When A Society Embraces Cheating -By IfeanyiChukwu Afuba

I am no longer sure about correctness of the Achebean thesis which says the trouble with Nigeria is simply and squarely a failure of leadership. A study of the Nigerian journey even from 1983 when Chinua Achebe’s _The_Trouble with Nigeria_  was published, demands modification of this, cause statement. The underlying issues go beyond leadership. As much as sixty percent of the operative elements would border on societal factor, leaving poor leadership accounting for about forty percent of our tragedy. The society nurtures the people; providing the context in which both the leaders and followers operate. So, what kind of society is this? What kind of values govern the Nigerian citizenry? What is the dominant character of Nigerian society? Nigeria is a country steeped in corruption. Some would say that Nigeria’s government system deteriorates because we have not had a leader who actually battled corruption. That selfless leader, whenever he or she emerges, will be faced with the daunting situation of a society that approves of wealth without work; of a people that have embraced cheating as a way of life. In the circumstance, even the emergence of a potentially great leadership, would not guarantee positive change. That transformational shift requires an inclusive societal rebirth. This attitudinal change, so important for reinforcing good leadership, does not seem to be receiving attention yet. Due attention maybe. Social units and civil society must awaken to this call.

How could any President or Governors roll back the storm of corruption without a corresponding wind of ethical revolution? We are largely resigned to our fate as a corruption – ruled state; so much so that news of fraudulent acts, especially in government, no longer perturbs. The massive scale of governmental corruption in Nigeria is considered a major cause of mass poverty and underdevelopment. But it’s not just about the number of roads, hospitals, industries, dams, schools, not built and maintained because of stolen public funds. As revolting as the hunger in the midst of riches is, the greater scandal seems to lie in normalised sense of corruption. Illicit wealth is first condoned by silence, indifference and resignation by what should be conscience of society. Then, it’s encouraged through  honours bestowed on citizens with questionable sources of wealth. Faith bodies seek after them at fund – raising events, consciously or unconsciously projecting them as pillars of religion. And the dimension and intensity of sharp practices escalates. In this climate of corruption, public servants even down to messengers, demand bribe boldly. You would think it was within their rights to see legislators openly checking if the envelopes brought by government officials at budget defence sessions, was fat enough. And at ministries, departments and agencies, booty – sharing meetings by management cadre take place from time to time.

The private sector is not left out. Banks  play a collaborative role in the looting spree. No, you cannot execute the systemic fraud that goes on in Nigeria without the  connivance of financial institutions. The false figures have to be laundered. The ghost expenditures have to be lent artificial identities. Illegal transfers have to be validated by rerouting and insider approvals. In the same hustle to hit  jackpots, fake drugs are widely sold at retail outlets. Expired goods, adulterated and counterfeit products are continually in circulation. How are all these possible? A commercial bus driver resisting attempts to extort his hard – earned fares at one of the ubiquitous security check points, gets no mercy from his passengers. They shout at him to settle the illegal levy collectors and save their time! And so, beside official inaction, what is the attitude of the majority population to this social malaise? Scandalised? Tolerant? Indifference? Resistance or resignation? What happened to the agents of progressive change? Where is the activism of civil society? As far as one can see, beyond routine pleas for sanity, there are no sustainable programmes to cultivate alternative frontiers.

 The trend continues with other spheres of national statistics, signalling a deep – seated social malady. Our experience with elections underlines a penchant to cheat, manipulate and live revisionism. Almost all elections since 1960 have been disputed. No doubt, most of our polls fell way below standards of transparency and fairness. When voter registration was wholly manual, politicians bought off hundreds of voter cards from compromised registration officers. Thugs would be at work on polling day to  create disorder during which time the smuggled cards translated to votes. This was the game of the gentleman politician. The more hardened and better connected politician either had results altered or engineered another set of results for declaration. In the ensuing landslide,  seaslide and windslide results, the riposte of the victorious political party to outcries of rigging would be ‘go to the tribunal’! The concern for our present purposes, however, is with the diffuse layers of citizenry involved in the rigging plot; from adhoc, permanent electoral staff to the average voter, to political players. And the perpetuation of electoral fraud in over sixty years of statehood, says something about a people and their society.

Similarly, every census since independence has been dogged by controversy, pitting parts of the country in a contest for numerical superiority. I observed this geographic rivalry at play in some states during the 1991 census exercise. Communities had obviously been sensitised on the importance of the headcount as they demonstrated serious mobilisation for the assignment. It was a sweet outing for enumerators and supervisors as they were lavishly hosted by the respective communities. Quartered and treated to free meals, many went home with envelopes worth double of their official allowances. Their part of the bargain was to enlist names contained in booklets presented to them by community leaders into the census register! It was a development that brought home to me the unreliability of official population figures. Improved technology reduces the chances of manipulation but there are still challenges of glitches and sheer dishonesty coming into play. Many would recall the era of “zero allocation” in Nigeria’s local government administration. This was during the last stretch of military rule up to the first few years of the Fourth Republic. The military government had asked local governments to submit their primary school staff strength. Anticipating an opportunity for higher fiscal receipt, many a local government leadership inflated their list of primary school teachers, with the hope of pocketing the surplus that would be remitted for teachers’ salaries. Fine, said the military authorities. It then proceeded to deduct the teachers’ pay before release of each local government’s share of national revenue! By ensuring payment of teachers’ salaries from source, the central government became beneficiaries of the provision for ghost workers while the local governments involved became victims of their own rip off plan. Their losses, following the direct deduction, gave rise to the expression, zero allocation.

Is it our public examinations that are conducted with probity? More than forty years after Chukwuemeka Ike sounded the alarm with his novel, _Expo_ _77_ , the vice of examination malpractice has worsened. Drawing from his experience as Registrar of WAEC, Ike depicted the careful organisation and deception that goes into exam fraud. In a certain school, the principal was diligently directing the cheating in an atmosphere of serenity in the premises. Examination malpractice at the time was limited; it was not widespread in terms of number of schools involved. And it was a hush, hush affair, executed in secrecy. Over the years, the scheme has grown in scale, daring and complexities. WAEC’s cancellation of subjects for schools  over malpractices in the exams is no longer news. Notorious schools get deregistered as exam venues even as special examination centres, provided with tactical cover against invigilation, continue to birth. It’s a matter of cash. Students contribute money for “sorting” examiners and teacher – invigilators. Teachers who stand up against the racket have sometimes been beaten by the desperate students or by their hired thugs. And many are the parents willing to provide the fund for the school “expo” operation or patronise the well – connected, special centres. Sometimes, the maneuvers assume a drama of hilarity. At a certain female secondary school, after a group of committed teachers thwarted a plot to ferry in answers to the exam hall, the boyfriends of the students took to the bush. This was a quiet rural area. And with a megaphone, they began to blast out the forbidden fruits. “Number 1, C. Number 2, A!…”

Where do we go from here? The fronts, the types of false living are increasing as much as the sophistication and daring behind them. We thought we had seen it all when the criminal art of advance fee fraud surfaced in the mid 1980s. From incredible tales of  foreigners duped roundly in phoney business deals, to the reality of impersonation before our very eyes. Imagine the audacity of a group of outsiders claiming attorney – power and selling someone else’s property! Another set, confidently posing as  agents of a powerful government department, fleeced off unsuspecting citizens of their money. It was not for nothing that the term “419” became the most bandied slang  in recent times, in Nigeria. But even at that height of deception, it was still a case of you ain’t seen nothing yet. Now, the job of swindling has been made respectable and easier. All it requires is a smart phone and mortgaged conscience. For those who lack the technical skills or prefer group approach, there are many “yahoo, yahoo” schools or clubs to join. Many youths are jumping on these fast  lanes. A single operation, such as a marriage scam targeting a rich, white lady, could bring in the first millions of naira. Hurray. And the hunting game continues. The drift continues mainly because the society does not interrogate, let alone seek to censure unexplained wealth. Nigeria must awaken to grapple with the rot eating underneath. It will take much more than a great leader to arrest the dysfunction  plaguing the country. Problems have greater chances of being tackled from the roots.