Nigeria Must Stop Celebrating Stolen Wealth, Promote Integrity — Ex-Minister

Prof. Iyorwuese Hagher, a former Minister of State for Power and Steel, has called on Nigerians to abandon the culture of celebrating individuals with unexplained wealth, insisting that corruption must become socially unacceptable.

Hagher made the call on Tuesday in Abuja at the Verbatim Annual Ethics and Integrity Awards/Dinner, where 100 of the most integrity-compliant Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) and their chief executives were honoured.

He said Nigeria's fight against corruption requires more than laws, investigations and prosecutions, stressing the need to rebuild the nation's conscience and treat integrity as a shared moral responsibility. He argued that society must stop rewarding those who acquire wealth through questionable means and later use philanthropy to buy public recognition.

"It is wrong for people who allegedly stole public funds to gain honour through donations, scholarships, sponsorship of ceremonies and religious activities," he said, adding that generosity cannot erase injustice. According to him, a society that allows stolen wealth to purchase respect teaches young people that corruption is a legitimate path to success.

Hagher said corruption is not merely the theft of public funds but a failure to reckon with the human cost of diverting resources meant for essential services. "When money meant for healthcare is stolen, somebody may die because medicine is unavailable. When money meant for education is stolen, a child may study without books, without teachers, and without a safe house," he said, describing corruption as "violence committed through paperwork" that deprives citizens of healthcare, education, roads, security and other essential services.

He called for integrity to be taught in homes, schools, religious institutions, political parties, public institutions and professional bodies, stressing that leaders must demonstrate integrity through their actions and that public officials who uphold ethical standards should be recognised and celebrated.

"A thousand lectures on integrity cannot overcome a political culture that rewards corruption. Young people do not learn only from what we tell them; they learn from what they see us celebrate. Nigeria will begin to overcome corruption when integrity became honourable, corruption became culturally shameful and public office was regarded as an opportunity to serve rather than a means of personal enrichment. So, I urge Nigerians to embrace love as a moral principle in public life which must be expressed through truth, justice, responsibility, restraint, service and respect for human dignity," he said.

The former minister commended Verbatim News Magazine and the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) for recognising public institutions that demonstrate integrity.

Earlier, Dr Musa Aliyu, Chairman of the ICPC, represented by Mr Kayode Kupolati, a director at the commission, said integrity was essential to national development, institutional strength and economic prosperity, describing it as the foundation on which physical infrastructure and public institutions are built. He warned that corruption undermines both development and public trust.

"The commission's anti-corruption efforts goes beyond prosecution to include public education and the promotion of ethical conduct. Integrity ensures that public contracts are awarded based on competence rather than personal connections, while promoting efficiency and reducing the cost of doing business," he said.

Aliyu urged the media to stop glamorising wealth without questioning its source, and called on religious institutions and parents to promote ethical values, adding that every Nigerian has a responsibility to fight corruption by obeying the rules, speaking the truth and demanding accountability from public officials.

In his welcome address, Mr Tobs Agbaegbu, Publisher of Verbatim News Magazine, said the awards were designed to recognise excellence, integrity and responsible leadership in public service. He said the 100 honoured institutions and their chief executives were selected based on the ICPC's 2025 Ethics and Integrity Compliance Scorecard, with the commission providing technical guidance and validating the data while Verbatim retained editorial responsibility for documenting and communicating the achievements.

He said the awards are meant to encourage public institutions to sustain transparency, accountability, integrity and effective service delivery, and disclosed that the initiative would be expanded to cover ethics, transparency and responsible leadership across both the public and private sectors, including oil and gas, banking, politics and corporate governance. He added that the magazine would continue investigating institutional performance, recognising good practices and providing credible information to the public.

The Nigeria Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission, the Nigeria Deposit Insurance Corporation and the Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria emerged as the top three government institutions. The National Open University of Nigeria, the Federal University of Technology Owerri and the National Examination Council also received awards for outstanding performance.