Abuja — The global anti-graft watchdog Transparency International (TI) recently released its Corruption Perception Index report for 2009 which gave a less than cheering news about Nigeria.

It indicated that the country slipped from its previous position of the 112th of the most corrupt nations to 130th, out of the 180 countries surveyed. Rather than receding, as the report seems to suggest, the reality is that corruption is becoming more pervasive in the country. The campaigns by successive administrations in recent times against corruption do not amount to much. We have a long way to go in the effort to stem problem.

There is no doubt that TI's damning assessment reflects what is going on in Nigeria. It is not just a matter of perception; corruption has contributed to the underdevelopment of the nation and its people. Evidence of it abounds everywhere. No institution of government and other spheres of life seem immune from its effects. It is manifested in virtually every aspect of life.

The reaction by the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Mr Michael Aoondoakaa to the TI report, to the effect that this administration had tamed corruption in the public sector, and that it was probably the recent scams in the banking sector that must have influenced the deteriorated rating of Nigeria, is both specious and misleading. The TI report covers the period prior to the uncovering of the bank scams.

It serves no useful purpose for government officials to express 'patriotic' surprise and outrage at TI's verdict. What we expected is an admission that current effort has failed, and sincere and more robust war against the monster called corruption will be waged. This is because corruption is the single most important factor that we have been making so much motion without any appreciable movement. It is the explanation for why nearly fifty years after independence, we can not generate 3,000 megawatts of electricity to power our economy of i50 million Nigerians, when trillions of naira have allegedly been spent on the power sector; why basic amenities cannot be provided to the citizens; why institutions and agencies that are designed to function as checks and balances do not carry out their duties efficiently and effectively, and why even our schools do not work to prepare our children in the task of nation-building. It also explains why, for instance, that spite of the creation of the Due Process Office now Bureau for Public Procurement most of our contracts are still outrageously over-inflated, the result of conspiracy of public officials and businessmen.

Clearly, in spite of the grandiose programmes to fight the scourge over the years, what has been lacking is the political will to sustain and enforce them. For sure, some big names have been prosecuted for corruption but efforts to fight this cankerworm have largely been seen by both citizens and outsiders as half-hearted and selective, often to serve certain interests. The anti-corruption agencies should be backed up with the necessary political will to step up the fight by doing more to bring to book those engaged in corrupt practices. Nigeria's aspiration to be one of the most economically developed nations in the next 11 years will be mere pipedream if the will to fight corruption is lacking in those in position to fight corruption in all its ramifications.

As the chair of Transparency International, Huguette Labelle, noted during the presentation of the CPI report for this year, "Stemming corruption requires strong oversight by parliaments, a well performing judiciary, independent and properly resourced audit and anti-corruption agencies, vigorous law enforcement, transparency in public budgets, revenue and aid flows as well as space for independent media and a vibrant civil society". We concur.