He backed up his views with Articles 15 and 16 of UNCAC and sections 8, 9 and 10 of the ICPC Act.
He listed what is considered as corruption under Article 19 of UNCAC and Section 19 of the ICPC Act as: illicit enrichment, trading in influence etc.

Sincerely this man is a f.o.o.l illicit enrichment means the act a person is enriched at the expense of another in circumstances which the law treats as unjust. is that not stealing? in a simple word stealing from another person to enrich yourself…. MR YOU ARE A FAKE MAN

Goke7:

they just think we no sabi english, no matter how hard they try, GEJ gave himself away as the most corrupt Nigerian President with that statement, he should be behind bars if not for political diplomacy

Nbote:
And with each passing day GEJ is being justified...

Kingspin:
Stealing is not corruption, the process made them different but when the last president mentioned it the media, APC and their supporters key in and how it for election purposes.

onyi4edu:
GEJ was so right when he made that statement. The two words are not even synonymous

Inasmuch as this is true, both practices are bad and must be condemned

Did you guys bother to look at the date of that news item? It was definately a GEJ era comment Made in 2014.

pmc01:
You still do not get the point. It is not in the place of the President to make such distinction. What was the need anyway? You know how Nigerians love to excuse wrongdoings and he still provides them a good cover to 'steal' because it is different from 'corruption'. Who doesn't know how to search the dictionary for the meaning of the words?

Did he say either was good or simply emphasized that they be called their legal Names?
Politics was the bane not the president's clarification!

Goke7 you are quite right. They fail to realize that it is a 2014 comment.

If anyone/body knows the definition of corruption, I think it's Transparency International. It defines corruption:

Generally speaking as “the abuse of entrusted power for private gain”. Corruption can be classified as grand, petty and political, depending on the amounts of money lost and the sector where it occurs.

Grand corruption consists of acts committed at a high level of government that distort policies or the central functioning of the state, enabling leaders to benefit at the expense of the public good. Petty corruption refers to everyday abuse of entrusted power by low- and mid-level public officials in their interactions with ordinary citizens, who often are trying to access basic goods or services in places like hospitals, schools, police departments and other agencies.

Political corruption is a manipulation of policies, institutions and rules of procedure in the allocation of resources and financing by political decision makers, who abuse their position to sustain their power, status and wealth.

http://www.transparency.org/what-is-corruption/#define

Abuse of political position to sustain personal wealth (i.e. stealing in public office) is a subset/component of corruption. No one should try to tell us otherwise. http://www.transparency.org/glossary/term/embezzlement

Other elements of corruption are explained here: http://www.transparency.org/glossary/

bakila:

Did you guys bother to look at the date of that news item? It was definately a GEJ era comment Made in 2014.

my guy, we know but some of us know its just one of the gimmicks by the pdp goons to launder the battered image of their party for some political mileage. We understand the game, thanks.

That awkward moment when a law or act is Twerk to favour a yam eater

Just wait till they tell you that Transparency.org is anti Jonathan

hyelhira:
If anyone/body knows the definition of corruption, I think it's Transparency International. It defines corruption:

Generally speaking as “the abuse of entrusted power for private gain”. Corruption can be classified as grand, petty and political, depending on the amounts of money lost and the sector where it occurs.

Grand corruption consists of acts committed at a high level of government that distort policies or the central functioning of the state, enabling leaders to benefit at the expense of the public good. Petty corruption refers to everyday abuse of entrusted power by low- and mid-level public officials in their interactions with ordinary citizens, who often are trying to access basic goods or services in places like hospitals, schools, police departments and other agencies.

Political corruption is a manipulation of policies, institutions and rules of procedure in the allocation of resources and financing by political decision makers, who abuse their position to sustain their power, status and wealth.

http://www.transparency.org/what-is-corruption/#define

Abuse of political position to sustain personal wealth (i.e. stealing in public office) is a subset/component of corruption. No one should try to tell us otherwise. http://www.transparency.org/glossary/term/embezzlement

Other elements of corruption are explained here: http://www.transparency.org/glossary/

989900:
cor·rup·tion
kəˈrəpSH(ə)n/
noun
1.
dishonest or fraudulent conduct by those in power, typically involving bribery.
"the journalist who wants to expose corruption in high places"
synonyms: dishonesty, unscrupulousness, double-dealing, fraud, fraudulence, misconduct, crime, criminality, wrongdoing; bribery, venality, extortion, profiteering, payola; informalgraft, grift, crookedness, sleaze
"political corruption"

steal
stēl/Submit
verb
gerund or present participle: stealing
1.
take (another person's property) without permission or legal right and without intending to return it.
"thieves stole her bicycle"
synonyms: purloin, thieve, take, take for oneself, help oneself to, loot, pilfer, run off with, abscond with, carry off, shoplift; embezzle, misappropriate; informalwalk off with, rob, swipe, snatch, nab, rip off, lift, “liberate”, “borrow”, filch, pinch, heist; informalnick; formalpeculate
"the burglars stole a fax machine"
theft, thieving, thievery, robbery, larceny, burglary, shoplifting, pilfering, pilferage, looting, misappropriation;
embezzlement;
formalpeculation
"he was convicted of stealing"

Verdict: Stealing is a form of corruption. Corruption may not necessarily be stealing.

I think the ICPC's explanation is in context with the law(he made some references).

When GEJ made that statement i taught about it for long...cos following the dictionary definition they shld be synonyms and all inclusive....

Then i heard a chat with someone who clarifed that our laws made provision and distinction for who and how the different crimes shld be handled (1) stealing - criminal offense to be handled by the police ..includes armed robbery , excludes embezzlement e.t.c..... 2) corruption in context of law; excludes crimes like armed robbery...inclusive of embezzlement- to be handled by EFCC and ICPC).

Even in the USA, IRS are like the EFCC and ICPC of the country when it come to corrupt practices especially financial issues with public servants. The Police/CIA/FBI deals with other issues according to there own jurisdiction

Well irrespective... of which is which.. I think that both the EFCC and ICPC should be integrated as arms of the Police. Our own suffer done too much and guys dey do bad thinks without fear of the law... Just the way we have SARS e.t.c. cos a crime should be seen as a crime, whether its committed with the bullet of a gun or the ink of a pen...

sokera:



Sincerely this man is a f.o.o.l illicit enrichment means the act a person is enriched at the expense of another in circumstances which the law treats as unjust. is that not stealing? in a simple word stealing from another person to enrich yourself…. MR YOU ARE A FAKE MAN

MY dear,go and request for the refund of your school fees because you did not learn a thing from school. How is illicit enrichment and stealing the same?For instance,if you bear false witness against your brother to for monetary gain,you have enriched yourself illicitly but have not necessarily stolen money from any one.

noblezone:
GEJ is past, Buhari is present.
We don't need definitions of stealing and corruption.

When a budget was stolen before it was even approved, the present regime has shown us what "good governance" is all about.

Will you shut that thing there! Where is the "good governance in this govt and who secretly authorized the stealing of the budget from the National Assembly? Why are you people so gullible and mischievous? Gosh!

pmc01:
You still do not get the point. It is not in the place of the President to make such distinction. What was the need anyway? You know how Nigerians love to excuse wrongdoings and he still provides them a good cover to 'steal' because it is different from 'corruption'. Who doesn't know how to search the dictionary for the meaning of the words?

the president then said that most of the the things we call corruption are stealing.


if as NNPC boss lift fuel using his influence to lift fuel at a deport where he is not in charge that is corruption, but if takes what does not belong to him from his office that is stealing

blackpanda:
Nigerians are their short memory, warped thinking and utter absolute ignorance. Keep playing around with your futures dumbasses!

This actually got me laughing. Don't mind them, let them continue to explain the difference between six and half dozen to us.

pmc01:
You still do not get the point. It is not in the place of the President to make such distinction. What was the need anyway? You know how Nigerians love to excuse wrongdoings and he still provides them a good cover to 'steal' because it is different from 'corruption'. Who doesn't know how to search the dictionary for the meaning of the words?

But GEJ never said any of them was good, he only distinguished the two. The fact that he said stealing in not corruption doesn't mean he support stealing or corruption.

temitemi1:
God Bless My Hero(GEJ)

where you go since?

Goke7:


Don't be surprised, pdp is only trying to save its battered image by tongue-lashing the present FG and also trying to launder the ugly image of Jonathan, hence the reason for a thread like this. Don't expect anything good comment about PMB from pdp fans even if he tars the entire road in the south east. Their strategy is play dirty and try to get back into aso rock by 2019 or else pdp will be awaiting final burial by then.

Buhari's Islamic agenda, tribalism and wickedness won't let him tar the roads in the North central(middle belt) region talk more of south east. The SE don't need him to survive, we never have

AZeD1:

Doesn't stealing fall under illicit enrichment?

Law is not common sense or our opinion, the law is the law. For statutory definition of stealing, see section 383 of Criminal Code Act, C38 LFN, 2010

bakila:

Did you guys bother to look at the date of that news item? It was definately a GEJ era comment Made in 2014.

is it the date more important than the message.

dlox147:
not everyone agree', I have, in so many cases encountered educated man and women who still can't distinguish the difference.

They even laugh at you when you try to explain.

Even here: an attempt to pour light on a fellow nairalander on the subject ended up in abuse and insult

I will never differenciate between corruption and stealing.
Both corruption and stealing may include many activities including bribery, embezzlement, fraud, nepotism, theft, forgery and exams malpractice. all these are forms of corruption, the examples are only a tip of iceberg and I'm sure they would keep us busy for a while.

..smh. .. You can't just understand humans

Themandator:


Even here: an attempt to pour light on a fellow nairalander on the subject ended up in abuse and insult

yaki84:




stealing is a criminal offence.
if a child steals meat in the pot of soup, will u say he is corrupt? wont u call him a thief!
corruption is a crime, stealing is a crime so in otherwords stealing can never be corruption, period. both r crimes n shud be treated differently.
if somoene steals u call d police on him, but incase of corruption going to police is like fetching water with a basket.


am not just making common sense but A WHOLE LOTTA SENSE,

Stealing is a corrupt practice!

Bull Shit. Because the word stealing wasn't used in the Article 19 of UNCAC and Section 19 of the ICPC act does not expunge stealing from being a corrupt practice. The concept of "Illicit enrichment" covers everything

"Illicit enrichment is criminalized under Article 20 of the United Nations Convention against Corruption (UNCAC), which defines it as the “significant increase in the assets of a public official that he or she cannot reasonably explain in relation to his or her lawful income.” Illicit enrichment is also prescribed as an offense in the Inter-American Convention against Corruption (IACAC) and the African Union Convention on Preventing and Combating Corruption (AUCPCC) under comparable definitions. Despite such broad international recognition, the criminalization of illicit enrichment is not universally accepted as an anticorruption measure. Instead, it continues to generate extensive debate and controversy".

https://star.worldbank.org/star/publication/take-criminalizing-illicit-enrichment-fight-corruption

Stealing & Corruption are two different sides of the same Coin.... Corruption encompasses a whole lot of vices while Stealing remains a fractional Part.

Ghost447:
Law is not common sense or our opinion, the law is the law. For statutory definition of stealing, see section 383 of Criminal Code Act, C38 LFN, 2010

Common sense is allowed in Law which is why we have three types of rule, The golden rule, Mischief rule, Plain meaning/literal rule

emmykk:
the president then said that most of the the things we call corruption are stealing.


if as NNPC boss lift fuel using his influence to lift fuel at a deport where he is not in charge that is corruption, but if takes what does not belong to him from his office that is stealing

which literally means illicit enrichment

sokera:



Sincerely this man is a f.o.o.l illicit enrichment means the act a person is enriched at the expense of another in circumstances which the law treats as unjust. is that not stealing? in a simple word stealing from another person to enrich yourself…. MR YOU ARE A FAKE MAN

Kudos. The ICPC boss knows this but because of ego, he want to justify himself.

/
Stealing is corruption.

No need dressing up a vice using semantics to confuse and convince.

Nigerians understand the context of the statement credited to Jonathan. There is no need for technicalities.

\

onyi4edu:
GEJ was so right when he made that statement. The two words are not even synonymous

Inasmuch as this is true, both practices are bad and must be condemned

Uncle Jona was never right, don't be bias person. Stealing is corruption, no matter the way you want to confuse people. Both stealing n corruption are bad vices. Either you steal by gun, or with pen they are all stealing and corruption. Who steals by gun does what? And who steals by pen does what? Both have stole and corrupt ok. Either you steal N10 or you steal N10 billion before GOD its all stealing and corruption, only men will reason differently.

Now for example, can a well trained and well cultured child steal? NO, only corrupt children steal. So therefore whenever you steal you have compromised people trust, corrupt and you have been influenced negatively so both stealing and corruption are breed by greed ok. Only a corrupt and greedy mind will be convinced to steal. So don't try to lecture or give us that kind of fallacy on both vices ok.
ICPC chairman should find something else to say. Both vices are bad, ICPC only deals with financial crimes of it which is corrupt practices that's the only thing he can tell me while other forces like Police deal with others. So he should not confuse people mainly because his office does not involve in the fight against the stealing aspect.

I know you like Uncle Jona, but when you like someone don't try to adjudged every of the person's actions to be right always. Whenever the person's opinion goes contrary to what is good, pls do say it always and don't be blinded by everything that comes from the person.

Mostly Nigerians always believe in their clergy. Some do say Amen to all the prayer their pastors say without thinking because they believe all pastors are perfect beings and can't make any mistakes. Whatever the pastor says is always right because of the huge love and respect they have for such pastor. But white people go home after church and ponder deeply on whatever the pastor says.

temitemi1:
God Bless My Hero(GEJ)

You can say that again

Whether u steal or get corrupted it is now a criminal offence in the land..Let us face the reality and stop all these legal semantism, what is bad is bad..whether u steal directly or indirectly u are a thief before God and man

pyxon:



Buhari's Islamic agenda, tribalism and wickedness won't let him tar the roads in the North central(middle belt) region talk more of south east. The SE don't need him to survive, we never have

even if he tars, you guys may still reject him which is the point am making.