Moral Education and Corruption in Nigeria: A Reflection on Plato's Counsel on Education

Abstract

Many nations of the world today especially in Africa are battling with the issues of corruption and Nigeria is not an exception. Sixty years after independence, the country is yet to come out of its socio-economic and political woes despite her abundant natural and human resources. There is so much abuse of entrusted power for private gain by most public operators through diversion and embezzlement of public funds meant for development purposes. With this scenario, certain questions call for attention: (a) what could be the cause of high rate of corruption in Nigeria and by extension Africa? (b) What are the dangers posed by corruption to the development of the area? (c) How can it be reduced or completely eradicated from our society?. Adopting the expository, analytical and critical methods of philosophical enquiry, this paper attributes the problem to moral ignorance occasioned by lack of proper moral upbringing at the formative years of the Nigerian child educational foundation resulting in the weakness of the ‘will’ to adhere to moral principles. The paper agrees with the Platonic position that he who knows what is good cannot do what is bad and calls for effective crusade against moral ignorance through the training of both the intellect and the will. therefore suggests Plato’s counsel on education where much emphasis is laid on moral education; that is the inculcation of moral habituation through the training of both the intellect and the will. It is believed that if this platonic counsel is strictly imbibed, with the passage of time people will not only know the good but also have the moral will to translate same into practice. By so doing, the issue of corruption will be reduced if not completely eradicated so as to usher in a responsible society characterized by sustainable development.