent Corrupt Practices Commission (ICPC). In fact, during a valedictory service for outgoing senators, one senator in his speech bizarrely and shamefacedly thanked his wife, who was the President of the Court of Appeal and presided over election matters, for helping him and his friends to obtain victory in elections.

The Chief Justice of the country is not an exception here, as he is also embroiled in his own controversy over the recent appointment of one of his sons as a judge of the Federal High Court. Equally, other senior justices have children, siblings or immediate family members in the judiciary.

There must be seen to be a concerted effort among government officials to truly fight corruption with all its ramifications. At present, the optics do not look particularly good. For instance, the current chairman of the EFCC was once suspended from the same body, as the secretary to the EFCC.

There has been significant outcry over the seeming nepotism and sectionalism in the appointment of heads of ministries, agencies and parastatals, which appears counter-productive to a genuine attempt to arrest or stem the tide of corruption. The key ministries and agencies of justice, finance, customs, tax and maritime are headed by individuals from the President’s own ethnic group.

There has also been more action on the part of enforcement agencies, such as the EFCC and ICPC, in arresting and prosecuting low-level criminals involved in economic and financial crimes rather than the politically exposed individuals accused of embezzling and looting millions of US dollars from national and state treasuries. In a bitterly painful and ironic twist, high-powered individuals being prosecuted for corruption usually have their charges dropped and their prosecutions discontinued as soon as they move to the ruling party.

Few countries can boast as many statutes or pieces of legislation dealing with corruption as Nigeria. If the problem of corruption could be resolved through the number of enacted laws, the anti-corruption trophy would easily belong to Nigeria. It is an impressive list, as follows:

However, when it comes to the crucial matter of enforcing this legislation, there is lack of political willpower to do so. This is a result of the powerful network of highly organised and well-funded individuals and organisations promoting corruption.