- Says Accountability Requires Societal Value Reorientation, Stronger Institutional Reforms
- Seeks Stewardship Accounting In Varsity, Professional Curricula To Nurture Ethical Leaders
NIGERIA cannot build a sustainable culture of accountability until citizens collectively reject corruption in all its forms, says Professor of Accounting at the Nigerian Defence Academy (NDA), Terzungwe Nyor.
Prof. Nyor made the assertion while delivering the 24th Professional Inaugural Lecture of the NDA, where he identified corruption as one of the country’s greatest impediments to accountability, good governance and national development.
Speaking with National Record after the lecture, the accounting scholar urged public office holders entrusted with managing public resources to embrace stewardship rather than self-enrichment.
“Corruption does nobody any good,” Prof Nyor said. “Every Nigerian must recognise this and join the fight against it if the country is to make meaningful progress in accountability and development.”
According to Nyor, corruption continues to thrive because of weak institutions, political patronage, ethnic and religious sentiments, and a culture of impunity that allows powerful offenders to evade justice.
He criticised political office holders who divert public funds while communities remain deprived of essential infrastructure and services such as roads, electricity, healthcare and potable water.
He also condemned civil servants who inflate contract values, manipulate procurement processes or award contracts to companies in which they have personal interests.
Prof. Nyor stressed that accountability is not the exclusive responsibility of government officials but an obligation that cuts across every segment of society.
He cited traders who sell fake products, artisans and mechanics who defraud customers, students who exchange sex for grades, lecturers who demand sexual favours, and religious leaders who exploit their followers, arguing that corruption is fundamentally “an attitudinal problem deeply rooted in the fabric of society.”
While acknowledging reforms introduced to strengthen public financial management – including the Treasury Single Account (TSA), the Integrated Personnel and Payroll Information System (IPPIS), and the Government Integrated Financial Management Information System (GIFMIS) – he said their effectiveness has been undermined by weak institutions and poor enforcement.
He noted that anti-corruption agencies continue to grapple with inadequate funding, shortage of skilled personnel, limited operational independence, judicial delays and procedural loopholes that often shield influential offenders from prosecution.
“Laws and institutions alone cannot guarantee accountability,” he said. “A poor man may be severely punished for stealing a fowl, yet those who loot billions from the public treasury often escape justice. Until the rule of law applies equally to everyone, accountability will remain elusive.”
The professor acknowledged Nigeria’s institutional framework for promoting accountability, including the 1999 Constitution, the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC), the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), the Code of Conduct Bureau, the Code of Conduct Tribunal, the Federal Government’s whistle-blower policy, as well as Anti-Corruption and Transparency Units (ACTUs) established across Ministries, Departments and Agencies.
Stewardship Accounting as Ethical Framework
Beyond diagnosing the causes of corruption, Prof. Nyor proposed the introduction of Stewardship Accounting into the curricula of Nigerian universities and professional accounting bodies as a practical strategy for producing ethical, transparent and accountable professionals.
He disclosed that he is developing teaching materials for undergraduate and postgraduate programmes in Stewardship Accounting and appealed to the Nigerian Defence Academy and the Nigerian Universities Commission (NUC) to collaborate in introducing the course across tertiary institutions.
According to him, Stewardship Accounting would equip future professionals and public administrators with the ethical orientation and sense of responsibility required to manage entrusted resources with integrity, thereby strengthening accountability in both the public and private sectors.
Delivering his inaugural lecture under the theme of stewardship, Prof. Nyor described accounting as more than a professional discipline, but a universal responsibility founded on transparency, proper record-keeping and faithful management of entrusted resources.
Drawing from the biblical account of creation, he argued that stewardship and accountability originated when God entrusted humanity with the responsibility of cultivating and caring for the Garden of Eden, making stewardship an enduring obligation for every individual.
He further described accounting as an information management system that serves governments, businesses, investors, employees and the wider public by providing reliable information for decision-making and accountability.
Prof. Nyor maintained that while stronger laws and institutions remain important, they cannot by themselves eliminate corruption. Rather, he said, lasting accountability will depend on cultivating integrity and a stewardship mindset among citizens and public officials alike.
“If people see themselves as stewards rather than owners of what has been entrusted to them, they will act with integrity, earn public trust, and help build a more accountable society,” he said.
