How Corruption Is Plunging Nigerians Further Into Poverty — SERAP

A new report by the Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability
Project (SERAP) has revealed how “widespread and systemic
corruption in ministries, departments and agencies (MDAs)
especially in the education, health and water sectors
are plunging millions of Nigerians further into
poverty.”

According to the report, “Budget fraud, procurement fraud,
embezzlement of funds among other illegal actions, lead to failure
in the delivery of services including education, water and health.
People living in poor neighbourhoods have suffered so much that
they consider poor service delivery as being good enough.”

The 61 pages report launched today at the Radisson Blu Hotel,
Ikeja, Lagos, is titled: The Ignored Pandemic: How
Corruption in the Health, Education and Water Sectors is Plunging
Nigerians further into Poverty. The report presented
to the media by Dr. Elijah Okebukola, discloses that “61%
of people living in poor neighbourhoods ranged between having no
formal education and senior secondary education.”

The report shows that, “Corruption contributes to poverty and
consequential suffering of people living in poor neighbourhoods.
57.30% of people living in poor neighbourhoods were youth of
between 18 and 35 years old. Poor people are victims and not
perpetrators of corruption in the health, education and water
sectors.”

According to the report, “Many of the 36 states in Nigeria have
no documented policies for helping people living in poverty or
people earning low income to have access to health, education and
water. Even if these policies existed, they were not known to the
public officers who serve the people living in poor
neighbourhoods.”

The report urges President Muhammadu Buhari to “promptly propose
an executive bill to amend the Nigerian Constitution of 1999 [as
amended] to recognize Nigerians’ socio-economic rights, including
the rights to an adequate standard of living, education, quality
healthcare, and clean water as legally enforceable human
rights”

The report also urges the Buhari administration to “ratify the
Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Economic, Social
and Cultural Rights, which allows individuals and groups whose
socio-economic rights are violated to access international
accountability mechanism in the form of the Committee on Economic,
Social and Cultural Rights.”

Among the people who attended the report launch are: Mr. Ibrahim
Yusuf, Permanent Secretary, Office of the Head of Service of the
Federation; Agugro R.I., Office of the Secretary to the Government
of the Federation; and Mrs Veronica Agugu, Permanent
Secretary, Political and Economic Affairs, Office of the Secretary
to the Government of the Federation.

The report launch was also attended by Professor Akin Oyebode;
Femi Falana, SAN; Dr. Oby Ezekwesili; Ms Funmi Iyanda; Sina
Fagbenro; Hamza Lawal; Ade Adam, the Independent Corrupt
Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC); Dr Ifeyemi
Adeniran, Lagos State Ministry of Health; Ibeh Ikem, the Universal
Basic Education Commission (UBEC), and Dr Oyetola, Lagos State
Ministry of Education.

Others are: Dasuki Ibrahim Arabi, Director-General, Bureau of
Public Service Reforms (BPSR); Waheed Ishola, Director, Director at
National Orientation Agency; Adelaja Oodukoya, Academic Staff Union
of Universities (ASUU); Olayinla Oyeyemi, National Agency for Food
and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC); Adebusiyi Isaac,
United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC); and Dr Francis
Ojie, National Institute for Legislative and Democratic
Studies.

All the participants expressed commitment to ensure the full
implementation of the recommendations contained in the report.

The report, read in part: “93.20% of people living in poor
neighbourhoods were younger than 60 years old. People living in
poverty were mostly self-employed (57.20%) or unemployed (20.10%)
and were living in extreme poverty. Those who were unemployed
outnumbered the combined number of those who worked for the
government (8.30%) and private sector (7.20%).”

“48.90% of people living in poverty, that is, more than
27,453,154 (twenty-seven million, four hundred and fifty-three
thousand, one hundred and fifty-four) earned less than 100 thousand
Naira per annum. 27.9 per cent, that is more than 15,663,456
(fifteen million, six hundred and sixty-three thousand, four
hundred and fifty-six) earned between 100 and 200 thousand Naira
per annum.”

“10.70% earned between 201 and 300 thousand Naira per annum.
12.50% earned more than 300 Naira per annum. 65% of people living
in poor neighbourhoods stayed in either one-bedroom or two-bedroom
accommodation. Up to 4% of people living in poverty, that is, about
2,245,657 (two million, two hundred and forty-five thousand, six
hundred and fifty-seven) had physical disabilities.”

“Crowded living conditions heightened the need for water. Only
19% of people living in poor neighbourhoods got water from
governmental providers. Majority of poor people who received water
from the governmental providers were satisfied with the quality of
water they got.”

“79% of people living in poverty, that is more than 44,351,722
(forty-four million, three hundred and fifty-one thousand, seven
hundred and twenty-two), did not get water from the governmental
public water provider. 50.14% of people living in poverty, that is,
22,237,953 (twenty-two million, two hundred and thirty-seven
thousand, nine hundred and fifty-three) people relied on personal
wells or boreholes for water supply.”

“23.96%, that is more than 10,626,673 (ten million, six hundred
and twenty-six thousand, six hundred and seventy-three) of people
living in poverty got water from streams or rivers; 10.51% got
water from neighbours’ houses; and 1.54% received water from other
sources.”

“54% of respondents who had access to water from a governmental
source did not pay to connect their residences to a public water
source. 93% of respondents that paid for connection to a public
source water provider, made their payments in cash. Despite the
absence/inadequacy of learning tools, infrastructure and other
relevant resources, people living in poor neighbourhoods believed
that good quality education was provided in their schools.”

“About 34% of people living in poverty, that is, about
19,088,083 (nineteen million, eighty-eight thousand, and
eighty-three) did not use governmental medical facilities at all.
5.2% of people living in poverty, that is, more than 2,919,354 (two
million, nine hundred and nineteen thousand, three hundred and
fifty-four), who went to governmental medical facilities, were
denied medical treatment in the last one year.”

“52% of the people living in poverty who were denied treatment
at governmental medical facilities, that is, more than 1,518,064
(one million, five-hundred and eighteen thousand, and sixty-four),
were turned away because of inability to pay for treatment.”

“39% of the people living in poverty who were denied treatment
at medical facilities, that is more than 1,138,548 (one million,
one hundred and thirty-eight thousand, five hundred and
forty-eight), were turned away because of the lack of equipment or
bed-space.”

“Only 4.20%, that is, about 2,357,940 (two million, three
hundred and fifty-seven thousand, nine hundred and forty) of people
living in poverty, had received any direct poverty alleviation
donation or support from the government in the past one year. 81%
of people living in poor neighbourhoods believed that those who
held top public office had better access to education, water and
health.”

“92.60%, 93.80% and 94.30% believed that they would have had
better access to education, water and health respectively if they
had a higher income. Among people living in poverty, 28.10%, 29.30%
and 31.70% did not believe that things would get better in the next
one year while 51.20%, 48.90% and 46.80% believed the situation
would be better in terms of access to health, education and water
respectively.”

“The survey adopted a mixed-method approach, combining
quantitative and qualitative research methods. The assessment
covered the six geopolitical zones of the country and relying on
data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), the States with
the highest and lowest population of people living in poverty were
selected from each geopolitical zone.”

“President Buhari should widely publish the criteria for
eligibility for the National Social Register of Poor and Vulnerable
Households, cash transfers and other social assistance programmes,
and work with community-based organizations and civil society
groups to disseminate information to urban poor communities about
how to be part of these programmes.”

“President Buhari should increase investment in public health,
the healthcare system, education services, provision of clean water
and other basic public goods and services that will benefit
majority of the population.”

“President Buhari should re-direct budgetary allocations to
renovate the National Assembly complex and take urgent steps to
ensure that essential public goods and services are available to
poor and vulnerable Nigerians, including women, children, persons
with disabilities, and older persons.”

“The leadership of the National Assembly should promptly
initiate bill to amend the Nigerian Constitution of 1999 [as
amended] to recognize Nigerians’ socio-economic rights, including
the rights to an adequate standard of living, education, quality
healthcare, and clean water as legally enforceable human
rights.”

“The leadership of the National Assembly should ensure that the
relevant parliamentary committees collaborate to initiate
independent public enquiries and fact-finding on how public funds
have been spent on education, healthcare and water since the return
of democracy in 1999 and look into allegations/Reports of
mismanagement, misuse or diversion of public of funds.”

“The leadership of the National Assembly should make public the
findings of any such investigations or inquiries by the relevant
parliamentary committees on the use of public funds meant for
provision of public goods and services such as education,
healthcare, and water.”

“The leadership of the National Assembly should make public all
Reports of investigations into allegations of corruption in MDAs
including in the education, health and water sectors, and send any
such Reports to appropriate anti-corruption agencies for further
investigation and prosecution.”

A new report by the Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability
Project (SERAP) has revealed how “widespread and systemic
corruption in ministries, departments and agencies (MDAs)
especially in the education, health and water sectors
are plunging millions of Nigerians further into
poverty.”

According to the report, “Budget fraud, procurement fraud,
embezzlement of funds among other illegal actions, lead to failure
in the delivery of services including education, water and health.
People living in poor neighbourhoods have suffered so much that
they consider poor service delivery as being good enough.”

The 61 pages report launched today at the Radisson Blu Hotel,
Ikeja, Lagos, is titled: The Ignored Pandemic: How
Corruption in the Health, Education and Water Sectors is Plunging
Nigerians further into Poverty. The report presented
to the media by Dr. Elijah Okebukola, discloses that “61%
of people living in poor neighbourhoods ranged between having no
formal education and senior secondary education.”

The report shows that, “Corruption contributes to poverty and
consequential suffering of people living in poor neighbourhoods.
57.30% of people living in poor neighbourhoods were youth of
between 18 and 35 years old. Poor people are victims and not
perpetrators of corruption in the health, education and water
sectors.”

According to the report, “Many of the 36 states in Nigeria have
no documented policies for helping people living in poverty or
people earning low income to have access to health, education and
water. Even if these policies existed, they were not known to the
public officers who serve the people living in poor
neighbourhoods.”

The report urges President Muhammadu Buhari to “promptly propose
an executive bill to amend the Nigerian Constitution of 1999 [as
amended] to recognize Nigerians’ socio-economic rights, including
the rights to an adequate standard of living, education, quality
healthcare, and clean water as legally enforceable human
rights”

The report also urges the Buhari administration to “ratify the
Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Economic, Social
and Cultural Rights, which allows individuals and groups whose
socio-economic rights are violated to access international
accountability mechanism in the form of the Committee on Economic,
Social and Cultural Rights.”

Among the people who attended the report launch are: Mr. Ibrahim
Yusuf, Permanent Secretary, Office of the Head of Service of the
Federation; Agugro R.I., Office of the Secretary to the Government
of the Federation; and Mrs Veronica Agugu, Permanent
Secretary, Political and Economic Affairs, Office of the Secretary
to the Government of the Federation.

The report launch was also attended by Professor Akin Oyebode;
Femi Falana, SAN; Dr. Oby Ezekwesili; Ms Funmi Iyanda; Sina
Fagbenro; Hamza Lawal; Ade Adam, the Independent Corrupt
Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC); Dr Ifeyemi
Adeniran, Lagos State Ministry of Health; Ibeh Ikem, the Universal
Basic Education Commission (UBEC), and Dr Oyetola, Lagos State
Ministry of Education.

Others are: Dasuki Ibrahim Arabi, Director-General, Bureau of
Public Service Reforms (BPSR); Waheed Ishola, Director, Director at
National Orientation Agency; Adelaja Oodukoya, Academic Staff Union
of Universities (ASUU); Olayinla Oyeyemi, National Agency for Food
and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC); Adebusiyi Isaac,
United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC); and Dr Francis
Ojie, National Institute for Legislative and Democratic
Studies.

All the participants expressed commitment to ensure the full
implementation of the recommendations contained in the report.

The report, read in part: “93.20% of people living in poor
neighbourhoods were younger than 60 years old. People living in
poverty were mostly self-employed (57.20%) or unemployed (20.10%)
and were living in extreme poverty. Those who were unemployed
outnumbered the combined number of those who worked for the
government (8.30%) and private sector (7.20%).”

“48.90% of people living in poverty, that is, more than
27,453,154 (twenty-seven million, four hundred and fifty-three
thousand, one hundred and fifty-four) earned less than 100 thousand
Naira per annum. 27.9 per cent, that is more than 15,663,456
(fifteen million, six hundred and sixty-three thousand, four
hundred and fifty-six) earned between 100 and 200 thousand Naira
per annum.”

“10.70% earned between 201 and 300 thousand Naira per annum.
12.50% earned more than 300 Naira per annum. 65% of people living
in poor neighbourhoods stayed in either one-bedroom or two-bedroom
accommodation. Up to 4% of people living in poverty, that is, about
2,245,657 (two million, two hundred and forty-five thousand, six
hundred and fifty-seven) had physical disabilities.”

“Crowded living conditions heightened the need for water. Only
19% of people living in poor neighbourhoods got water from
governmental providers. Majority of poor people who received water
from the governmental providers were satisfied with the quality of
water they got.”

“79% of people living in poverty, that is more than 44,351,722
(forty-four million, three hundred and fifty-one thousand, seven
hundred and twenty-two), did not get water from the governmental
public water provider. 50.14% of people living in poverty, that is,
22,237,953 (twenty-two million, two hundred and thirty-seven
thousand, nine hundred and fifty-three) people relied on personal
wells or boreholes for water supply.”

“23.96%, that is more than 10,626,673 (ten million, six hundred
and twenty-six thousand, six hundred and seventy-three) of people
living in poverty got water from streams or rivers; 10.51% got
water from neighbours’ houses; and 1.54% received water from other
sources.”

“54% of respondents who had access to water from a governmental
source did not pay to connect their residences to a public water
source. 93% of respondents that paid for connection to a public
source water provider, made their payments in cash. Despite the
absence/inadequacy of learning tools, infrastructure and other
relevant resources, people living in poor neighbourhoods believed
that good quality education was provided in their schools.”

“About 34% of people living in poverty, that is, about
19,088,083 (nineteen million, eighty-eight thousand, and
eighty-three) did not use governmental medical facilities at all.
5.2% of people living in poverty, that is, more than 2,919,354 (two
million, nine hundred and nineteen thousand, three hundred and
fifty-four), who went to governmental medical facilities, were
denied medical treatment in the last one year.”

“52% of the people living in poverty who were denied treatment
at governmental medical facilities, that is, more than 1,518,064
(one million, five-hundred and eighteen thousand, and sixty-four),
were turned away because of inability to pay for treatment.”

“39% of the people living in poverty who were denied treatment
at medical facilities, that is more than 1,138,548 (one million,
one hundred and thirty-eight thousand, five hundred and
forty-eight), were turned away because of the lack of equipment or
bed-space.”

“Only 4.20%, that is, about 2,357,940 (two million, three
hundred and fifty-seven thousand, nine hundred and forty) of people
living in poverty, had received any direct poverty alleviation
donation or support from the government in the past one year. 81%
of people living in poor neighbourhoods believed that those who
held top public office had better access to education, water and
health.”

“92.60%, 93.80% and 94.30% believed that they would have had
better access to education, water and health respectively if they
had a higher income. Among people living in poverty, 28.10%, 29.30%
and 31.70% did not believe that things would get better in the next
one year while 51.20%, 48.90% and 46.80% believed the situation
would be better in terms of access to health, education and water
respectively.”

“The survey adopted a mixed-method approach, combining
quantitative and qualitative research methods. The assessment
covered the six geopolitical zones of the country and relying on
data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), the States with
the highest and lowest population of people living in poverty were
selected from each geopolitical zone.”

“President Buhari should widely publish the criteria for
eligibility for the National Social Register of Poor and Vulnerable
Households, cash transfers and other social assistance programmes,
and work with community-based organizations and civil society
groups to disseminate information to urban poor communities about
how to be part of these programmes.”

“President Buhari should increase investment in public health,
the healthcare system, education services, provision of clean water
and other basic public goods and services that will benefit
majority of the population.”

“President Buhari should re-direct budgetary allocations to
renovate the National Assembly complex and take urgent steps to
ensure that essential public goods and services are available to
poor and vulnerable Nigerians, including women, children, persons
with disabilities, and older persons.”

“The leadership of the National Assembly should promptly
initiate bill to amend the Nigerian Constitution of 1999 [as
amended] to recognize Nigerians’ socio-economic rights, including
the rights to an adequate standard of living, education, quality
healthcare, and clean water as legally enforceable human
rights.”

“The leadership of the National Assembly should ensure that the
relevant parliamentary committees collaborate to initiate
independent public enquiries and fact-finding on how public funds
have been spent on education, healthcare and water since the return
of democracy in 1999 and look into allegations/Reports of
mismanagement, misuse or diversion of public of funds.”

“The leadership of the National Assembly should make public the
findings of any such investigations or inquiries by the relevant
parliamentary committees on the use of public funds meant for
provision of public goods and services such as education,
healthcare, and water.”

“The leadership of the National Assembly should make public all
Reports of investigations into allegations of corruption in MDAs
including in the education, health and water sectors, and send any
such Reports to appropriate anti-corruption agencies for further
investigation and prosecution.”