Ethics and corporate governance (4)

A life lived with integrity even if it lacks the trappings of fame and fortune is a shining star in whose light others may follow in the years to come. - Denis Waitley

It is possible to lose hope in Nigeria. But that will be defeatist; it will simply be unreasonable. But to sustain hope, believing that this country can transform to become a life-centred entity is just too much a burden for one to carry as well. Events unfold too fast, most times, in indescribable formations and unbelievable sequence. You don’t need to look too far to find stories to illustrate the morals you would wish to preach. Some of these stories are as bizarre as they come. Therefore, in concluding our ongoing discussion on ethics and ethical conduct, I want us to relate with some stories that have broken around us in the past few days.

I am sure that not many Nigerians know for sure that the city of Port Harcourt in southern part of Nigeria is under siege, totally surrendered to the rule of kidnappers, who bestride the land almost without restraint. You also probably do not know that kidnappers are not necessarily militants. What is happening is that some miscreants seizing upon the lack of, or where it exist, ineffective security strategy to combat crime in the city have simply devised ways and means to reap from where they have not sown. You have the right to argue that this is simply a reflection of what happens everywhere in this country.

We have seen it clearly from the power sector probe and if you want to stretch it, also in the Ministry of Health N300m scam. Perhaps, if you looked well enough, you will see it in your place of work, in the schools, in the markets, just anywhere around you.

But the kidnapping business has just taken on a life of its own. With each passing day, the kidnappers are becoming more strategic. They are presently targeting the wives of the very rich. Only last Sunday 20th April, they invaded the home of Chief Humphrey Idisi, perhaps the leading indigenous oil service operator in town with the most sophisticated explosives and weapons you could imagine and kidnapped his wife. Why the battle lasted, the about 20 security operatives on guard vanished into thin air. They could not withstand the firepower of these new lords of the city. What kind of evil is this? As at the time of writing, they have demanded for a one billion-naira ransom. Even as we pray for the safe return of Mrs. Margaret Idisi, is there nothing that can be done to arrest this situation? Is it not obvious that we are destroying enterprise and the possibilities that beckon towards national development?

Where is truth and what has happened to integrity? To foster enterprise, you need a dose of truth and men of character. Integrity leaves a lasting effect, even though it may not seem to produce immediate results. What do you make of the story that have made the headlines in the last few days to the effect that the Beechcraft 1900D aircraft owned by Wings Airline and declared missing since March 15 may have been flown out of the country on the order of a former governor to weaken evidences against him in his ongoing trial by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC)? This is a bad dream, it has better not be true. I have prayed as best as I can that the story turns out to be one of those sensational news that journalists invent once in a while to raise the tempo of social discourse and therefore increase sales. This journalistic sin is more pardonable than the type of story that currently surrounds the missing aircraft, especially if it turns out to be true.

You don’t want to believe that while we mourned the supposed death of the crew, especially the pilot, who was reported to be a polygamist with three wives living in the same house, it is possible that they were cooling off in some African countries and may have even been back in Nigeria carrying on with their lives. Perhaps the names given for the crew were fictitious. If it turns to be true, what will our President say to all those other leaders that have sent to him messages of condolence and comfort over the missing airplane? What does this mean for our image and reputation, if there is anything positive still left of that? Think for a while how situations like this affect foreign investment in our economy. Trust is an essential ingredient for corporate relationship and performance.

The last story that is on my mind is the situation surrounding the Insurance Football Club of Benin City, one of the only two clubs in the Nigerian premier league that has never been relegated from the top cadre of Nigerian football. The story is that the present Commissioner of Sports in Edo state has discovered that Insurance Football Club is different from Bendel Insurance. While one man and his two sons own the former, the latter is supposed to be the state team. But for sometime, the private club has been presented as a State outfit attracting funding from the State. As the commissioner tangles with the chairman to insist that things are done properly, this is having it’s toll on the club and the Benin Arsenal is on the way down except a miracle happens.

Truth is, when things are not properly done, the fortunes of organisations just go down. The obvious visible missing link in all of these is the lack of personal responsibility and accountability. In this society, we trade blames easily, but there are not too many of us who are willing to make the necessary adjustments even when things are not working. The change we yearn for will begin to happen the day we learn to stand on the side of truth and take responsibility for our actions.