Applying Machiavelli’s Idea of “Anti-church, Anti-clergy but not Anti-religion” to Tackling Corruption in Nigeria

Abstract

In Nigeria, several well-known attempts to eradicate corruption and inform better policy-making have been made and implemented, such as the Treasury Single Account (TSA), -Integrated Payroll and Personnel Information System (IPPIS). Despite these attempts, the article perceives corruption to be lingering and new and innovative ways to fight corruption continue to be sought. Much time has been spent by government, among others, in establishing corruption as a symptom of systemic, institutional and governmental failure while religious aspects of corruption have been deliberately underplayed. Although a growing body of work is emerging that explores religious factors as one of the major causes of corruption. Of particular interest is the work of Machiavelli on religion. Machiavelli links corruption to the insolence of the clergy and the church, and that religion appealed to the selfishness of man through its doctrine of rewards and punishment, thereby inducing proper behaviour and good conduct that is necessary for the well-being of the society. Contrary to this, Nigerian society parades clergies and churches that serve as safe haven to looters of state’s treasury who lodge them in churches as tithes, mission-works, offerings, and donations. These, partly contribute to the spread of corruption in Nigeria. It is in the light of this that the paper seeks to examine the utility of Machiavelli’s idea of religion in curbing corruption in Nigeria.