AHEAD of the 2025 International Anti-Corruption Day, the Centre for Fiscal Transparency and Public Integrity on Monday, December 8, called on young Nigerians to take the frontline role in their country’s fight against corruption.
Speaking at the commemoration held in Abuja, the Executive Director of the Centre said the annual event, observed globally on December 9, serves as a reminder that corruption remains one of the biggest obstacles to development, public trust, and nation-building.
He cited United Nations figures estimating the global cost of corruption at $2.6 trillion yearly, noting that developing countries lost sums more than ten times higher than the aid they received.
He warned that traditional approaches to fighting corruption had reached their limits, adding that this year’s theme, “Uniting with Youth Against Corruption: Shaping Tomorrow’s Integrity,” was a deliberate call to harness the energy and digital capacity of young people.
He stressed that the next generation must be integrated into every anti-corruption framework because traditional approaches had proved inadequate.
He further challenged participants to deepen their engagement with public finance processes.
“How many people in this hall know the exact amount allocated to their Local Government Council by the Federation Account Allocation Committee (FAAC) last month? When was the last time you genuinely interrogated a public institution to verify whether it is accountable? How many of you have actually downloaded and scrutinised a budget implementation report of any public institution to verify if the projects listed on paper were actually executed on the ground? ” he asked.
He described citizens’ reluctance to demand transparency as dangerous, especially as public institutions continue to withhold key information.
He referenced the Centre’s Transparency and Integrity Index 2025, which revealed that only six public institutions scored above 50 percent in overall transparency.
“In September this year, we presented the Transparency and Integrity Index 2025, which measures public institutions’ levels of transparency in government dealings. Only six public institutions scored above 50 per cent on the overall transparency rating. This data confirms that the door to accountability is often locked from the inside, but it also reveals that very few citizens are knocking from the outside,” he added.
He reminded participants that corruption had direct consequences, such as dilapidated lecture halls when education funds are diverted, and weakened healthcare systems when budgets are mismanaged.
He said the Centre had developed new digital accountability tools and would be presenting one at the event. He urged participants to adopt and use it.
“Your generation possesses an innate command of technology, data, and digital communication that the older generation lacks. At the Center, we have spent years building the technological tools for accountability. Today, we will present a tool designed to arm you for this fight. I expect that you will adopt this tool for your advocacy,” he said.
Meanwhile, participants at the event shared their perspectives on how corruption affected their daily experiences and what must change.
A participant, Holly Mohanye, said addressing corruption must begin with mindset and values. “Change is a collective thing. We can start dealing with corruption by changing our mindset and setting values.’
Also, a corps member, Deborah, highlighted the “thin line between corruption and compromise,” adding that while some people accessed opportunities through privilege, others qualified but were denied.
She said in such cases, citizens should lodge complaints with human rights groups and insist on fairness.
Another corps member said government empowerment programmes must be understood not as privileges but as citizens’ right. She stressed that “the first step in fighting corruption is accountability,” warning that when governments are not held accountable, “mismanagement continues unchecked.”
She noted that in cases where empowerment lists exclude genuine beneficiaries, concerned citizens should write officially to demand redress.
“Corruption is a choice,” says PRIMORG ED
On his part, the Executive Director of the Progressive Impact Organisation for Community Development (PRIMORG), Augustine Agbonsuremi, told the participants that “corruption ultimately comes down to personal decisions”, adding that such decisions often carry consequences.
“There are things we must learn as young people. One is that corruption is a choice,” he said, stressing that “If you hear people say, ‘I didn’t have a choice,’ they are not being truthful. Corruption is a choice — the only difficulty is that some of the choices come with tough repercussions.”
He noted that refusing to pay bribes sometimes meant accepting delays or harassment, but the willingness to bear that inconvenience is the price of integrity.
“If you are going to stay out of corruption, you must be ready to pay the price. A policeman may delay you for hours, but that is where the choice lies — whether you give in or stand your ground.”
The event also featured a presentation of the Centre’s new anti-corruption tools, designed to support evidence-based advocacy and digital tracking of public spending.
Mustapha Usman is an investigative journalist with the International Centre for Investigative Reporting. You can easily reach him via: musman@icirnigeria.com. He tweets @UsmanMustapha_M