Former Senator for Kaduna Central, Shehu Sani, has expressed his disapproval of the criteria used to generate the 2024 Corrupt Person of the Year list.
On Monday, the Organised Crime and Corruption Reporting Project (OCCRP) released a contentious list that includes President Bola Tinubu among the top five nominees.
Established in 2006, OCCRP operates as a worldwide network of investigative journalists, boasting a presence across six continents.
The organization revealed that nominations for the list were gathered from readers, journalists, judges of the Person of the Year award, and other members of the OCCRP global network, resulting in over 55,000 submissions.
The OCCRP identified the top finalists as follows: Kenyan President William Ruto, former Indonesian President Joko Widodo, Nigerian President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, former Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, and Indian businessman Gautam Adani.
In response, Sani criticized OCCRP for relying on subjective opinions instead of objective evidence in compiling the list.
“Labeling the Nigerian President and other African leaders as the most corrupt through online voting, rather than based on undeniable facts and statistics, reflects a political assessment shaped by views, opinions, and perspectives,” Sani remarked.
