Friday Sermon: How insecurity and poverty persist in a corrupt nation, By Murtadha Gusau

In the Name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful

All praise is owed to Allah, the Lord of each creation, whitethorn Allah extol the notation of our noble Prophet Muhammad successful the highest institution of Angels, bless him and springiness him bid and security―and his family, his Companions and each those who travel him correctly and sincerely until the constitution of the Hour.

Dear brothers and sisters! The archetypal sources of Islam, the Noble Qur’an and Sunnah, employment a assortment of terminology and narration to elucidate and condemn a wide class of behavioural digressions involving corruption, including bribery, nepotism and regularisation substitution. Corruption is seen to stem from the maltreatment of administrative powerfulness of immoderate kind, judicial power, governmental authorization and fiscal dominance. Further, each corrupt acts are construed arsenic lacking successful virtuousness from a motivation position and unjust successful narration to the principles that safeguard rendering to everyone their due, thereby undermining communal harmony.

This presumption matches good with the displacement successful societal technological thought from viewing corruption arsenic ‘grease that oils the economical wheels’ to a ‘menace that undermines economical growth.’ Where the 2 disagree is with respect to remedial action. The Western attack focuses connected designing systems and institutions that question to basal retired corruption portion minimising opportunities and enticement for corruption. In short, it emphasises constraints outer to the individual.

By comparison, Islam seeks to spell beyond specified constraints, and besides instil successful believers a wide ‘second-order’ penchant for non-corrupt behaviour. It recommends processing a steadfast content successful transcendent accountability and stresses quality gathering done practising motivation virtues and shunning vices. In essence, successful circumstances wherever the chances of detection are low, the restraint comes from within. It is our contention that some emphases are important successful eliminating corruption.

Respected brothers and sisters! Corruption successful the presumption of Islam is defined arsenic the word ‘Akhzul Amwal Bil Batil’, which means consuming different people’s spot successful a vanity way. This word refers to surah al-Baqarah verse 188 and surah al-Maidah verse 42.

Correspondingly, corruption is associated with Ghulul, which means stealing people’s spot oregon nationalist property.

Corruption has been considered a transgression for the endurance of the bureaucracy. At the aforesaid time, corruption has go the astir destructive societal illness successful the strategy of societal values successful Islam.

As described successful Surah al-Fajr verses 15-20 arsenic societal upheaval, corruption itself is not lone a substance of wealth but besides motivation matters that person been damaged and the nonaccomplishment of self-confidence.

In presumption of Islamic law, corruption cases autumn into the country of mu’amalah Maliyah [socio-economic] oregon fiqh siyasah [constitutional law] based connected the occupation of Maliyah [objects].

Some existing writings connected Islam and corruption sermon motivation acquisition successful Islam utilized to forestall corruption. However, Muslim-majority countries viewed from a Western position are seen astir often arsenic ‘highly corrupt’ by the Transparency International Corruption Perceptions Indexes.

In Islam, corruption is highly condemned and corruption is pervasive, which opposes corrupt practices.

Corruption that is wide practised successful this Muslim-majority state has importantly impacted Islamic banking. This illness of corruption has prevented Islamic banking from becoming a much effectual and meaningful pathway for poorness alleviation and economical development. And a coagulated ineligible strategy tin summation perceptions of power implicit corruption cases.

Dear brothers and sisters! In January 2023, the planetary anti-corruption watchdog Transparency International released its yearly corruption cognition index, which ranks the perceived level of nationalist assemblage corruption crossed 180 countries worldwide. That year’s study painted a grim representation that revealed that galore countries person failed to marque immoderate advancement successful the combat against corruption since 2017.

The study reveals a wide transportation betwixt Insecurity and corruption, thing that is seldom interrogated. The Nigerian acquisition confirms that governments plagued by corruption deficiency the capableness to support their radical from criminality and insurrection. Despite the authorities spending billions of dollars to combat insecurity astatine some the nationalist and sub-national levels, information continues to worsen. Cases of banditry, kidnapping and coercion person go predominant crossed the full country.

Sometimes the information agencies person not been capable to adequately respond leaving immoderate parts of the state nether the power of terrorists and bandits who cod ‘tax’ from section farmers. There are adjacent instances wherever the kidnap victims spoke of collaboration betwixt the authorities information agencies and the kidnappers aft their release.

In 2022 alone, media reports estimation astir 4,545 radical were killed portion different 4,611 were kidnapped by non-state actors. Gunmen person attacked respective authorities buildings mosques and churches crossed the country, leaving galore radical dead.

Terrorists, bandits and transgression organisations crossed the state person been emboldened portion citizens unrecorded successful changeless fearfulness and corrupt officials thrive successful impunity.

The Government Defense Integrity Index published successful 2020 revealed that Nigeria faces a precocious hazard crossed its defence institutions with minimal controls successful operations. The state ranks 143 retired of 163 connected the Global Peace Index successful 2022, alongside nations similar Iran, Cameroon and Colombia.

Fellow Nigerians! Have you ever wondered wherefore immoderate nations look to beryllium stuck successful a rhythm of poverty, insecurity, hunger and underdevelopment? The reply is often corruption. Corruption is simply a illness that eats distant astatine the precise cloth of a society, destroying trust, undermining institutions, and eroding the regularisation of law. In this sermon, In Shaa Allah I volition research however corruption destroys nations by examining its interaction connected economical growth, societal cohesion, and governmental stability. I volition besides sermon wherefore it is truthful hard to basal retired corruption and what tin beryllium done to combat it. So buckle up and get acceptable to dive into the acheronian satellite of corruption and its devastating consequences.

Corruption is simply a malignant crab that eats distant astatine the precise cloth of a nation, and 1 of the astir devastating effects of corruption is its interaction connected economical growth. When corruption is rampant successful a society, it creates an situation of uncertainty and instability that discourages concern and stifles economical maturation due to the fact that it undermines the regularisation of law, erodes nationalist spot successful authorities institutions, and creates a civilization of impunity wherever those successful powerfulness tin enactment with impunity.

Moreover, corruption diverts resources distant from productive activities and into the pockets of corrupt officials and their cronies. Corruption leads to a misallocation of resources and a distortion of the economy, arsenic resources are directed towards activities that make rents alternatively than those that make value. As a result, corruption leads to a alteration successful productivity, a diminution successful competitiveness, and a nonaccomplishment of assurance successful the economy. Ultimately, the effect of corruption leads to a diminution successful economical growth, which tin person devastating consequences for a nation’s improvement and prosperity.

Corruption is simply a crab that eats distant astatine the cloth of society, and its interaction connected societal cohesion cannot beryllium overstated. When corruption is rampant, it undermines the spot that radical person successful their authorities and institutions. This deficiency of spot tin pb to a breakdown successful societal cohesion, arsenic radical go much divided and little consenting to enactment unneurotic for the communal bully of their nation.

In addition, corruption often leads to unequal organisation of resources, arsenic those with powerfulness and power tin usage their positions to enrich themselves astatine the disbursal of others, thereby creating a consciousness of resentment and injustice among those near behind, further eroding societal cohesion. Ultimately, corruption destroys the consciousness of assemblage and shared intent that is indispensable for a federation to thrive, and it is up to each of america to enactment unneurotic to basal it retired and physique a much conscionable and equitable society.

Corruption has a detrimental interaction connected governmental stability. When corruption is rampant wrong a government, citizens suffer religion successful their leaders and the governmental strategy arsenic a whole, thereby starring to protests, civilian unrest, and adjacent convulsive uprisings. In addition, corrupt officials often usage their powerfulness and power to suppress absorption and dissent, further eroding governmental stability.

Furthermore, corruption tin besides pb to a deficiency of accountability and transparency wrong the government. When officials are much acrophobic with idiosyncratic summation than serving the public, they are little apt to prioritise the needs and concerns of their constituents. This deficiency of accountability tin pb to policies that payment the corrupt fewer astatine the disbursal of the many, further eroding governmental stableness and undermining the antiauthoritarian process. Ultimately, corruption undermines the legitimacy of the authorities and tin pb to a breakdown successful the regularisation of law, posing a superior menace to the stableness and prosperity of a nation.

Corruption is simply a analyzable and multifaceted occupation that is hard to basal out. One of the superior reasons is that it often involves almighty individuals oregon groups who person a vested involvement successful maintaining the presumption quo. These individuals whitethorn usage their wealth, influence, and governmental connections to support themselves and their interests, making it hard for instrumentality enforcement agencies and different authorities to clasp them accountable.

Another crushed wherefore corruption is truthful hard to combat is that it often involves a civilization of impunity and a deficiency of transparency. In galore cases, corrupt individuals are capable to run with impunity due to the fact that determination is nary effectual mechanics for holding them accountable. It tin beryllium owed to anemic oregon ineffective laws, a deficiency of governmental will, oregon a deficiency of resources and capableness wrong instrumentality enforcement agencies.

One solution to combating corruption is to summation transparency and accountability successful authorities and concern practices. This solution tin beryllium achieved done measures specified arsenic implementing anti-corruption laws, establishing autarkic oversight bodies, and promoting a civilization of ethical behaviour. It is besides important to amended citizens astir the antagonistic effects of corruption and promote them to request transparency and accountability from their leaders. Ultimately, rooting retired corruption requires a corporate effort from each members of society, including authorities officials, concern leaders, spiritual leaders and citizens alike.

All praise is owed to Allah, Lord of the worlds. May the peace, blessings and salutations of Allah beryllium upon our noble Messenger, Muhammad, and upon his family, his Companions and his existent followers.

Murtadha Muhammad Gusau is the Chief Imam of: Nagazi-Uvete Jumu’ah Mosque; and Late Alhaji Abdur-Rahman Okene Mosque, Okene, Kogi State, Nigeria. He tin beryllium reached via: gusauimam@gmail.com; oregon +2348038289761.

This Friday sermon (Jumu’ah Khutbah) was prepared for transportation contiguous Friday, 24 Shawwal, 1445 AH (May 03, 2024).