NLC, ITUC: Kleptocracy Is War Against Nigerians

…Demand Whistleblower Law

The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and the African Regional Organisation of the International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC-Africa) have declared that kleptocracy and illicit financial flows (IFFs) constitute “acts of war” against Nigerians.

The labour movement, in a communique issued at the end of a three-day joint programme organised by the NLC and ITUC-Africa on halting illicit financial flows and kleptocracy in Nigeria on Friday in Abuja, demanded urgent legislation to protect whistleblowers and stronger institutions to recover the nation’s stolen resources.

The movement also called for the establishment of specialised anti-corruption courts, greater independence for anti-graft agencies and full disclosure of the beneficial owners of oil blocks, mining licences, privatised electricity companies and other strategic national assets.

Presenting the communiqué at the end of the programme which brought together organised labour, civil society organisations and other stakeholders, Comrade Eustace James of the NLC Head Office said the scale of illicit financial flows had made corruption a direct threat to the welfare and future of Nigerian workers.

He said: “Kleptocracy and illicit financial flows are not abstract financial crimes committed by a distant figure. They are acts of war against the Nigerian people.

“Every naira and dollar looted, every barrel of oil stolen and every contract inflated is a direct theft of the wages, healthcare, education, infrastructure and future of Nigerian workers, the youth, women and members of families of Nigerian workers.”

According to him, the disparity in the treatment of corruption among the rich and poor had exposed what labour described as a system that “criminalises poverty while legitimising plunder.

“When billions of naira are stolen, they call it capital theft. When a worker steals a loaf of bread to feed their family, they call it a crime.

“What we say today is that the real crime is a system that criminalises poverty while legitimising plunder.”

The NLC said the evidence presented during the three-day programme showed that workers and the masses remained the primary victims of the country’s illicit financial flows and kleptocratic practices.

“The life and blood of the national economy is being drained before our eyes,” James said, as he cited estimates presented at the meeting which, according to the communiqué, indicated that Africa loses about $50 billion annually to illicit financial flows, with Nigeria accounting for a significant share of losses in West Africa.

The labour movement also raised concerns over capital flight, saying resources that should be deployed to build schools, hospitals and infrastructure were being diverted out of the country.

“When we speak of capital flight, we mean the flight of resources meant for schools, hospitals and infrastructure. This is the money that should build the future of Nigerian youth and ensure a dignified retirement for our elders.

“It has become austerity for the poor, hopelessness for the few. While workers are continually asked to make sacrifices through austerity measures, a parasitic few continue to live in opulence and take the national treasury as their personal heritage.

“As our comrades have repeatedly stated, it is unacceptable that the government makes excessive and offensive concessions to businesses and provides tax havens for the wealthy few while rewarding the poor with biting austerity.”

The communiqué also raised concerns over tax waivers and government revenue losses, citing figures it said showed extensive concessions to wealthy interests even as the country grappled with budget deficits.

The labour movement further criticised the removal of electricity subsidies, arguing that reforms should not deepen hardship for workers and vulnerable Nigerians.

“The planned removal of electricity subsidy, for example, is not for the benefit of Nigerians, but it is a concession to international financial institutions that would make electricity inaccessible to workers and the majority of citizens.”

The labour movement said the fight against corruption could no longer be left exclusively to government agencies, insisting that organised labour and civil society must become active participants in protecting public resources.

“We refuse to be mere spectators to our nation’s dismantling through illicit financial flows and kleptocracy,” James declared as he added that labour and its civil society allies were building “a formidable alliance” to protect public resources and challenge the structures that enable corruption.

“We are not just a talking shop, but a fighting front. We will forge a structure with clear rules to ensure we are agile, strategic and effective. We will develop a national action plan and become a strategic partner with state institutions in the fight against corruption.”

It demanded stronger mandates, coordination, financial autonomy and tenure security for the leadership of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC), Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit (NFIU) and Code of Conduct Bureau (CCB).

“We must move beyond proclaimed autonomy to actual independence from executive interference,” James said.

A major demand from the programme was the enactment of a comprehensive whistleblower protection law, with labour arguing that the existing 2016 whistleblower policy was inadequate.

“A whistleblower protection Act is urgently needed. The current 2016 policy is inadequate. We need a comprehensive law that provides a statutory shield for informants, safe reporting and effective protection against dismissal, intimidation and harassment.”

He stressed that workers were often the first people to discover wrongdoing in workplaces and public institutions, saying, “Workers are often the first to see the wrongdoing, and they must be able to speak without fear.”

The coalition also called for public disclosure of the real owners of oil blocks, mining licences, privatised electricity entities and land assets.

On public procurement, it demanded strict enforcement of competitive bidding, regular audits and public access to contract information, as well as tougher sanctions for contract inflation, abandoned and ghost projects.

It also called for open contracting and greater transparency in government procurement, arguing that procurement fraud was responsible for significant losses of public resources.

The labour movement said the consequences of illicit financial flows were visible in the country’s deteriorating social and economic conditions, including inadequate public services, unemployment and migration.

James said the inability of the state to provide workers with wages capable of meeting the cost of living was linked to the diversion of public resources.

“The human cost has been staggering. The inability of the state to pay a living wage or a commensurate minimum wage is a direct result of IFFs and kleptocracy.

“The massive immigration of Nigerian young workers is a direct consequence of losing faith in a system that rewards criminality and punishes hard work.”

The coalition therefore called for an end to impunity and stronger judicial mechanisms to ensure that high-profile corruption cases do not remain unresolved for years.

It demanded the strengthening of the CCB and the creation of specialised anti-corruption courts to accelerate the prosecution of corruption cases.

“Nigeria’s wealth must work for Nigeria. Money lost to kleptocracy is a classroom not built, a hospital without medicine, a worker whose wage cannot meet the cost of living, and a young person without a decent job.

“The fight against kleptocracy and illicit financial flow is therefore not a campaign for politicians or technocrats. It is a fundamental struggle for economic justice, decent work, equality and accountable governance.

“We are at war for the soul and the wealth of Nigeria, and we have assembled the necessary forces to change the terms of engagement.

“Our people must win, and Nigeria must win. Every day we delay, another hospital is not built, another teacher is not paid, and another young person is forced to flee from our shores.”

“Kleptocracy is not a scandal to be managed. It is a death sentence for the Nigerian dream. The time for polite conversation is over. The time for creative engagement is now.

“Stop the kleptocracy, protect those who expose corruption, reclaim Nigeria’s resources. Nigeria’s wealth must serve its people.”

The General Secretary of ITUC-Africa, Comrade Akhator Joel Odigie, who declared, “We cannot treat corruption with kid gloves,” said the key outcome of the programme was the commitment by organised labour and civil society allies to move from discussions to concrete action.

“The call to action is the point, the highlight that we want the Nigerian public to take home.”

He said organised labour and progressive civil society groups had “committed to walking the talk” in the fight against illicit financial flows and corruption.

“That is clear as we see it in kleptocratic practices, and they have outlined several actions that they will push to which ITUC-Africa will stand ready to support them.”

Odigie particularly highlighted the campaign for a legislative framework to protect whistleblowers, saying, “The push again for a legislative framework that governs whistleblowing is very critical because whistleblowers need protection.”

He added that labour and its allies had resolved to establish themselves as a “community of practice” in the anti-corruption struggle.

“The call is also to establish structures, agencies, institutions of government that are tasked with an anti-corruption fight, that first you are there on behalf of the Nigerian people, and then you need the people to succeed.”

He pledged ITUC-Africa’s support for the campaign as he declared, “Organised labour and their progressive civil society allies stand ready to partner, to work together with these institutions on this call.”

Odigie, however,  warned against treating corruption as a minor offence, insisting that failure to confront it had allowed networks of corrupt interests to grow stronger.

“We cannot treat corruption with kid gloves. We have seen the effect, and we have seen that if we all refuse to stand against it, overnight, again, like we’ve been told, which is unfortunate in some cases, the armies of those who queue up around corrupt practices become even in the majority.”

He said this could eventually create a situation where fighting corruption itself became a crime.

“We must, as organised labour and members of the progressive community, protect whistleblowers, protect those who follow and apply our laws to the letter.”

He also apologised to people who may have suffered reprisals after exposing wrongdoing and pledged stronger support for future whistleblowers.

“For anyone who has been a victim of speaking up, we also want to usethisis opportunity to, on our own behalf, to say we are sorry; maybe we were not there for you.

“But more than ever before, we want to stand behind those who will speak up, who are or those who might be discouraged, having seen what has happened to previous whistleblowers.”

Odigie pledged that ITUC-Africa and its partners would mobilise their institutions to protect whistleblowers while also holding anti-corruption agencies accountable.

“We will also use our institutions, our organisation, our mobilisation to protect those who are doing the needful, and we will also hold the institutions that are supposed to be doing their job accountable, if they are sleeping on your watch. Nigeria’s wealth must work for Nigerians.”