Re – examining the Fight against Public Sector Corruption in Nigeria: Has the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) lived up to its billing? (Published)
Issues of corruption have continued to feature prominently in the management of national affairs globally, and particularly in transitional States. Public governance in Nigeria has been serially accused with verifiable proofs of unbridled corruption, and is therefore a huge contributor to Nigeria’s embarrassing corruption perception on the Global Corruption Index. The ICPC as an institutional response to the ugly trend, is intended at curbing the incidence, severity, and depth of corruption in Nigeria public service. It is however worrisome, that public sector corruption is yet to witness a significant downward review, as bizarre incidences of public sector corruption continues to emerge even with the presence of ICPC. This paper therefore leverages on a Desk Study, hinged on Documentary Analysis, to interrogate how effective the ICPC has been, in the fight against Public Sector corruption in Nigeria, and to also ascertain, some of the challenges that militate against its operations. The findings show among others, that although the ICPC made some contributions to the fight against corruption, it is generally adjudged quite weak and ineffective, for reasons that range from wide political interferences/lack of autonomy, absence of the requisite political will, and poor funding. It is recommended among others, that the ICPC should be redesigned to make it much more autonomous and insulated from the likelihood of detrimental political influences as much as possible.
Keywords: Corruption, Effectiveness, Independent, Public Sector, institutionalization