Lagos — A new nationwide corruption survey yesterday identified the Nigerian Police as the most corrupt organisation in the country, closely followed by the Power Holding Company of Nigeria (PHCN).

The survey results, which echoed a previous corruption finding in 2005, was released by the Independent Advocacy Project (IAP), a non-governmental organisation which focuses on good governance in Nigeria.

While the Police and PHCN were identified as the most corrupt organisations in the country, conversely the Federal Road Safety Commission (FRSC) and the Nigerian Railway Corporation (NRC) were described as the least corrupt organisations, in terms of bribe taking from the populace.

Unveiling the report contained in the Nigeria Corruption Index (NCI) 2007, Mr Babatunde Olugboji, Executive Director of IAP, said the rate of corruption has increased since 2005, despite efforts

by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to fight against the scourge.

Olugboji also charged Nigerians to step up a sustained fight against corruption, in order to make a headway in the struggle.

The 31-page survey also identified the Federal Ministry of Education and the Customs and Excise Department as the third and fourth most corrupt organisations.

Specifically, coruption in the Education Ministry was said to have increased the highest in the survey, from 63 per cent in 2005 to 74 per cent in 2007, as against 96 per cent to 99 per cent for the Police in the corresponding period.

Also, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), was the only new organisation identified as corrupt among the 16 organisations on a list which included JAMB, the Presidency, and the Nigerian National Petroleum Commission (NNPC).

The survey, which was based on responses from 2005 respondents drawn from Lagos, Abuja, Kano, and PortHarcourt, also revealed that the average amount of bribe paid yearly to the concerned corrupt organisations increased from N11,523.23 in 2005 to N17,292.64 in 2007.

It also identified corruption as one of the factors that drives the average Nigerian to the depths of despair, where 71 per cent of the sampled population claimed corruption has adversely affected their state of happiness.