The 2023 presidential candidate of the Labour Party (LP), Peter Obi, has attributed the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC)’s claim that about 60 percent of Nigerian students are involved in fraud to systemic failure.
Obi’s comments come on the heels of the EFCC’s warning about the rising cases of cybercrime among undergraduates on Nigerian campuses.
“The worrisome statement by the Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) that 6 out of every 10 Nigerian university students are involved in ‘419’ is deeply troubling and must not be taken lightly.
“Nigeria already has a very limited number of students in higher institutions, estimated at 2 to 2.5 “million. If indeed about 60% of them, roughly 1.4 million young people, are involved in fraud, then we are not just facing a crime issue; we are confronting a serious moral and systemic failure,” he said.
Obi questioned how Nigeria arrived at such a situation, the role models available to students, and the values they are exposed to in society, noting that young people often become what they consistently see.
He asserted that when a system appears to reward wrongdoing, fails to uphold integrity, and allows individuals in leadership positions to face allegations of forgery and dishonesty without consequences, it sends a dangerous message.
“It suggests that hard work does not matter, and that results, by any means, are acceptable. These points clearly point to a collapse of moral values,” he noted.
Obi referenced Socrates, saying, “an unexamined life is not worth living,” and stressed that Nigeria must now examine itself.
He emphasised that the situation is not about condemning young Nigerians but about acknowledging that leadership sets the tone.
“If we do not demonstrate integrity at the top, we cannot expect it at the bottom,” he stated, while urging Nigeria to urgently rebuild its value system, enforce accountability without bias, and create an environment where honesty, hard work, and discipline are rewarded.
He added that this approach is the only sustainable path to securing the country’s future.
