World Anti-Corruption Day: Quotes on corruption by famous African personalities

The world by a United Nations Convention that came into force in 2005 has observed December 9 in every year as the World Anti-Corruption Day.

The importance of the day amongst other things is to focus on corruption as one of the biggest obstacles to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

Africa is ranked the poorest continent in the world and with an established relationship between corruption and poverty, it is by no chance that the continent tops the list.
In fighting a canker that is threatening the survival and growth of the continent of Africa, African personalities ranging from politicians to media persons and people in the entertainment industry have made various pronouncements that resonate with corruption as a threat and the need to fight it.

As part of the commemoration of the day set aside to anti-corruption fight, GhanaWeb.com brings you some the most famous quotes made by African personalities about corruption.

“The war against corruption will not be won overnight, but, with political will, it will be won,”
Nana Akufo-Addo

“Corruption, the greatest single bane of our society today.”
Olusegun Obasanjo

“I am not going to preside over a government that will support corruption in our country.”
Nana Akufo-Addo

“In Africa, even when the elite are convicted for corruption they are pardoned in no time; you look at our constitutional history since 1993. Almost all those who have been convicted and our political elite have been pardoned in less than two years; and yet when you steal plantain, you get 5 years, 10 years you serve all your term.”
Martin Amidu


"Unfortunately, society has remained silent. There is very little being said about all of these ills that we are currently grappling with,"
John Mahama

“Look at the corrupt nonsense that is even happening in the name of God: watch those things just to see how far we are degenerating as a people,”
J.J Rawlings

“Behind most of our so called successful civil servants who have joined politics and business, there is collapsed or collapsing public institution they once served.”

Patrick Lumumba

“Corruption is as old as Adam and Eve and everybody knows it. Adam was corrupted by Eve and Eve was corrupted by the serpent”
J.A Kufuor

"Corruption, our greatest enemy will certainly fight back. But, we must continue to fight to effect a change to our value system,"
Mahamadu Buhari

“It is my belief that the fight against corruption must start with an incorruptible President. I can assure you, in all humility, that I am not, have never been and will never be corrupt.”
Nanna Akufo-Addo

"The day Nigerians become tired of corrupt practices, the actions that would follow would put an end to graft in the country."
Patrick Lumumba

“It does not take courage, it does not take bravery to prosecute one’s political opponent. The true test in the fight against corruption is holding your own people accountable when they go wrong… We must not pursue post regime accountability, we must pursue accountability while your regime exists.”
John Mahama

"Any crooks and/or personnel in positions of authority exposed by institutional investigations as having been corrupted by the power and authority they wield, must be thrown out and treated with the contempt they deserve, before such institutions imbibe their deformed characters.”
J.J Rawlings

If you think of public office as a shortcut to making money, then find some other venture to engage your time and energies, because there will be no room under an Akufo-Addo government for self-enrichment in politics.”
Nana-Akufo Addo

“Do we want to fight corruption or we want to give the appearance of fighting corruption?”
Martin Amidu

“Under the directive principles of state policy in our constitution, the state is required to eradicate corruption and abuse of power. I did some small exercise of checking what is the meaning of eradicating corruption and I saw eliminate entirely and I said in Ghana it can never happen. Some said destroy completely, I said the same thing, it can never happen. I went on and I saw reduce and I said maybe that’s what the constitution meant. As for reducing, we might not be able to do it,”
Daniel Domelevo

It is the political elite who rule the nation, who lower the bar and make corruption a low-risk enterprise. And the people can’t do anything about it. Some of them have to join because they have to survive. If the economic means of substance for the nation is being looted and taken away and you must survive, what do you do?”
Martin Amidu

“It takes leadership and commitment to win the fight against corruption”.
John Mahama

“If we do not uproot the main stems of corruption in this country, soon we will also contribute to the consolidation of the evil of corruption. We would have squandered another God-given opportunity to free this country and restore its soul and our humanity”
J.J Rawlings