Lack of ethical values promotes negative attitude to public funds and this leads to pervasive corruption. The effects of corruption are damaging for the simple reason that corruption leads to mismanagement of public funds because important government decisions are determined by ulterior motives, without regard to the state of a country’s development and with no concern for the consequences to the wider community.

In an environment where ethics and values are lacking, corruption will be rampant. Resources will be directed towards non-productive areas - security forces and other organs of social control - as the elite endeavour to protect themselves, their positions and their material wealth.

Resources which should have been available for socio-economic development will be diverted into security expenditure. This kind of situation can cause the ineffectiveness of democratic institutions as corruption, rather than investment, becomes the major source of financial benefit.

Furthermore, corruption exerts a corrupting influence on the administrative apparatus, eroding the will and the courage necessary to adhere to high standards of probity. The morale of public officials declines each official asking himself/herself why he/she should be the sole custodian of morality. Thus, corruption often undermines all the good intentions and initiatives of government aimed at improving the well-being of the ordinary citizens.

Strict adherence to ethics and moral values will help to develop positive attitude to public funds in order to effectively fight corruption and improve public administration.

2) Lack of exemplary leadership:
An important element of our approach to overcome the challenges of modern Nigeria is exemplary leadership. Chinua Achebe, a distinguished Nigerian writer (1983) succinctly analyses leadership problem in Nigeria in the following words: “The Nigerian problem is the unwillingness of its leaders to rise to the challenge of personal example which is the hallmark of true leadership.”

Nigeria has what it takes to become a modern nation if she discovers good leaders who have the will, the ability, the vision and the fear of Allah. It is the duty of all of us to lead the way in the discovery of these good leaders and to create an atmosphere conducive to their emergence. We must rise up and reject those habits which cripple our aspiration and inhibit our chances of becoming a modern and prosperous country. Nigeria has many talented men and women of conscience. Why is it then that all these patriots make so little impact on the life of our nation? Why do the good people among us seem so helpless while the worst ones are full of vibrancy and energy? The vast human and material resources with which Nigeria is endowed should be used to launch her into a developed modern nation and transform the lives of her citizens.

It is pertinent to mention that past Nigerian leaders have exhibited good leadership qualities such as honesty, transparency, humility, accountability and respect for the rule of law. The present-day Nigerian leaders should imbibe these qualities.

An embodiment of these qualities was the Late Prime Minister, Alhaji Sir Abubakar Tafawa Balewa. Trevor Clark wrote a biography of Tafawa Balewa titled: “A Right Honourable Gentleman - The Life and Times of Alhaji Sir Abubakar Tafawa Balewa”. In one of the forewords to the book written by Sir Adetokunbo Ademola, the Late Chief Justice of Nigeria, described Alhaji Abubakar Tafawa Balewa as a man of greatest charm and humility. He said that one of his sayings to him from time to time is:

“CJ, if I do anything wrong and I am brought before you, deal with me; and if necessary send me to jail ...”

Sir Adetokunbo Ademola said that Alhaji Balewa repeated the words when the Supreme Court gave judgement against his government in the case of Doherty V Sir A. Tafawa Balewa and others. He said that when he saw him after the judgement had been pronounced, he said:
“I am glad you have put us in our place; this is what we deserved. If I do anything wrong, do not hesitate to deal with me.”

Can we say these words about the Nigerian leaders of today? Leadership should be by practical example. This is why Allah says in the Qur’an:

“Do you enjoin right conduct on the people and you forget to practice it yourselves, while you recite the scripture? Have you then no sense?” (Qur’an 2:44)

The successors of Prophet Muhammad (SAW) followed his examples in displaying good leadership qualities in their private and public life. This is in obedience to Allah’s injunction which says:

“Certainly, you have in the Messenger of Allah a good example to follow” (Qur’an 33:21)

On assumption of office as the 1st Khalifah after the death of Prophet Muhammad (SAW), Abubakar delivered his first address to the people saying:

“O people, I have been appointed your chief, and I am not the best of you. Support me if I do good deeds. Remove me if I do anything wrong. Truth is honesty, and lying is dishonesty. The weak among you are strong in my eyes until I acquire their right for them. And the strong among you are weak before until I take their right from them, if Allah so wishes. Obey me as long as I obey Allah and His Prophet (peace be upon him). Whenever I disobey Allah and His Prophet (peace be upon him), you are not bound to obey me...”

Umar ibn al-Khattab, the 2nd Khalifah also exhibited a high degree of humility and the fear of Allah in his administration of the Muslim community. He used to go out at night incognito to see the plight of the Muslims. One night he passed by a house and heard some children crying. After some hours he passed by the same house and still heard some children crying. He entered the house and asked the woman in the house about the problem of the children. The woman told him that the children were hungry and that she had no food to give them because their father had died in the war. Umar went back to his house and carried a bag of wheat on his head and brought it to the woman to feed the children... The woman then asked: “Who are you O man?” He said, “I am Umar, the Khalifah.” Umar also arranged that an amount of money be given from the treasury to the woman every month to take care of her needs and those of her children. How many of our modern-day Nigerian leaders can exhibit this degree of simplicity and humility?

Leaders must be God-fearing. They must realise that worldly positions are ephermeral. The following Arabic saying which I quoted in the inaugural lecture which I delivered in the University of Ibadan in 1999 (at which our highly respected Chairman of today was present) is very appropriate for leaders who cling to power. The saying runs thus:

“If the position you occupy were to last for ever, your turn would not have come.”

Leaders at all levels of government should uphold the rule of law as the bedrock of democratic governance. They should realise that public office is a trust for which they are accountable to Almighty Allah. They should always be conscious of the fact that man shall render an account of all his deeds to Allah and shall be rewarded or punished accordingly. While it is possible for an offender or corrupt person to escape detection and punishment by a human law­ enforcement agent, no person, however highly placed he may be, can escape Allah’s detection or His punishment.

The role of Muslim judicial officers in confronting the challenges of modern Nigeria:
Muslim judicial officers in the Bar and the Bench should always seek Allah’s guidance while discharging their duties. They should uphold the fear of Allah and the fair and honest dispensation of justice as the bedrock of democratic governance. They should not allow the tendency of wanting to be in the good books of the powers that be to make them be unfair in their dispensation of justice. They should realise that their appointment to the various judicial positions is a mercy bestowed on them by Allah albeit through the instrumentality of human beings. In order to affirm this, Allah (SWT) says:

“Is it they who would portion out the mercy of your Lord? It is We Who portion out between them their livelihood in this world, and We raised some of them above others in ranks, so that some may employ others in their work. But the Mercy of your Lord is better than (the wealth of this world) which they amass.” (Qur’an 43:32)

Our Muslim judicial officers should also know that Allah warns against the tendency to hide the truth in the dispensation of justice because He knows what people conceal and what they reveal and He will bring out the truth eventually. This is clearly stated in the following verses of the Qur’an:

1) “And Allah knows what you conceal and what you reveal.” (Qur’an 16: 19)

2) “And Allah will bring forth that which you were hiding” (Qur’an 2:72)

The judicial officers must be conscious of the fact that they will be judged by Allah. They should therefore make the fear of Allah their guiding principle in the dispensation of justice. The following verses of the Qur’an deserve the attention of our Muslim judicial officers:

1) “Verily, to Us will be their return. Then verily, for Us will be their reckoning.” (Qur’an 88:25-26)

2) “... And they will find all that they did, placed before them, and your Lord does not treat anyone with injustice” (Qur’an 18:49)

3) “Is Allah not the Best of Judges” (Qur’an 95:8)

Conclusion:
Muslim judicial officers in the Bar and the Bench should know that they have a vital role to play in the enhancement of transparency, accountability and probity in the conduct of government business and the promotion of the well-being of the people of Nigeria. They must realise that perverting the cause of justice cannot make them succeed in life. It is Allah, our Creator, who determines the extent of our success in life.

Professor Malik is of the Department of Arabic and Islamic Studies, University of Ibadan. He delivered this keynote address during the opening ceremony of the 4th National Conference of Muslim Lawyers’ Association of Nigeria at the University of Ibadan on Friday, June 25, 2010.