Corruption in Higher Education in Nigeria: Prevalence, Structures and Patterns among students of higher education institutions in Nigeria By Sakiemi A. Idoniboye-Obu 208518002 Submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the Doctor of Philosophy degree in Political Science, School of Social Sciences, University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg Campus, South Africa Supervisors Professor Nwabufo Okeke Uzodike Dr Alison Jones 2014 i Declaration I declare that this thesis is my own unaided original work. All citations, references, borrowed ideas, and sources have been properly acknowledged. It is being submitted for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in the College of Humanities, University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg. No part of the present work has been submitted previously for any examination or degree in any other University. -------------------------------------------- ---------------------------------------------------- Sakiemi Abbey Idoniboye-Obu Professor Nwabufo Okeke-Uzodike ------------------------------------------- ---------------------------------------------------- Date Date ii Dedication To The Holy One of Israel Who makes all things beautiful in His own time; the Sovereign Lord, Wisdom and Power of God, Captain of the Lord’s host, the Beginning and the End, the Author and Finisher of my faith, Owner and Keeper of my soul, my Lord, my All, Jesus Christ. Thank You, Lord. And To Her whom He used to complete me HP My Wife, My Sister, My Friend and Lover Tamunotonye Ibimina Idoniboye-Obu iii Acknowledgement Saying “thank you” is one of the most difficult things to do, simple as the phrase sounds. This is more so when very many people made varying degrees of contribution to the project for which the thank you is to be said. Who to mention first, what adjective to describe the person’s (or institution’s) contribution to the final product, and whose names to omit are just some of the problems. So, the first category I would like to appreciate is those who cannot be named. You were there when I needed different kinds of support and you provided it without even being aware that you were helping. Thank you. If you do not find your name in this acknowledgement, please, do not be offended. You impacted my life in ways you cannot tell. My God who sees in secret will reward you in the open. God bless you. With specific reference to this thesis I would like to express my appreciation as follows: Professor Nwabufo Okeke-Uzodike, thank you for your guidance and incisive comments. I also want to thank you for the vista of opportunities you opened to me. I may not have utilized them to your expectation, but I am grateful. What little I was able to appropriate of those opportunities will take me far. Dr Alison Jones, thank you for stepping in when the need arose. I cannot possibly be the easiest student to supervise but you were patient and kind beyond the call of duty. I appreciate your care and kindness towards me. Your attention to details is highly appreciated. To the lecturers in the International and Public Affairs Cluster who treated me as though I was a colleague instead of a student, thank you. Dr Suzanne Francis, Dr Bheki Mngomezulu, Dr Khondlo Mtshali, Mr Sanele Nene and Mr Mark Rieker, thank you for your availability. My study could not even have commenced without an assurance of funding. Here, my heartfelt gratitude goes to my employers, Ignatius Ajuru University of Education. You did not only provide me with funds through a paid study leave, but you also released me for an extended period. Thank you to the Vice-Chancellor and management for this opportunity of a lifetime you provided me. I also wish to appreciate the University of KwaZulu-Natal for funding part of this research and providing a highly conducive environment for this scholarly enterprise. I will not also forget the tutoring opportunities you provided. I want to thank my family – brothers and sisters, nieces and nephews, cousins and in-laws: the journey would have been more difficult without your support and understanding. My children, especially Belema, you suffered untold setback as a result of this journey; thank you for returning home to Dad. My God-children, thanks for all your support and prayers. Special thanks to my father and mother-in-law for words of comfort and encouragement. My Wife, I would have packed up without you; THANK YOU. To all my brothers and sisters in the Lord, the Sonlife Christian Centre and Word Assembly both in Port Harcourt, Dunamis Faith Assembly in Pietermaritzburg, thank you. Thank you: Pastor and Pastor (Mrs) Tijani, Bishop & Mrs Mike Amamieye, Rev & Pastor (Mrs) Johnson Ariyibi, Pastor & Pastor (Mrs) ‘Remi Opaleye, Pastor & Pastor (Mrs) Olorunda, Dr Kontein Trinya, and Pastor Augustine Obah. iv Abstract Discourses, conversations and commentaries, and scholarly articles on Nigerian economy, politics, and society tend always to involve corruption. Violent changes of government as well as democratic leadership selection invariably make references to corruption as a justification for change. Every government since the country’s independence has been assailed as either being corrupt or doing too little to fight corruption. Corruption is said to pervade every sector of the Nigerian society including education. Every stakeholder in higher education has at one time or another been accused of corruption. This study is concerned with one of the primary stakeholders in higher education – students. The study examines the prevalence, structures, and patterns of corruption among students of tertiary institutions in Nigeria. Prevalence refers to the spread and depth of corruption in the consciousness of students while patterns suggest the forms in which the phenomenon finds expression. Structures are the opportunities for corrupt behaviour. It elicited students’ ideas and concepts of corruption by means of focus group discussions and surveys based on semi- structured questionnaire. Empirical data were collected at ABU, UNN, FUTA, UNIPORT, IAUE, Rivpoly, FCEZ, and FCE (T) among others. These institutions were selected to represent the ethnic heterogeneity of the country as well as the three main types of higher education institutions in the country. Resource constraints and logistical factors meant that only two institutions were covered in the northern part of the country. However, the university selected in the north, ABU, has the entire 19 Northern States as its catchment area. The distribution of questionnaires among the various institutions also ensured that this limitation does not adversely affect the representation of the North in the sample. The field work for this research was done in two phases in 2009 and 2010. Though this is not a historical study, it was carried out at a particular historical conjuncture and therefore can be said to deal with undergraduates of Nigerian tertiary institutions in the first decade of the 21st Century. It introduces the concept of higher education student corruption to capture corruption among students. It treats higher education student corruption as a complex and composite phenomenon with various aspects or interrelated dimensions. It finds that students have ideas and conceptions of corruption. It argues that students’ ideas and conceptions of corruption are largely derived from student handbooks issued by the various institutions and from the environment. Consequently, it holds that students’ ideas and concepts of corruption are not original or distinctive but are of the genre of conceptions of corruption as abuse or misuse of office. The study elucidates the key elements of students’ ideas and conceptions of corruption and examines their explanation for why some of them participate in corrupt practices. It classifies the variables in terms of the concepts with which students explain higher education student corruption into personal characteristics, establishment characteristics of higher education institutions, and the culture of corruption and, explores how these engender corrupt practices among students. It identifies the major patterns of corruption that are prevalent among students as absenteeism, activisms, bribe/bribery, fraudulent conduct, cultism, dereliction, drug/alcohol abuse, examination malpractice, indecent dressing, sexual behaviour, theft/stealing, and unruly behaviour. The study also identifies and differentiates structures from patterns of corruption. The key structures of higher education corruption are teaching and learning, examinations, and accommodation as most of the patterns of corruption identified are imbedded in them. v The study found that higher education institutions are not only ill-equipped to deal with higher education student corruption but actually drive the phenomenon. This lack of capacity is related to underfunding by owner agencies such as the government, mismanagement of resources and maladministration by the management of higher education institutions, and societal pressures on both the institutions and the students. These will likely hinder current efforts being made by national anticorruption agencies such as the ICPC to combat corruption in the education sector. vi List of abbreviations and acronyms ABU: Ahmadu Bello University ACTUs: Anti-Corruption and Transparency Units ASUU: Academic Staff Union of Universities BMAS: Benchmark Minimum Academic Standards BPI: Bribe Payers’ Index CARS: Central Agricultural Research Station CCJ: Community Court of Justice CIHE: Corruption in Higher Education CNANPU: Committee on Needs Assessment