Corruption: Beyond the Abacha loot

The simple reason for this widespread public apathy is the fact that Nigerians cannot find evidence where these recovered funds were applied to the promotion of the welfare of the citizens. Accountability in the management of recovered funds is no less significant than fighting corruption. Can Nigerians in all sincerity fight corruption with lip service […]

The simple reason for this widespread public apathy is the fact that Nigerians cannot find evidence where these recovered funds were applied to the promotion of the welfare of the citizens.
Accountability in the management of recovered funds is no less significant than fighting corruption. Can Nigerians in all sincerity fight corruption with lip service or half-hearted commitment? The billions recovered from the Abachas could have brought significant improvements in the social service sector and our decayed public infrastructure.
The recovery of the Abacha loot has dominated the headlines almost always; what is missing in the headlines, however, is how these recovered funds are being used for the welfare of Nigerians.  The former Obasanjo administration had recovered billions of dollars from the Abachas, but until he ended his term in office in 2007, the recovery of looted funds ended up on newspaper pages.
And sadder still, the civil society groups and the media have not shown enthusiasm to follow up how these recovered funds are being applied to the welfare of Nigerians. It is not enough to be announcing huge recoveries of stolen funds without accountability about the use of such funds.  The former Obasanjo administration had also announced the recoveries of billions of the Abacha loot. Unfortunately, at the end of the day, these recovered funds went up in smoke. Are Nigerians not entitled to ask questions about how these recovered funds are being applied to the welfare of the citizens? 
Corruption by anybody is not acceptable. If the government could demonstrate this level of zeal in the recovery of the Abacha loot, Nigerians expect the government to also go after looted funds stolen by other corrupt public office holders. General Abacha died 15 years ago, but corruption is still plaguing the country. Unless Nigerians see real efforts towards loot recovery involving other corrupt public office holders, they may ultimately lose interest and faith in the country’s anti-corruption crusade.
Haladu Isa Abubakar, Asokoro, Abuja ([email protected])