The U.S. Consulate and the Inter-Religious Coalition Against Corruption in Nigeria (ICACN) on Friday launched a joint online campaign to aid the fight against corruption in Nigeria.



Claire Pierangelo, U.S. Consul General in Lagos, said at the launch that corruption could be likened to a virus which knew no boundaries nor cared about religion.

According to her, corruption inherently destroys efforts to advance good governance and build strong democratic institutions.

She urged Nigerians to demonstrate commitment to the fight against corruption by making use of the innovative online platform which sought to address the daily instances of corruption faced by millions of citizens.
“This Reporting Site – reportmagomago.com, complements ongoing counter corruption efforts within the Federal Government among traditional communities and from civil society.

“The way for countries to advance is to attack corruptio which is a corrosive element at the basis of our society, and then spreads through our governments.

“We all know that growth and development, consistent with the richness and strength of Nigeria, depend on a new narrative and culture where corruption has no place,” Pierangelo said.

The Co-coordinator of ICACN, Bishop Emmanuel Isong, emphasised that corruption had eaten deep into the religious, social and academic fabrics of the society, adding that another name for the menace was “sin”.

Isong said that tradition, ethnicity and religion were major twisters of corrupt practices.
This, he said, birthed the engagement with the U.S. Consulate in Lagos.

“Corruption spans from the home to schools and even government quarters. Some ask, is it Nigerians that are corrupt or the system?

“Is it the students that are corrupt or the academic system and are we too weak and sometimes complacent in facing corrupt practices?

“These questions continue to arise and I believe that corruption should not be fought only by stipulated agencies but also spiritually by religious leaders in messages and teachings,” Isong said.

Also, Imam Shefiu Majemu, Co-coordinator of the group, highlighted the importance of ensuring that Nigerians understood the dangers and negative implications of corruption.
“Most people are being coerced into silence but this platform has been created to help them speak up and report acts of corruption,” he said.

NAN also reports that during the launch, a guided demonstration of the website was carried out by its developer, Dr Kazeem Durodoye, Chief Executive Officer, Zeemak Hybrid Solutions.

Durodoye said the website had the ability to enable witnesses take action immediately, report to the platform owners who would then escalate such to the appropriate law enforcement agents.

He added that the portal had a segment where “anti-corruption” idols could be nominated to serve as persons worthy of emulation.

“Beyond the portal, we will proceed to develop a mobile app which all Nigerians can have easy access to.

“Phase two of this project will have features including the ability to search cases of corruption, track the status of cases and generate and filter the performance level.”

Durodoye urged religious leaders to remind their congregation to use the portal at the end of each service, adding that with collaboration, there would be a higher success rate.