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23.12.2015 | Buhari’s anti-graft drive makes progress but a long road lies ahead

Nigeria’s President Muhammadu Buhari swept to power pledging to fight corruption, which by most accounts had become rampant under his predecessor Goodluck Jonathan. He has thrown himself into the task, introducing reforms, shaking up ministries and arresting former officials, although it could be some time before his campaign delivers tangible results.

While Buhari was sworn in as President in May, it was a while before he got into his stride.  Nigerians nicknamed him ‘Baba Go Slow’ after taking several months to name his cabinet.  It’s said the process was delayed because he wanted ensure that he chose ministers who would not use their positions to enrich themselves.  Having promised voters that he would clamp down on corruption, his caution was understandable.

Venal officials in previous administrations are suspected of having syphoned off billions of dollars of state funds, impeding the country’s development and putting off investors.  When he took office, Buhari said he discovered that government coffers were virtually empty.  He has pledged to recover as much of the allegedly stolen funds as he could, end a culture of impunity and make officials more accountable.  These are ambitious goals, so how has he fared so far?

Over the past six months, Buhari has ordered audits of revenue-generating state institutions, such as the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC, and the Federal Inland Revenue Service, and launched corruption probes into oil companies and banks.   The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, and other state security agencies have questioned a number of state governors and business people with ties to the former ruling party.  Many public projects have been temporarily suspended to check whether related contracts stand up to scrutiny.

Buhari has focused much of his attention on overhauling the NNPC, which is suspected of massive fraud.  Some 70 per cent of government revenue is generated from the sale of crude oil.  Last year, the then Governor of the Central Bank revealed that $20 billion the NNPC received from oil sales between 2012 and 2013 could not be accounted for.  Buhari alleges that 250,000 barrels of crude are stolen every day, a phenomenon he described as “mind-boggling”. 

Reforming the NNPC will be a major challenge.  According to the London-based Natural Resource Governance Institute, it’s the least transparent oil company in the world.  But some believe Buhari is just the man to clean up the company, as he headed the oil ministry in the 1970s and helped to set it up.  So far, he has sacked the entire NNPC board, launched an inquiry into its accounting practices, and plans to split the state-owned company into four entities to better monitor its operation. 

Buhari has also turned his sights on senior military personnel after a government investigation alleged that hundreds of millions of dollars intended to equip and feed the army had gone missing.  The former national security adviser, Sambo Dasuki, is accused of awarding bogus contracts for fighter jets and helicopters that were never delivered.  Dasuki denies the allegations.  He is the most senior official to be arrested as part of the investigation into the alleged procurement fraud, which is said to have undermined the army’s efforts to combat Boko Haram, costing thousands of lives. 

The President has sought to enlist the support of the international community in his efforts to recover stolen money.  He suspects that $150 billion of state funds that disappeared over the past decade are being held in foreign bank accounts, on behalf of former corrupt officials.  The US has reportedly handed over the names of suspected Nigerian oil thieves; the British and the Swiss have provided intelligence on money illegally transferred to ex-officials’ personal banks accounts; and the UK’s National Crime Agency is said to be working with the EFCC to investigate alleged money laundering and bribery offences.

Anti-corruption activists believe Buhari’s campaign is picking up momentum, but say it’s too early to judge its effectiveness.  Barnaby Pace of Global Witness said that while there’s “a good sense of optimism” that investigations and reforms are “moving in the right direction”, assessing whether progress is being made quickly enough is tricky.

Questions were raised when the President took personal charge of the Oil Ministry and appointed a junior minister to oversee its day-to-day operations.  He is reported to have said that he took the job because he doesn’t trust anyone else.  Some say the move has concentrated too much power in Buhari’s hands and is not consistent with his pledge to build independent, transparent institutions.

Transparency campaigners have also expressed concerns that Buhari’s high-profile corruption investigations have centred on allies of Goodluck Jonathan.  This has fuelled accusations that the President is targeting his political opponents and overlooking credible claims implicating his supporters.  Buhari’s aides have denied that his pursuit of former officials is politically motivated, insisting that the scale of the previous administration’s alleged fraud is too large for any responsible administration to ignore.

If that’s the case, the public will want to see his anti-corruption probes delivering tangible results soon.  But the focus on tackling high-level corruption means that it will take time for its impact to be appreciated by the public.  According to Pace, it can take “seven years to deal with a corruption case so to expect results in six month to a year is unrealistic”. Whether Nigerians have the patience to wait that long remains to be seen.