In the Name of Allah, the Beneficent, the Merciful'And when it is said to them, 'Do not cause corruption on the earth', they say: 'We are indeed reformers!' Qur'an 2:11'The Almighty curses, the one who gives a bribe, the one who takes it and the mediator between the two.'- Hadith.SOMETIMES I wonder against what destiny is this country fashioned. Brethren, sometimes I wonder with what instrument can the destiny of this nation be re-constructed' Is the fault in our stars as citizens such that the image that the political elite and their facetious and odious compradors constantly construct of Nigeria and Nigerians is that of a country and people in a state of abyss' Brethren, it appears as if there is no end to these seasons of anomie; I thought that the air disaster of last week had signaled a catharsis and a closure to the era of psychosocial trauma that we have had to undergo in recent times.Brethren, little did I know that long before the tragedies of the air disaster, itself an effect the cause of which partly inhered in the insuperable odour of corruption in the administration of this country, two of my compatriots had been involved in a deal which would, once again, put Nigeria in the eye of the storm. Brethren, little did I know that Alhaji Lawan and Mr. Otedola had had cause to engage in the perfidious lucre of corruption; little did I know that the former had had cause to receive some money which he suspected was meant to pervert the noble cause of investigation into the ugly scam of petroleum subsidy from the latter who knew he was giving out a bribe.Brethren, when this news first broke out, I told my colleague on campus: 'I pray this news is not true; I pray Lawan is not involved in this story.' But my friend looked me straight in the eyes and said: 'Abuja is a city of possibilities; I won't be surprised if Lawan is involved and the speaker himself too. Until we have a thorough and complete change in the current political class, this country shall continue to lie comatose in the abyss of infamy.'Brethren, I found Lawan's reactions and pleadings so far very weak. I could not but wonder why he refused to bring this to the notice of the public immediately he was offered the bribe. I could not but pooh-pooh the argument that he wanted to avoid a situation where the report of the bribery would take the shine out of the probe into the subsidy programme on which he fore-grounded his integrity. Is it not true that he who enters the stream should not claim a phobia for water anymore'In the contemporary period, corruption has had a devastating effect on the process of social and economic development and the prospects of achieving sustainable development. In its anti-corruption overview, the World Bank indicates that corruption is among the greatest obstacles to economic and social development. Corruption offsets the rule of law and weakens institutional foundation on which the process of economic growth depends. It puts the poor at an even greater disadvantage, as they are the least capable of paying the extra costs associated with corruption- (World Bank, 2009).In the political realm, corruption undermines democracy and good governance by subverting governmental processes. During elections and in legislative activities such as the probe into the fuel subsidy scam, corruption usually intervenes to pervert the course of justice and accountability. Our Prophet says: 'Allah does not punish the individuals for the sins of the community until they see the evil spread among themselves and, while they have the power to stop it, do not do so.'A constant feature of corruption in governance is bribery. It is equally one of the worst economic practices according to Islamic law. Prophet Muhammad (s.a.w) categorically cursed three people who are involved in bribery: the bribe giver, the bribe-taker and the facilitator or witness. To give effect to Islamic abhorrence for bribery, our Prophet discouraged state officials from taking gifts from the 'common' and 'uncommon' men.A companion was once sent to collect the zakat, obligatory charity. When he was delivering the collected zakat fund he mentioned that a portion of the collection was given to him as a gift. Then the Prophet said: 'If you were sitting in the house of your father or your mother would any one give you that gift if you are really truthful'' Caliph Umar was reported to have sent the following message to all his governors: 'Beware of gifts because they form part of bribe.' These warnings were all premised on the following injunction from the Qur'an: 'Do not eat up one another's wealth for no good purpose, nor try to bribe authorities...'Brethren, the news of the offer and refusal of bribe between Alhaj Lawal and Mr. Otedola once again brings to the fore the evil effects of corruption in the Nigerian polity. It also reminds me of the wisdom in the saying of Prophet Muhammad that he who sees an evil thing should change it with his hands or speak against it. The refusal of Alhaji Lawan to speak at the right time against the offer of bribery has achieved the goal of the bribe-giver: it has cast shadows on the catholicity of the report and findings of the probe panel. It has equally positioned the honourable not as a plaintiff anymore but a defendant.Brethren, when we see or hear an evil and maintain a culpable silence, our circumstance becomes like that person who sows the wind: the person who sows the wind would surely reap the whirlwind. Such appears to be the circumstance of one of the air-hostesses in the Dana plane, which crash-landed last week. Reports have it that she was once told by a passenger on the plane that the aircraft was leaking during one of its trips round the country. Instead of reporting the complaint to those who mattered, the complainant was 'settled' right inside the plane by the hostess: he was given double ration of what other passengers got. While the complainant probably got lucky, the hostess was said to be on the same plane that crashed last week!Brethren, I have no doubt in my mind that corruption is as worse as prostitution. Both endanger the morals of the individual and the society silently and gradually; both have the greatest potentials of destroying generations yet unborn if not confronted. The prostitute, like the corrupt politician and businessman, purport to be involved in personal affairs. They often forget that their action is like a stone thrown in the stream. Whereas the stone might disappear to the bottom of the stream, the perceptible onlooker would discover that a ripple would form at the point of contact between the stone and the water of the stream. The ripple would then become two, three and four until it covers the entire surface of the stream. Such is the grim negativities of every act of corruption; such is the space of terror that every act corruption leaves behind.(guardianfridayworship@gmail.com)
Click here to read full news..
