A member of the Presidential Advisory Committee Against Corruption, Prof. Femi Odekunle, on Friday said the anti-corruption agencies and the criminal justice system in the country are largely ineffective against corruption.

He added that their personnel often appear corrupt and compromised in their operations and decisions.

Odekunle, a former pioneer Director, United Nations African Institute for the Prevention of Crime, Kampala, Uganda, spoke while delivering the 5th convocation lecture of Al-Hikmah University, titled, ‘Tackling corruption in Nigeria: Strategic and operational options for the Buhari administration,’ in Ilorin, the Kwara State capital.

He said, “The anti-corruption agencies and the criminal justice system are largely ineffective against corruption and their personnel often appear corrupt and compromised in their operations and decisions.”

He stated that corruption had remained endemic, pervasive, and systemic in virtually all areas of Nigeria‘s public and corporate life.

According to him, the consequences of corruption for the nation continue to be devastating to the extent that it is ‘killing’ the polity economically, politically and socio-culturally thus resulting in unjustifiable under-development.

“Now, with the emergence of this kind of desirable leadership, (Buhari leadership), all should be well with the fight against corruption – all things being equal. However, all things are not and cannot be equal because as of today, Buhari appears an oasis of integrity in a desert of corruption,” Odekunle said.

The Vice-Chancellor, Al-Hikmah University, Prof. Taofeek Ibrahim, said 17 out of the 817 graduated students of the institution for the year bagged first class degrees at the convocation.

He added that 183 made Second Class Upper Division, 313 bagged Second Class Lower Division while 273 made Third Class Division and 21 had pass.