A recent corruption survey by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) has indicated that only one per cent of the Nigerian population declined to pay bribes requested by judges for favourable outcomes in court cases between 2019 and 2023.
The “third survey on corruption as experienced by the population” in Nigeria was published Thursday by the NBS, in collaboration with the United Nations Office of Drugs and Crime (UNODC).
The report noted that requests for bribes are highly prevalent among officials with limited encounters with citizens, compared to the low rate of corruption among public officials in regular contact with the public.
“Several types of public officials who frequently encounter citizens have relatively small shares of interactions involving bribery (such as doctors, nurses, or teachers), while other types of officials who rarely encounter citizens (such as prosecutors or land registry officers, have relatively large shares of interactions involving bribery,” the report said.
It found that only one per cent of the population who had contact with judges and magistrates — were asked to pay bribes but refused bribery for favourable court judgments between 2019 and 2023, showing the unconditional prevalence rate of corruption in the country’s judicial system.
According to the report, only two per cent of the country’s population did not pay bribes or were asked to pay for bribery to sway court judgements in their favour after meeting judges or magistrates under former President Muhammadu Buhari’s regime despite his so-called battle against corruption and the first year of incumbent President Bola Tinubu’s administration.
The report also stated that at 52 per cent, more than half of bribes paid to officials in 2023 were requested by those officials directly from the paying party, 23 per cent were through indirect request, nine per cent through facilitated procedures, eight per cent as a sign of appreciation, and five per cent through third party request.
In the same year period, 95 per cent (more than nine out of ten) bribes paid were through cash and money transfer, 16 per cent were through food and drinks, eight per cent as animals, seven per cent were in exchange for other services, and four per cent in valuables, the report noted.
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