Some months ago, a prominent Nigerian, Soyinka, described corruption the unifying factor in Nigeria. Another description has been given to corruption by another Nigerian, the chairman of the Trade Union Congress (TUC) in Rivers state, Mr Chika Onuegbu.
Onuegbu, who is also a PENGASSAN National Industrial Relations Officer (IRO), in an interview he granted to the Tribune, spoke about why oil workers are about embarking on yet another strike; how the entire Nigerian system has been immersed in corruption and the impending danger for Nigeria.
Reacting to a question on how nothing has come out of the numerous investigations into the fuel subsidy scam, Onuegbu said: “It appears that there is an agreement between the three arms of government in Nigeria; the executive, legislature and the judiciary, to help corruption grow in Nigeria. We are saying this because we have not seen any reasonable action taken by them to fight corruption.”
Also, speaking on the general belief that the oil industry is deeply soiled in corruption, the trade unionist said: “There is corruption everywhere; there is corruption in the judiciary, the legislature and the executive, there is corruption in every sector of this country, it is just that the volume of the financial transaction in the oil and gas sector attracts everybody’s attention and we are able to focus on that, but there is corruption in every sector of the Nigerian economy. As we speak, corruption is an industry, corruption in Nigeria has become an institution and it is becoming a culture and my fear is that the moment corruption becomes embedded as a culture, you can no longer fight it.”
Culled from the Tribune
