Christian Responses to Corruption Among Civil Servants in Abuja Federal Ministries

Corruption in Nigeria's public sector remains a major governance challenge despite the majority of civil servants identifying as Christians. This study examines how Christian faith, church teaching, and fellowship influence the attitudes and behaviour of Christian civil servants in Abuja federal ministries regarding corruption. A descriptive survey design was adopted, with questionnaires administered to 220 Christian civil servants from five federal ministries in Abuja, covering religious practice frequency, attitudes toward corrupt practices, and self-reported professional behaviour. Interviews with ten senior civil servants and six pastors of Abuja-based churches provided qualitative depth. Findings indicate that 76 percent of respondents personally oppose corruption on religious grounds. However, 53 percent report having engaged in corrupt practices in the previous twelve months despite their stated religious opposition. Institutional pressure, peer normalisation, and lack of church teaching on professional ethics are identified as enablers of this gap between belief and behaviour. Church sermons rarely address specific workplace ethical challenges. The study concludes that Christian faith does not automatically translate into anti-corruption behaviour in the Nigerian public sector, and identifies a critical need for churches in Abuja to develop applied professional ethics programmes that bridge personal faith and workplace integrity.

Keywords: corruption, Christian civil servants, professional ethics, Abuja, public sector