A Non-Governmental Organization, Wadata Media and Advocacy Center, WAMAC is advocating for the death penalty for corrupt officials in Nigeria.
The Executive Director of WAMAC, Zubair Abdurra’uf disclosed this on Saturday in Lokoja during the organization’s town hall meeting in Kogi State on strengthening investigative data journalism in the fight against corruption in Nigerian local languages.
The town hall meeting had the theme “Good governance: A product of transparency and accountability for societal development.
Abdurra’uf lamented that corruption has eaten deep into the fabric of Nigerian society noting that this can be stopped when individuals found guilty of corruption are completely removed from the system through capital punishment.
His words, “I think it is better we take a cue from China which has capital punishment for corrupt officials. I will advocate for the death penalty for any corrupt person in Nigeria because that will deter others from even engaging in any corrupt practice”.
He noted that when there is bad governance, corruption will continue to thrive within the society.
According to him, ” This is the problem that emanated right from the time when we were being colonized and even after the colonization it continued to manifest in the public sector.
“Corruption continues to thrive in our country and that is why we have the issues of bad governance and maladministration in Nigeria. Until the people rise up and demand for accountability, we won’t have any development. We can have beautiful policies and budgets but the implementation of it needs scrutiny of the people.
“The people have the right to demand accountability from the government. So, once people are not asking questions, or demanding accountability, they will continue to have a government that will not bring development in the state or country. The people should start calling on their legislators and Executives to order in a bid to have a corrupt-free administration in the Country.
“Nobody is above the law and there should be rule of law in the country. The immediate past Governor of Kogi State was invited by the anti-graft agency over alleged misappropriation of funds. I believe the anti-corruption agency will do the needful and make sure they hold anyone accountable for their stewardship in the state and also account for all the funds that were allegedly misappropriated. This will serve as a deterrent to others if anyone is found guilty.
The Guest speaker at the event, a lecturer at the Kogi State Polytechnic Lokoja Mrs Lola Balagbogbo who spoke on the topic “good governance a product of transparency and accountability for societal development “opined that the low pace of development in Nigeria is grounded in bad and irresponsible governance, which is evidence by the absence of transparency and accountability in the public and private sector.
Balagbogbo maintained that to achieve good governance, Nigeria needs to transition to permission-level leadership, by prioritizing citizen’s connections and needs.
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