Culture and corruption: a critical analysis of the basis of Nigerian depraved experience

Abstract

Evidently, the spate of corruption in Nigeria is worrisome. This is as it has defied every leadership strategy, and has continued to eat deep into the fabric of Nigerian society. But how and why did corruption get into the Nigerian society? This paper analytically investigates the basis of corruption in Nigeria, and proffers some panacea to the prevalent corrupt practices stunting every sustainable development. The study however finds that corruption is dependent on some cultural elements which enkindle and abet it. It again discovers that since culture is the matrix of human existence and nothing happens outside it, human corrupt practices stem from cultural systems. This is more so as corrupt practices are also understood and interpreted within cultural space. The paper concludes that corruption can be retrogressed when there is a positive review of those unwholesome cultural elements prevalent in diverse cultures of Nigeria which abet corruption. This review must also extend to the place of family, clan, community and tribe in the heart of every Nigerian.

Keywords: Corruption; Culture; Analysis; Deprave, Experience