Public Sector Corruption
Endemic corruption and mismanagement of public resources directly impact on the enjoyment of basic rights by Nigerians, about 54 percent of whom live in dismal poverty. One-third of school-age children are out of school, while one in five children under five years die from treatable and preventable diseases. The government alleges that between 2006 and 2013, 55 public officials stole US$9 billion, amounting to more than 25 percent of the annual national budget. Many officials of the previous Goodluck Jonathan administration are facing prosecution for corruption.
President Buhari said in May that corruption was largely responsible for previous failure to end the Boko Haram insurgency. The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), is prosecuting former government officials for embezzling $2 billion allocated for the purchase of arms to prosecute the northeast conflict. Political opponents however accuse the president of using the campaign against corruption to carry out a political vendetta against previous administration officials.
Human Rights Watch – Nigeria in 2017