WHEN CONDEMNATION MEETS COMPLICITY: A NIGERIAN REALITY

When Condemnation Meets Complicity: A Nigerian Reality.
A close friend, an accountant, recently secured an auditing contract for a company under a tight deadline. He urgently enlisted my help to expedite the process. To our dismay, we uncovered staggering unethical practices not within a government agency or political circle, but among ordinary employees entrusted with the company’s operations. 

This experience reminded me of a conversation I once had with a Deputy Governor. He spoke fervently about eradicating corruption, his words dripping with conviction. Yet, days after leaving his office, I found myself pondering: Who exactly is “corruption” if everyone condemns it, yet it metastasizes relentlessly in our society?

The harsh truth is this; the “goodness” we claim often hinges on a lack of opportunity. Many Nigerians vocally denounce corruption while quietly perpetuating it. Our roads are blocked every Friday and Sunday for overflowing religious gatherings, yet our workplaces, homes, and institutions remain breeding grounds for greed. 

As a Nigerian entrepreneur, you cannot hire “trusted” compatriots and expect peace. Leave them unsupervised, and your business risks collapse. In fact, some of the nation’s largest companies survive only by outsourcing critical roles to Lebanese and Indian nationals not out of preference, but necessity. 

Corruption is not confined to politics. It thrives in civil service offices, private sector boardrooms, and even religious institutions. We wear morality as a public costume, but our actions reveal a different heart. We’ve replaced integrity with instant gratification, trading honest labor for shortcuts, and genuine appreciation for transactional “appreciation” (read; bribes). 

Our collective hypocrisy is eroding the foundation of this nation. We lament the state of Nigeria while fueling its decline prioritizing personal gain over communal progress. The “good person” is often just someone awaiting their turn to exploit the system. 

If we truly desire change, we must move beyond performative outrage. Let us confront the culture of impunity in our daily choices: reject that inflated invoice, decline the shortcut, and hold ourselves accountable. Until then, our sermons and slogans will remain empty echoes in a society we’re all complicit in destroying.

Until the moment when will shall dance in white Greater Grace.

Oyugbo Osagie Jonah