Nigeria: Government must defend rule of law and prosecute officials who commit fraud

The recent conviction of a rich and powerful Nigerian politician in a UK court for laundering stolen assets and news that Nigerian lawmakers are studying the elimination of its two main corruption-fighting commissions has left many members in the mighty West African country’s civil society with mixed feelings. On one hand it’s good to see politicians fully prosecuted for corruption. But reducing government anti-corruption forces in a country ranked 143 out of 183 in the 2011 Transparency International Corruption Perceptions Index is not a good idea. Allafrica.com ran an opinion article from Transparency International about Nigeria on 5 April about how prosecutions for corruption in Nigeria often stumble and calls for the government to commit to upholding the rule of law. Read more