The Ethics of Bribery and Corruption in Nigerian Public Service: A Philosophical Analysis

This study examines the ethical dimensions of bribery and corruption in the Nigerian public service, drawing on moral philosophy to interrogate the normative justifications that public servants and citizens offer for engaging in corrupt practices. Corruption in Nigeria's public sector has been extensively documented from sociological and legal perspectives, yet philosophical analysis of the moral reasoning underlying these practices remains sparse. Using a descriptive philosophical design, the study reviews documented cases of public sector corruption across the South West and North Central geopolitical zones, analysing them through the lenses of Kantian deontological ethics and utilitarian moral theory. Primary data are gathered through structured interviews with 30 civil servants and ethics officers in Abuja and Ibadan, supplemented by secondary sources published between 2020 and 2024. Findings reveal that most respondents justify minor bribery through consequentialist reasoning, arguing that the positive outcomes for their families outweigh the institutional harm caused. The study demonstrates that this reasoning fails under rigorous deontological scrutiny because it treats institutional integrity as a means rather than an end. The research further argues that the normalisation of corruption reflects a deeper crisis of moral philosophy education in Nigerian public institutions. Recommendations include the integration of applied ethics training into civil service induction programmes and the strengthening of whistleblower protection frameworks. Keywords: corruption ethics, bribery, Kantian ethics, Nigerian public service, moral philosophy.