Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala has revealed that returning to serve in the Nigerian government was one of the biggest risks she ever took, recounting how her family faced serious threats during her efforts to fight corruption.
The Director-General of the World Trade Organization (WTO) said she experienced retaliation from individuals who opposed her anti-corruption efforts while serving in government.
According to Okonjo-Iweala, her mother was kidnapped and held for five days, with the kidnappers demanding that she resign from office.
So when you fight corruption, those same people fight you back. And if they can’t fight you, they smear you. So they kidnapped my mother and held her for five days and said I should resign.”
She described the experience as a stark reminder of the dangers associated with confronting powerful interests in the fight against corruption.
“Fighting corruption is dangerous. But who will fight for you?” she said.
Okonjo-Iweala, who served as Nigeria’s Coordinating Minister for the Economy and Minister of Finance, has previously spoken about the personal and professional challenges she faced during her time in government.
