Preface
Corruption has several meanings and connotations to various people and cultures worldwide. Corruption Watch's definition of the hydra headed monster is the basis of focus of many poems in the anthology.
Corruption has many shades of activities such as, a business individual pays a bribe to a government official in order to be given a government contract or license; the use of government-owned resources, such as motor vehicles for private purposes; a government official takes advantage of his or her position to favour a family member or business associate for a job or tender contract- commonly called nepotism; and a police officer solicits a bribe or a member of the public offers one in order to escape lawful punishment.
In the light of the above, Corruption Watch, an anti-corruption body based in South Africa, defines corruption as 'the abuse of public resources or public power for personal gain.' This is a very common practice in the world but very predominant in most African countries such as Nigeria. There is no sphere of life that the virus of corruption is not found in the affairs of the country. Civil servants and politicians are the most legendary practitioners of corrupt acts as media reports revealed over the years. The practice has been endemic in the lifestyles of many public and private sectors' workers that the Nigerian government had set up some anti-corruption agencies such as the Independent Corrupt Practices Commission (ICPC) and Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), to checkmate the virus some years ago. But both agencies have been unable to frontally tackle the monster because partisan politics and selective investigation of perceived political opponents became the order of the day, which later made the two bodies' toothless bulldogs. Many politicians' are especially the most corrupt public servants in Nigeria. Many see politics as avenue to steal public funds. They go to any length to win elections through legal or illegal
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means, just to have access to public money for their personal pockets. Hence, politics is a do-or-die affair in the country for ages. Apart from public funds, major government owned property have been sold by various public office holders to themselves at the detriment of the masses.
The economy of the country has been perpetually plagued by woes that no economic experts have been able to find antidote for, despite very sound theories of recovery and stability propounded by some, said to be great technocrats in World Bank and other international financial institutions, who had one time or the other been members of various economic planning teams in Nigeria for decades. A fundamental question is, how can any economic policy succeed in the face of perennial corruption tackled with mere lip service? This is the reason no economic policy can revive any ailing economy like Nigeria's unless corruption is reduced to the barest level if it cannot be totally wiped out.
With the coming to power of President Muhammadu Buhari's administration May 29, 2015, and his promise to tackle corruption in the polity, many hitherto untouchable so-called powerful personalities who held the country to ransom by embezzling public funds have been exposed and more are still coming to light. Embezzlement of public funds involving a lot of personalities, such as the Dasukigate incidence brought to public awareness by the current administration, had never been heard of in the history of the country until now.
Many right thinking Nigerians such as Wole Soyinka, Nigeria's first Nobel laureate in Literature has been praising the courage of the Buhari-led administration for taking the bull by the horn to tackle corruption, and the monumental exposure of personalities' and corporate organisations involved in the embezzlement of funds meant for the purchase of arms for the Nigerian military forces fighting Boko Haram in the north-eastern region of the country, during the previous administration.
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The magnitude of money cornered by the people involved is so alarming that, many Nigerians including the poets whose works are in this anthology, are impressed by the Buhari's administration's stand against public officers practicing corruption over the years, which have been responsible for perpetual poverty among the populace. It is based on the general perception of many people in Nigeria and the global community, about the commendable move to tackle corruption head-on by Buhari, as a leading example for others to follow, that motivated the compilation of this anthology as a way of recognising his noteworthy anti-corruption effort, and likewise let the world know that not all Nigerians are bad or corrupt or criminally minded even though a handful have brought negative image to the reputation of the country over the years.
Poems in the collection are therefore replete with corruption and injustice themes. But there are some that dwell on other human issues. Every contributor of poems to the collection is entitled to his or her own views in a world of freedom of expression. Hence, it is left for readers to either appreciate or constructively criticize any piece they wish to.
In conclusion, the anthology brings to the fore various facets of corruption not hitherto taken seriously among many channels and practices of corruption in the Nigerian society, which the contributing poets hope will also be checkmated by every positive thinking person who want things to be rightly done in the country henceforth, to bring back Nigeria's lost glory. Long live those who sincerely support anti-corruption drive in Nigeria.
--- Adjekpagbon Blessed Mudiaga
Lagos, Nigeria.
February 21, 2016
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