PEN ROBBERY: A SOCIETAL EVIL

There is no doubt that pen robbery is one of the greatest societal evils which has not only eaten deep into every sector in Nigeria but has also become official and legal. From a critical view, pen robbery is worse than armed robbery.

Pen robbery, an illegal way of stealing and embezzling money without the use of arms, is a catalyst which has spread across offices, institutions, and political fora. It has become a celebrated aspiration in public offices, ministries, local governments, banks, hospitals, courts and government parastatal.

Pen robbery is quite unnoticed and silent despite its cancerous syndrome which creeps any society down in a short period of time and makes a large number of citizens poor. It is a cancer that has eaten deep into the fabric of our national life. It is a disease that has sent many citizens to early grave.

Admittedly, pen robbers are the worst enemies of any society and most Nigerian politicians if not all are pen robbers. Painfully, pen robbery has become part of our normal life and there is no aspect of our social, political or even religious life free of the syringe of corruption.

Pen robbery is an epitome of high-handedness, lawlessness and a pure evidence of corruption at its peak in any country. And there is no gainsaying the fact that political pen robbers have dominated the political circumference of Nigeria. Pen robbers include state governors who use their offices to embezzle public funds; they also use their officials to inflate the cost of contract for their approval; they divert funds meant for capital project for personal gain.

Pen robbers also include those who use internet to dupe, steal and defraud people of their hard-earned money. And this cancer is prevalent among youths across the world.

Obviously, many armed robbers have once worked as political thugs for some political pen robbers who embezzle funds 'anointed' to cater for the masses.

Similarly, unemployment; which is the reason some young folks end into thuggery, money rituals, is a baton passed on to many generations from pen robbers.

The most painful part is that pen robbery has crept into churches and mosques. Pastors and Imams who are expected to be the shining example of Godly life are the set of individuals using anointed oils and holy water to get money and sex from innocent Nigerians.

What about intellectual criminals? These are lecturers and professors who exchange grades for sex and money, principal officers of universities who siphon allocation alloted to their institutions and students union leaders who use letter head for personal gains.

Pen robbery in banks has clearly become official. Illegal deduction of fifty naira, fifty kobo from millions account users and wiring of millions of naira from one account to another by bank managers.

Frankly, pen robbery will continue to increase because of the people's love for mundane things and exotic life. In fact, it is obvious that only few Nigerians are corruption free in official functions. And it will be very difficult to find that few.

By: Iyiola Oluwatosin Damilare...

Tosdam:
PEN ROBBERY: A SOCIETAL EVIL

There is no doubt that pen robbery is one of the greatest societal evils which has not only eaten deep into every sector in Nigeria but has also become official and legal. From a critical view, pen robbery is worse than armed robbery.

Pen robbery, an illegal way of stealing and embezzling money without the use of arms, is a catalyst which has spread across offices, institutions, and political fora. It has become a celebrated aspiration in public offices, ministries, local governments, banks, hospitals, courts and government parastatal.

Pen robbery is quite unnoticed and silent despite its cancerous syndrome which creeps any society down in a short period of time and makes a large number of citizens poor. It is a cancer that has eaten deep into the fabric of our national life. It is a disease that has sent many citizens to early grave.

Admittedly, pen robbers are the worst enemies of any society and most Nigerian politicians if not all are pen robbers. Painfully, pen robbery has become part of our normal life and there is no aspect of our social, political or even religious life free of the syringe of corruption.

Pen robbery is an epitome of high-handedness, lawlessness and a pure evidence of corruption at its peak in any country. And there is no gainsaying the fact that political pen robbers have dominated the political circumference of Nigeria. Pen robbers include state governors who use their offices to embezzle public funds; they also use their officials to inflate the cost of contract for their approval; they divert funds meant for capital project for personal gain.

Pen robbers also include those who use internet to dupe, steal and defraud people of their hard-earned money. And this cancer is prevalent among youths across the world.

Obviously, many armed robbers have once worked as political thugs for some political pen robbers who embezzle funds 'anointed' to cater for the masses.

Similarly, unemployment; which is the reason some young folks end into thuggery, money rituals, is a baton passed on to many generations from pen robbers.

The most painful part is that pen robbery has crept into churches and mosques. Pastors and Imams who are expected to be the shining example of Godly life are the set of individuals using anointed oils and holy water to get money and sex from innocent Nigerians.

What about intellectual criminals? These are lecturers and professors who exchange grades for sex and money, principal officers of universities who siphon allocation alloted to their institutions and students union leaders who use letter head for personal gains.

Pen robbery in banks has clearly become official. Illegal deduction of fifty naira, fifty kobo from millions account users and wiring of millions of naira from one account to another by bank managers.

Frankly, pen robbery will continue to increase because of the people's love for mundane things and exotic life. In fact, it is obvious that only few Nigerians are corruption free in official functions. And it will be very difficult to find that few.

By: Iyiola Oluwatosin Damilare...