Some 80 or so individuals with Nigerian names were arrested or indicted for cyber crime by the FBI recently. The "Nigerian world" was supposed to crumble, right? No way!! As an American with Nigerian heritage, I can never feel guilty for the crimes committed by other Nigerian-Americans (or residents), just like the American with European heritage does not feel guilty for the mass murder committed by another American of same heritage. I will feel guilty for a crime committed by me; and for that committed by a member of my family for which I either benefited, or could have prevented. It smacks of inferiority syndrome to wallow in collective guilt, unless somehow one partook/benefited in the crime. We know Nigeria's culture in its pristine form frowns at corruption and inordinate desire for filthy lucre. Unfortunately, somewhere few decades past, things went awry and that beautiful culture began eroding. Rather than wallow in guilt for crimes committed by other Nigerian-Americans (or any other Diasporan or home group), the good Nigerians should work for themselves to restore their culture back to that pristine point.

A couple ideas to that end:

1. A campaign of unbiased name and shame. We need to know who the families and associates of all Nigerian crooks are, including their towns and villages. Many close relatives benefit from these crimes; in fact, some relatives goad their wards into this get-rich-quick mania.

2. Strategic property confiscation and disposal - seize all ill-gotten wealth. Don't destroy, but redistribute among the poor unrelated to the criminal.

3. A revolution in governance and citizenship. Both Nigerian leaders and followers alike are guilty of the culture erosion. These criminals end up becoming leaders. Thus, there must be accountability among leaders and followers alike.

4. A ban on public spraying of money.

5. Intense look into what religious leaders are doing in terms of sources of funds they display, and their role in this corruption culture.

6. If you are honest, stay away from folks who have no verifiable source of income, yet are spending lavishly. When they buy a drink for you with crime-derived money, they will rope you in when caught. Who wants to go down alone?

7. Massive investment and training in cyber technologies to nip these crooks in the bud.

Any solutions to return Nigeria's culture of honest living have to be drastic; no sugarcoating anything. Are there advocates in Nigeria to take this task on?

Nice write up, but honestly try to keep your mind off Nigerian issues. Problems in Nigeria are tied to our culture so it is going to be very difficult to make any progress. Nigerians are progressively getting poorer, so criminality is sure to increase. Most government officials only care about themselves and their families. No one was even affected by the arrests made.

Please cool your mind. Forget about Nigeria.

Tianamen1:
Nice write up, but honestly try to keep your mind off Nigerian issues. Problems in Nigeria are tied to our culture so it is going to be very difficult to make any progress. Nigerians are progressively getting poorer, so criminality is sure to increase. Most government officials only care about themselves and their families. No one was even affected by the arrests made.

Please cool your mind. Forget about Nigeria.

We should not give up. We should make an effort