By Isaac Aregbesola
The Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) says Nigeria will only defeat corruption by raising an ethical generation.
The ICPC said that prevention through education was more critical than arrests after the fact.
Its Chairman, Dr Musa Aliyu, said this at a public lecture to mark the 2026 Africa Anti-Corruption Day on Thursday at the Yakubu Gowon University, formerly University of Abuja.
The lecture had the theme, “Breaking The Cycle Of Entrenched Corruption Through The Upcoming Generation: A Strategic Mandate And The Critical Role Of Citizens”.
It was organised by the African Initiative Against Corruption and Examination Malpractice (AFISEM) in collaboration with the Yakubu Gowon University and supported by ICPC.
Aliyu, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), who was represented by Demola Bakare, Director of Public Education, said Nigeria could not continue treating corruption symptoms while ignoring the root causes that reproduce it in every generation.
“Fighting corruption should not simply mean arresting offenders after the damage is done. Our greater challenge is preventing it by raising citizens who reject it,” he said.
According to him, over 50 per cent of Nigerians are young people, and the values they learn today will shape the institutions they will lead tomorrow.
Aliyu listed bribery, examination malpractice, contract inflation, nepotism and diversion of public funds as acts that have weakened schools, healthcare and infrastructure.
He said that every corrupt act translated directly into fewer jobs, poorer services and lost opportunities for ordinary Nigerians.
He urged universities, polytechnics and secondary schools to prioritise character formation alongside academic excellence through civic and ethics education.
“Educational institutions should produce responsible citizens. Success without integrity ultimately impoverishes society,” the ICPC boss said.
Aliyu also tasked parents, religious leaders and traditional rulers with modeling honesty, saying children become what they consistently observe, not what they are told.
He urged faith communities and traditional institutions to promote justice and accountability beyond worship places and palaces into public life.
On technology, Aliyu said Nigeria’s innovative youth could use digital tools for transparency, but warned that innovation without integrity could fuel fraud and cybercrime.
He said that citizens must also play their part by refusing bribes, paying taxes honestly, protecting public property and demanding accountability from leaders.
“Nigeria’s greatest resource is not oil or gas. It is the character of our people, especially our youth. If we invest in them, we can finally break the cycle,” he said.
The Vice Chancellor of the university, Prof. Hakeem Fawehinmi, in his address of welcome, said building integrity in schools was critical to Nigeria’s national development and transformation.
Represented by the Deputy Vice Chancellor, Administration, Prof. Mohammed Ndagi, Fawehinmi said while public attention often focused on financial and political corruption, academic corruption was equally destructive to the nation.
“When standards are lowered, when examination malpractice and plagiarism are tolerated, when admission and recruitment are compromised, the credibility of our institutions is weakened,” he said.
He said that society ultimately paid the price when universities graduated students with knowledge but without character.
“Universities are established, not only to produce graduates, but also to mould the character of those who pass through them,” he said.
He said institutions must be measured by their ability to produce young people who are worthy in both knowledge and character.
According to him, the university is committed to promoting honesty, accountability, transparency, moral discipline and responsible leadership among staff and students.
“We believe integrity should not just be discussed in lecture halls. It must be reflected in the daily life of our institutions,” he said.
The President of AfiCEM, Francis Abioye, said the mission of the organisation was to propagate anti-corruption culture across, Nigeria’s schools.
Abioye said that the goal was to raise anti- corruption clubs and volunteers in all sectors of society through dynamic lectures and campaigns.
According to him, Nigeria has long grappled with the twin crises of corruption and examination malpractices, which erode integrity, and devalue education.
He said that AfiCEM was founded directly to change the narrative by working actively with ICPC and maintaining the grassroots energy of a civil society movement.
The key note lecture was delivered by Justice Olamide Oloyede, a judge from Osun and a board member of AfiCEM, appealing to the youth to salvage the country from quagmire of corruption.
Oloyede said most of the the acts of corruption among the youth were being encouraged by parents, adding that parents could help stamp out corruption by entrenching integrity in the youth.
She said that Nigeria needed to recalibrate its national identity.
She said examination malpractice, like other forms of corruption, had continued to damage the country’s reputation in the community of nations, urging the students to fight against it.
Good will messages were delivered by the royal fathers of the day : the Etsu of Kwali Chiefdom, Chief Ayedoo Nizassan; and the Agora of Zuba, Alhaji Mohammed Umar, among others.
The highlight of the occasion was presentation of awards to some dignitaries.
Those awarded were Dr Sam Amadi, Justice Olamide Oloyede, retired Deputy Inspector of Police Abayomi Oladipo, and Vice Chancellor of UniAbuja, Prof Fawehinmi for their contribution to the fight against corruption in the country.(NAN)(www.nannews.ng)
Edited by Kadiri Abdulrahman