The 2021 corruption perception index published by Transparency International (TI) on Tuesday January 25, saw Nigeria drop 5 places.
While Nigeria scored 25 out of 100 points and ranked 149 out of the 180 countries surveyed in 2020, it scored 24 out of 100 points and ranked 154 out of 180 countries in 2021.
The new ranking is reportedly the worst under the administration of President Muhammadu Buhari. In 2015, Nigeria was ranked 136th; 136th in 2016; 148th in 2017; 144th in 2018; 146th in 2019, and 149th in 2020.
The Civil Society Legislative Advocacy Centre (CISLAC), the national chapter of Transparency International (TI), said the CPI aggregates data from eight different sources that provide perceptions by experts and business people on the level of corruption in the public sector.
The seven weaknesses observed in Nigeria are;
1. Damning audit report.
2. Security sector corruption.
3.Failure to investigate high profile corruption cases and prevent
Illicit financial flows (IFFs).
4. Absence of asset recovery, protection of whistle-blowers and other key anti-corruption legal frameworks.
5. Judicial challenges.
6. Corruption in the COVID-19 response.
7. Twitter ban, shrinking civic space and intimidation of human rights defenders.
It was also noted that the index does not show specific incidents of corruption in the country but the perception of corruption.
