Of Corruption, Snakes, Monkeys And Termites

The spread of corruptive influence, so pervasive, if not legendary, in Nigeria, is not just limited to humans as the disclosure by the Nigerian Social Insurance Trust Fund (NSITF) has proved. That agency of government, established to provide a defined scheme through social insurance method for employees in the private and public sector, by its own public acknowledgement, is providing that service in reverse.

It is a social insurance targeted at protecting employees or their families from financial difficulties in the event of death or permanent incapacitation as a result of work-related disease or injury. Unfortunately, it is departing from that noble intention of government and indulging itself in avoidable malfeasance. Recently, NSITF, remorselessly, announced to a bewildered nation, during a session on the floor of the National Assembly, that termites ate vouchers covering an expenditure of, wait for it, N17.158 billion.

A commentator on the laughable claim averred that the voucher covering such massive transaction must be sizeable, and termites that ate them up within a span of under 10 years deserve a place in the Guinness World Book of Records! We agree.

Coming months after one top government official, the Accountant General of the Federation, was alleged to be unable to account for over N104 billion put in his care, the average Nigerian, mired in the challenges of daily living, feel short-changed by public officers engaged to service and protect their interest.
It is pertinent to recall that NSITF is not the first public institution to come up with this embarrassing disclosure that is aimed at explaining the misappropriation of public funds. On a number of occasions, the nation has been apprised about the participation of animals in the despicable game of corruption that is killing the country by instalment.
The Joint Admission and Matriculation Board (JAMB), in 2018, had announced to Nigerians that snakes made away with N36 million belonging to it. As if that was not funny enough, the Northern Senators Forum, not too long after, claimed that N70 million belonging to it was swallowed by monkeys in the farm of one of its prominent members in Nasarawa state.
But the curious dimension to the case of NSITF is that a 2018 audit report claimed that the total amount of money involved was actually transferred by the Fund from its Skye and First Bank accounts into various untraceable accounts likely belonging to companies and individuals. The sleaze was traced back to between January and December of 2013.
The audit report on this matter insisted that the transactions were a violation of the financial rules. That is too obvious to be restated. The question is, what actions must follow this despicable infraction. Already, what is happening is a blame game between the current management of the Fund and the past administrations of NSITF.
We refuse to accept any argument that will suggest that this is one of those cases that are statute barred. Which means that after a certain number of years, they are allowed to die a natural death. The report covers a period starting from 2013 till date. It is our considered opinion that management of the Fund from that date, that is 2013, should be made to give account of their stewardship. Those termites alleged to have tampered with the accounting processes that involved the destruction of records should be invited to testify.
This newspaper is worried by all these stories of fraud and corruption that are perpetrated by the high and mighty in the society. Even more disturbing, in our opinion, is the relative ease with which the culprits get away with these acts that, in more saner climes, carry the death penalty.
It is immensely sad, in our view, that these reports of missing money and animals getting involved in accounting processes, are thrust into the open in an administration that came into office on a moral high ground with a pledge to root out corruption in all its manifestations.
In the case of the Accountant General, he is reported to have been granted bail by the court. Also, speculations are rife that a plea bargain is on the offing which may grant him a soft landing with his loot literally intact. The JAMB snake was never captured as it disappeared with the money in question. Of course, the Senators’ money and the monkey have since been forgotten as the culprit has been rewarded with a visible high public office.
But the NSITF scam must not be allowed to be swept under the carpet for the simple reason that workers are directly involved. For some of them, this fund is their last line of defence. We, therefore, urge the Senate and the government as a whole to get to the bottom of the matter. All those who played whatever role and at whatever stage must be made to explain themselves and the money recovered. Those who deserve jail terms for this crime must not be spared. By all means, justice must be seen to have been done. At least to assuage the hurt the suffering workers feel.