In the heart of Lagos, a crowd gathers—voices raised in unison, banners waving with the words ‘End Bad Governance.’ It’s 2024, and Nigerians have had enough. Economic hardship, soaring inflation, and corrupt leadership have driven thousands to the streets. They are protesting against a system where oil wealth trickles up, but never down.
Nigeria boasts the largest population in Africa and thousands of citizens have begun to protest the corruption and bad governmental systems that have ruled the country since its independence. President Bola Tinubu’s decision to remove a popular fuel subsidy has increased gas and food prices and has left ordinary Nigerians struggling to make ends meet. The West African country sits on a goldmine of black gold—ranking as the 15th largest oil producer globally and holding the 10th largest reserves. Yet, the wealth from this natural resource has never trickled down to the average Nigerian. Instead, it has flowed upwards, enriching a small elite who wield power like modern-day feudal lords. In a country where oil accounts for 75% of national income and 92% of exports, the question on everyone’s mind is: How can a nation so rich in resources leave so many of its people so poor? For Chinua Achebe the answer is clear: “The trouble with Nigeria is simply a failure of leadership,” a truth that resonates as oil wealth continues to pool at the top, leaving everyday Nigerians struggling beneath the weight of corruption and inequality.
Corruption in the Oil Fields: How Nigeria’s Wealth Was Stolen
In 2011, Shell and Eni secured a deal for one of Nigeria’s richest oil fields. The cost was a staggering $1.1 billion in bribes funneled to top officials, including former Oil Minister Dan Etete. It’s a familiar story—foreign companies buying influence, while ordinary Nigerians see none of the profits. Another case in 2011-2015 a group of Nigerian businessmen paid bribes to Alison-Madueka, the country’s former minister of Petroleum Resources. In exchange, the minister steered lucrative oil contracts to the oil companies owned by the businessmen. Alison-Madueka, arrested in 2015 on six counts of bribery, has lived under house arrest in London.
James Ibori, governor of the lucrative Niger-Delta region from 1999-2007, was arrested and convicted of money laundering in 2012. Reports claim he stole over 160 million from the Nigerian government and state through his role as governor. These are not the only scandals, nor will they be the last. For these multinational corporations, the strategy is simple: bribe government officials like Etete and Alison-Madueka for control over these lucrative oil fields. Ibori has gone to jail, and others like Alison Madueka live comfortably under house arrest on the properties they bought from this laundered money. Little is done to stop this corruption and it has become the norm for these political figures.
The Nigerian protests coincided with the appointment of Abubakar Bagudu as the minister of budget and planning. Bagudu worked as a state governor during the corruption-tainted Sani Abacha military regime in Nigeria. Abacha’s regime was accused of embezzling over 5 billion dollars from his government and people in the 1990s. In 1999, his regime came to an end with Olusegun Obasanjo elected president and transforming the country into a democracy. While his presidency promised an end to corruption, the 21st century in Nigeria has struggled to rid itself of the stealing and corruption that has become the norm for these governmental officials. Tinubu’s appointment of Abubakar Bagudu is an appointment that demonstrates this constant and systemic cycle of taking from its own people. The US government called to question Bagudu’s appointment in an American government assessment of human rights and corruption in Nigeria.
Oil Theft and the Rise of Militias: A Double-Edged Sword
For years, the Niger Delta has simmered with unrest. Cut off from the profits flowing to Lagos and Abuja, local communities have taken matters into their own hands. Illegal oil refineries, run by desperate residents, dot the landscape—dangerous symbols of defiance against a government that has failed them. In the 1970s and 1980s, militant groups began to launch attacks against the government and the oil companies in these oil-producing regions. Many of these groups were run by warlords who began to steal oil from the government and foreign companies. The following militia groups gained, were largely due to the neglect of development and as a protest against the government. Eventually, government officials became involved in the militia groups, and in 1999 when Nigeria was able to rid itself of militant rule, it gave many of these officials even more access to oil. Government officials began to use the militias and the profits of the oil theft in order to fund their own election campaigns and buy out votes to disrupt the elections.
Reporting from the Nigerian Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative claims that from 2009 to 2020, forty-six billion dollars of oil was stolen from oil fields in the country. “Oil bunkering” from illegal oil refineries has become a common issue in the country. The Niger Delta Avengers are just one of the militia groups that have risen and have begun to steal oil from the government. The practice is a form of defiance against corruption, but has also led to deaths and oil explosions in these oil-producing regions. The oil theft has continued to create political instability in the country, and while it began as a way to give money to the people in these communities, it has only worsened the situation. While the government has been plagued with corruption, oil is its main source of revenue, and due to this stealing it has only exacerbated the public debt and hurt the government’s finances. Oil theft originally began as a way to combat the corruption in the country because of this lack of development in these oil rich regions. However, it has evidently had the opposite effect by taking revenue away from a government already plagued with corruption, and has thus made it increasingly difficult to lead to development.
Protests in the Streets: Nigerians Demand Change
The first major protest in Nigeria was in August—Ibrahim Suleiman, and thousands of others in Lagos held signs, “hunger is killing us”. Like many others, he’s seen food prices rise, and job opportunities vanish. It’s a cry against the political elite who, for decades, have grown fat on oil profits while ordinary Nigerians struggle. Inflation reaching 34%, subsidies removed, and an economy in freefall—yet the streets echo with determination.
The years of corruption from these leaders have become exposed by these protesters. The demonstrations have come at a time of one of the worst economic crises in the country. Bola Tinubu’s election in 2023 was supposed to mark a new era promising democracy and accountability, but for Nigerians, this promise feels empty. The old cycle of corruption continues, and as protesters fill the streets, the call for change grows louder and more urgent.
It is difficult to see how change can be done with a political system where the norm has been to steal from its own people. The country is one where the wealth has been reserved for international corporations and political figures. For the people, their protests and calls for change are met with violence and fuel subsidies that, while having good intentions to increase government revenue, only hurt Nigerian citizens.
Nigeria’s struggle with oil wealth is a cautionary tale—an economy where prosperity pools in the hands of a few while the masses remain on the margins. This has transformed the country into a modern feudal state. Oil and its reliance on foreign investment has done little in the way of development for the country. The industry does not employ a large number of workers, and is the foundation for Nigeria’s fragile economy. The state government is reliant on stealing from its people rather than helping them, and has built a system of greed and power with little compassion. The greed has led to distrust in Nigeria’s government, and as protesters fill the streets demanding accountability, the future of Nigeria hangs in the balance. Corruption, reliance on foreign investment, and oil dependency have trapped the nation in a constant cycle of inequality mirroring a neo-feudal state. With this, one thing is clear: the cries for justice are growing louder, and the world is watching to see if Nigeria’s oil curse can be broken.
Featured Image Source: NPR
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