30th anniversary: Big wins of MacArthur Foundation’s Big Bet On Nigeria

Joseph Akeju, a former lecturer at Yaba College of Technology, Lagos, came under fire in 2018 for blowing the whistle about corruption in the tertiary institution. He had exposed some financial irregularities in contract awards in the college to the institution’s governing council. A huge sum of N1.68 billion was involved. Instead of probing the […]

Joseph Akeju, a former lecturer at Yaba College of Technology, Lagos, came under fire in 2018 for blowing the whistle about corruption in the tertiary institution. He had exposed some financial irregularities in contract awards in the college to the institution’s governing council. A huge sum of N1.68 billion was involved. Instead of probing the allegation, the governing council dismissed Akeju from the service of Yabatech. An intervention by the African Centre for Media and Information Literacy (AFRIMIL) under its Corruption Anonymous project, saw to the reversal of the council’s decision. In December 2021, his dismissal was reversed and converted to retirement.

Another beneficiary of the Corruption Anonymous project was Sambo Abdullahi, who was the Head of the Internal Audit of the Nigerian Bulk Electricity Trading (NBET) Plc.  Abdullahi had exposed acts of corruption and rebuffed moves to lure him into the evil scheme. Because of his courageous act, his salaries and other allowances were withheld from December 2017 for another three years. With support from AFRIMIL, the Government Owned Enterprise (GOE) was dragged to court in search of justice against the victimisation of the auditor. In March 2020, the court gave a judgement in favour of the whistleblower. The embargo on Abdullahi’s remunerations was lifted thereafter.

The wins by these two whistleblowers and many others were made possible through the work of AFRIMIL, with support from the MacArthur Foundation, under its Big Bet On Nigeria project. “The support from MacArthur Foundation has made it possible for us to realise our vision of tackling corruption through whistleblowing,” Dr Chido Onumah, the Executive Director of AFRIMIL, said.

“Over the years, we have been able to create awareness about whistleblowing as an anti-corruption tool, provided technical support to the Ministry of Finance where the policy is domiciled, provided legal support to whistleblowers who were victimised, and have pushed for the Whistleblower Bill to be passed into law.” The bill has been sent to the National Assembly by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s administration, as an Executive Bill. It is expected to be passed into law before the end of this 10th National Assembly.

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MacArthur Foundation’s grant to AFRIMIL was just one of 317 grants to more than 200 non-profit organisation grantees and sub-grantees, amounting to about $150 million, to work towards encouraging the people to embrace accountability and transparency for the country’s development.

The Big Bet On Nigeria Project began in 2015 and comes to an end in 2024.   It was a strategy put in place to crack the difficult nut of corruption in the country.

It is an open secret that Nigeria has almost a kilometre-long volumes and volumes of laws and policies designed to expose corruption, which constitutes the tares that drain the nutrients needed for Nigeria’s growth. They include the Public Officer (Investigation of Assets) Decree No.5 of 1966; Corrupt Practices Decree in 1975; Ethical Revolution (1979); War Against Indiscipline of 1984; Corruption and Other Economic Crimes of 1990; Corrupt Practices and Economic Crimes (Prohibition) Decree of 1994; the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) of 2000; and the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (2002), et al.

Over the years, the laws were supposed to have served as the fierce masquerade to scare Nigerians from slipping into corrupt practices. An honest stocktaking would prove that the laws have not scared the people from corruption; rather evil men have found a way around them. Civil servants, public servants and their collaborators in the corporate world actually dance in revelry in the pool of corruption.

The impact of MacArthur Foundation’s Big Bet On Nigeria Project is not tangible in the kinds of physical infrastructure that politicians showcase as achievements. It is, however, visible in the high level of awareness created among Nigerians that corruption hinders development and should be abhorred. The Administration of Criminal Justice Act (2015), a major legal instrument to reduce corruption in the judicial system, was made possible through MacArthur Foundation’s support.

The ACJA, as it is popularly called, has ensured speedy trial and quick disposal of criminal cases in the interest and as of right, of a suspect, the defendant, the victim and other parties to cases. Many states of Nigeria have domesticated the law.

Many educational and religious organisations have successfully adopted the anti-corruption message. After carrying out the funded programmes for over five years, the Al-Habibiyyah Islamic Society says “Our participants (imams, freelance preachers, youth and women) are now transparency and accountability advocates. They are bold and confident in preaching against corruption…” The Palace of Priests Assembly, another grantee, reports “the adoption of a nationwide anti-corruption Sunday… and the institutionalisation of an Annual National General Overseers’ Summit on Anti-Corruption” as indicators of how Christian leaders in Nigeria have bought into the anti-corruption crusade.

The grants from MacArthur Foundation have transformed the media and journalism ecosystem in Nigeria. The Executive Director of the International Centre for Investigative Reporting (ICIR), Dayo Aiyetan, describes the situation thus: “The support has made it possible for journalists to hold the powerful accountable. Journalists have done stories that forced contractors back to site to complete abandoned projects. What will, however, endure is the capacity of the Nigerian media to engage in investigative reporting. More than ever before, many Nigerian journalists have been empowered to engage in accountability journalism. The journalism landscape is not the same again.”

Over this period, according to Motunrayo Famuyiwa Alaka, the Chief Executive Officer of the Wole Soyinka Centre for Investigative Journalism (WSCIJ), as many as 8,989 journalists have been trained in the craft of investigative reporting across Nigeria, and as many as 7,531 investigative stories have been published, many of them with resounding impacts.

One of such investigative reports was the organ harvest story published by Daily Trust and broadcast by Trust TV, which won the Nigerian Investigative Story of the Year Award (Print) award in 2023. The story drew the attention of government to the abuse of the rights of underage boys, who were cajoled into parting with their kidneys for a paltry sum.  The story reverberated across the country.

Another impactful investigative story, published with support from MacArthur Foundation, was the Cotonou degrees exposed by the Daily Nigeria, an online newspaper. The story exposed the lack of due diligence by the Nigerian authorities in recommending and accepting certificates from foreign universities where students did not necessarily acquire the knowledge for the certificates issued to them. The investigative report has compelled the Nigerian government to review its policies on foreign education.

On Wednesday, October 9, 2024, the MacArthur Foundation marked the 30th anniversary of its interventions in Nigeria. At the event at Transcorp Hilton, Abuja, the President of the Foundation, Professor John Palftrey, said, “Over the last 30 years, we have awarded close to 1,000 grants totaling approximately $320 million to 500 organisations and individuals for work based in and focused on Nigeria.” The work he referred to are in the areas of Population and Reproductive Health, Leadership Development, Girls Education, Human Rights and International Justice, and the just-concluded anti-corruption project.

Dr Kole Shettima, the Director (Africa) of the MacArthur Foundation, spoke on the essence of the Big Bet On Nigeria Project. At the anniversary, he said: “In 2015, we pivoted to the On Nigeria Big Bet, supporting Nigerians-led efforts to reduce corruption and enhance accountability. It was the sixth MacArthur programme in Nigeria. Nigeria has been a catalyst for hard but honest conversations and the co-creation of strategies between the demand- and supply- side players to tackle the challenges of corruption and to uphold transparency, accountability, and participation.”

MacArthur Foundation’s On Nigeria Project has demonstrated that social change is a long-distance race. It cannot be achieved through the mere enactment of laws or promulgation of policies. Social change can be nurtured through careful engagement with stakeholders at various levels and through civil society organisations.

On the fight against corruption, the foundation has left a challenge for local philanthropists who yearn for change in Nigeria to step in and continue the work from where MacArthur Foundation has stopped. Though their impacts may not be quick to touch, the cumulative positive effect of such investment could lead to a better Nigeria.

 

Dr Abbah is the Programme Director of the Daily Trust Foundation, one of MacArthur Foundation grantees from 2017-2024