The Nation Newspaper

Tag: corruption

  • Corruption: Ex-ministers defend ex-president

    Corruption: Ex-ministers defend ex-president

    Some former ministers in the immediate past administration yesterday protested against President Muhammadu Buhari’s style, following plans to probe the  Goodluck Jonathan administration.

    They accused Buhari’s administration of trying to discredit Jonathan’s government by labelling it as “corrupt” and “irresponsible”.

    They said Jonathan’s administration did not encourage corruption, but fought it vigorously within the context of the rule of law and due process.

    They urged the President to press on with the anti-corruption fight, but in a fair and non-partisan manner.

    They said the Buhari administration should be fair to acknowledge Jonathan administration’s good deeds.

    They challenged the administration and the APC to publish the details of the hand over notes they received.

    The former cabinet members made their feelings known in a statement signed on their behalf by the ex-National Planning minister Dr Abubakar Suleiman.

    The statement reads: “We, the ministers who served under the President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan administration, have watched with increasing alarm and concern the concerted effort by the Buhari administration and members of the All Progressives Congress (APC) to condemn, ridicule and undermine the efforts of that administration, in addition to impugning the integrity of its individual members.

    “While we concede that every administration has the right to chart its own path as it deems fit, we nevertheless consider the vilification of the Jonathan administration to be ill-intentioned, unduly partisan and in bad faith.

    “The effort that has been made to portray each and every member of the Jonathan administration as corrupt and irresponsible, in an orchestrated and vicious trial by media, has created a lynch mentality that discredits our honest contributions to the growth and development of our beloved nation.

    “We are proud to have served Nigeria and we boldly affirm that we did so diligently and to the best of our abilities.

    “The improvements that have been noticed today in the power sector, in national security, and in social services and other sectors did not occur overnight. They are products of solid foundations laid by the same Jonathan administration.”

    The former ministers faulted Buhari administration and the APC for rating the Jonathan administration as corrupt.

    The statement added: “Contrary to what the APC and its agents would rather have the public believe, the Jonathan administration did not encourage corruption, rather it fought corruption vigorously, within the context of the rule of law and due process.

    “For the benefit of those who may have forgotten so soon, it was the Jonathan administration that got rid of the fraud in fertiliser subsidies, which had plagued the country for decades. This helped to unleash a revolution in agricultural production and productivity.

    “It was also the Jonathan administration that supported the institutional development of strong systems and mechanisms to curb corruption in the public service and plug revenue leakages. These included the development of the Government Integrated Financial Management Platform, The Single Treasury Account (TSA), and the Integrated Personnel and Payroll Management Systems (IPPIS), in addition to the biometric registration of civil servants and pensioners which saved the country over N100 billion paid to ghost workers and ghost pensioners.”

    They also listed the cleansing of the oil sector , the tarring of 25, 000 kilometres of roads and alleged robust  multinational response to Boko Haram insurgency as the highpoints of  Jonathan’s achievements in office.

    The statement said: “To ensure greater transparency and integrity in the oil and gas sector, the Jonathan administration ordered investigations and put mechanisms in place to check the theft of Nigeria’s crude oil.

    “It was also under the Jonathan administration that a Nigerian Content policy was introduced, which opened up that sector to Nigerians in a manner that was not previously the case.

    “ It was also the Jonathan administration that mobilised and secured the support of our neighbouring countries to ensure a robust multinational response to the menace of terrorism and insurgency, resulting in notable advancements in the fight against terror. President Jonathan personally initiated the collaboration that led to these advancements and ensured that Nigeria provided the needed financial support for the Multinational Joint Task Force.

    “It was the Jonathan administration that repaired and rehabilitated over 25, 000 kilometres of our nation’s roads. Nigeria also became a profitable and preferred investment-friendly destination. It was under President Jonathan, for example, that Nigeria’s electric power sector became more competitive and attractive to local and foreign investments.

    “The same administration promoted the rule of law, free speech, fundamental human rights, and a robust freedom of information regime. Women’s rights to participate in public life and the Federal Character principle as well as other Constitutional principles were also respected.

    “In every respect, our administration promoted inclusive governance and encouraged all stakeholders, including the private sector to play key roles in the transformation of Nigeria.”

    On electoral process, the former ministers said the “chief beneficiaries of Jonathan’s reforms are the most vociferous today.”

    The statement said: “It should also not be forgotten that the Jonathan administration strengthened electoral institutions and created a peaceful environment for democracy to thrive. On this score, it is sad and ironic that the chief beneficiaries of that same legacy are the most vociferous today in condemning President Jonathan and his team.

    “Perhaps the new administration and the APC would be sincere enough to publish the details of the handover notes they received.

    “In addition, the Buhari administration should be fair enough to acknowledge the good works of the Jonathan administration. No administration can be either completely bad or completely good. President Jonathan’s achievements in moving this country to greater heights deserve to be duly acknowledged. We urge President Muhammadu Buhari to build on these achievements.

    “We also urge him to press on with the anti-corruption fight, but in a fair and non-partisan manner, in line with due process, and not as a political witch-hunt.”

    Although they asked the President to continue with the ongoing probe of the administration of Jonathan, they said  it must be in strict accordance with his oath of office to treat all Nigerians equally and with the fear of God.

    The statement said: “The various lies and fabrications being peddled by some self-appointed spokespersons of the administration may entertain the unwary, but such sensationalism may achieve the unintended effect of de-marketing our country within the international community.

    “ All such persons playing to the gallery for whatever gains should be called to order. The name-calling of members of the Jonathan administration and the trial by news media should also stop.

    “We encourage President Buhari to continue with the probes, but this must be in strict accordance with his oath of office to treat all Nigerians equally and with the fear of God.

    “We have reserved our comment until now, in the fervent hope that once the euphoria that may have inspired the various attacks on the past administration wears off, reason will prevail.

    “But we are constrained to speak up in defence of the legacy of the Jonathan administration, and shall do so again, for as long as those who are determined to rubbish that legacy, are unrelenting in their usual deployment of blackmail, persecution, and similar tactics. “

  • Corruption and NDDC 

    During the time of Mr. Godwin Omene, the first MD of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), the Niger Delta Regional Development Master Plan was initiated and developed by GTZ and this provided a very comprehensive plan of how the region can be developed across various sectors. A lot of effort went into developing that plan and even today it is still relevant for the proper development of the region. Rather than use the plan to develop the region it was used as an excuse to agitate for more funds which were then diverted into private pockets. Slowly the NDDC budget got captured by political and other vested interests.

    As the budgets increased over the years, the value of the projects started to blow up. The use of variations to existing projects went out of control. For instance, a contract originally awarded at N3.39 billion to ROUDO NIG. LTD for Sandfilling and Shore protection of Ogu Town ended up costing N8, 133 billion, a whopping 230% increment. Construction of Isielu-Okaigbene Idungboko road awarded to JID CONSTRUCTION COMPANY LTD for N2.35 billion ended up at N3.73 billion, increased by 160%. Construction of (the same?) Isielu-Okaigbene Idungboko road was also awarded to INTER-BAU CONSTRUCTION NIG. LTD for N585 million and ended up at N3.67 billion, an increase of 620%. Construction of Ikot Ukap Ndiya internal roads in Nsit Ubium LGA awarded to OSMOSERVE GLOBAL LTD for N1.2 billion ended up at N2.86 billion, an increase of 235%. This is just the tip of the iceberg of hundreds of projects varied in this manner. One key factor connecting these projects is that they tend to be large infrastructure projects like roads, bridges, shoreline protection, canalization and dredging.

    Since inception NDDC has had about N2.2 trillion budgeted of which about N1.4 trillion has been received. As of 2008 the Commission had awarded just over 2,500 projects which rose sharply to 6,000 projects by 2013 and now 8,000 projects in 2015 based on recent comments in the press by the last Chairman of the Board, Senator Bassey Ewa Henshaw. According to him, the Commission needs about N1 trillion to complete outstanding projects.  The Chairman revealed that the total projects outstanding is now at 8,000 projects worth N1 trillion and about N800 billion is needed to clear outstanding liabilities. So what happened to the almost N350 billion received between 2011 and 2015?

    There are various mechanisms used to defraud the Commission and siphon the funds afore-mentioned. If the network of corrupt officers at the Commission are not removed and the mechanisms documented here are not dismantled, whoever President Muhammadu Buhari brings into the NDDC to replace the existing Board is likely to fall into the ‘bear trap’ of corrupt practices that have been ingrained into the fabric of the Commission’s administrative systems.

    1. Budget Fraud: The problems starts at the budget process where a lot of fake projects are smuggled into the project by special interest groups that include the Executives, Board members, National Assembly NDDC committee members, the Presidency, State Governors and assorted politicians and connected businessmen.
    2. Hidden Budget Execution: Sometime around 2004 the National Assembly complained that the Commission was repeating projects in its budgets. Whenever NDDC budgets are approved by the National Assembly it contains funds for visible and ‘invisible’ projects. Off balance sheet spreadsheets are used to maintain a schedule of hidden budget heads and the management of this spreadsheet and the scheduling of projects to be paid through this fund is a key aspect of the fraud at the Commission.
    3. Procurement Fraud: The whole ‘due process’ is a fallacy at NDDC. The Procurement Unit has perfected the creation of award letters to the highest bidders. You cannot get an award letter without parting with some money. All the paperwork is faked and in most cases where there is urgency driven by Executive demand there is no paperwork at all. There are no publications and even when they do publish, the process is rigged in favour of their preferred contractors. Contracts are shared amongst the Executives with their Special Assistants acting as agents to solicit desperate businessmen who pay 15% of the face value of these contracts and the Procurement Unit prepares the paperwork for the favoured contractor.
    4. Project Design and Project Monitoring Fraud: This is especially grave and works by inflating the quantities required in the Bill of Quantities (BoQ) for large-scale infrastructure projects. For instance the BoQ may specify that a canal be dredged to 10 metres depth and this is used to price the contract but in reality the contractor will only dredge the channel to 5 metres depth and the excess funds are shared. This type of fraud is used across road construction, shoreline protection and canalization projects. A famous case is the East-West Expressway between Warri and Port Harcourt where the Ministry of Niger Delta had to redesign the road due to bad design by the NDDC. The irony is that a careful review of the BoQs always reveals the over-specified quantities and the responsible staff members. The Project monitoring process is badly compromised which is why most roads built by NDDC last for no more than 9 to 15 months before they are washed away by the elements. As such we suffer collective lack of infrastructure and loss of our common wealth.
    5. Financial Management and Reporting: At the heart of the fraud at NDDC is the misrepresentation of payments and how they are presented in the accounts for external auditors. The Directorate of Finance & Supply keeps a very close lid on information maintained within its SAGE software to the point where SAGE is kept in a separate network and accessed by very few persons within the Directorate, ostensibly to keep out hackers. The Directorate abets the ongoing looting of the Commission by making questionable payments to favoured contractors who are acting in cahoots with the Executives, prioritising scheduling of payments to contractors who are willing to pay for the ‘service’, hiding of questionable payments within other legitimate transactions and more. Contractors who are not connected wait years for payment for completed works whilst fraudulent payments get prioritised and expressly processed.
    6. Documentation Fraud: During major contract award periods it is standard practice to move the procurement team into hotel accommodation where they can perfect the paperwork in connivance with favoured contractors and produce the documents for at least 3 companies who submit responses to the tenders; the winning company is simply supplying all the ‘competition’ required to fool any external review of the procurement process. The Memos raised during the project monitoring process are also suspect because the word of the field engineer who inspects the project and signs off the field report is what is used to justify the payment certificates raised.  Most of the contents of these field reports will not stand rigorous analysis by independent engineering assessors.

    With about 8,000 projects outstanding and N1 trillion outstanding liabilities, the Commission cannot afford to award any more projects and rather should be focused over the next 4 years on clearing up existing liabilities and sending staff and contractors who have misappropriated public funds to the justice system for prosecution. Perhaps we need an AMCON-like management for the NDDC to clean up the place and institute deep reforms before new project awards can be commenced.

     

    • Hanson, a public affairs analyst and activist wrote in from Lagos.

  • Wike, Amaechi disagree on corruption, witch-hunt

    Rivers State Governor Nyesom Wike of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and his predecessor, Rotimi Amaechi, a chieftain of the All Progressives Congress (APC), have disagreed on the governor’s anti-corruption crusade and the alleged witch-hunt of his predecessor.

    Amaechi said Wike, who was his former Chief of Staff and director-general of his campaign organisation in 2011, had been releasing government’s documents to show that his predecessor was corrupt.

    But the former governor insisted that he did not like stealing.

    Wike, a former Minister of State for Education, yesterday in Port Harcourt, the state capital, through his Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Opunabo Inko-Tariah, alleged that Amaechi was corrupt.

    Amaechi, a former chairman of the Nigeria Governors’ Forum (NGF), said he would not appear before the judicial commission of enquiry Wike inaugurated to investigate his administration in the last 18 months.

    The former governor described the panel as illegal.

    But Inko-Tariah said: “It is laughable that Amaechi will call illegal a panel that has already been declared lawful by a court of law. This means, as at when he questioned its proprietary in court, he thought the court would declare it illegal but was shamed. This is no media trial and the government will not be embroiled in any war of attrition (with Amaechi).

    “He (ex-governor) should defend himself, just as Dr. Peter Odili (ex-Rivers governor) did during the Justice Kayode Esho’s panel. Media trial will not vindicate him (Amaechi), as the sentiment he is trying to whip up has failed.

  • ‘Blame managers for corruption’

    Corruption will not be so endemic without the collaboration of professional managers, a former Group Managing Director of the Odu’a Investment Company Limited Sir Remi Omotoso has said.

    He spoke at a lecture titled: The role of professional managers in driving real change in Nigeria during the Nigerian Institute of Management (NIM) Awards, Fellows and Spouses’Day/Luncheon in Lagos.

    According to him, poor management of resources has been the bane of development.

    “Between 1999 and  now, Nigeria made trillions of dollars, enough to make it one of the richest countries of the world and with enviable potential.

    “Unfortunately, a tiny  but extremely power group, through corruption and impunity, cornered more than 90 per cent of the commonwealth while poverty continues to rage the land,” he said.

    Omotoso continued: “Many professional  managers have been,  over time,  facilitators and collaborators in fostering the evils that are responsible for   the rot and woes of our nation, particularly on the issues  of corruption, inequity, cover-ups, wasteful spending, abandonment of projects, substandard performance of contract jobs,  over and under valuation of assets and other such deeds and collaborations unbecoming of our professional ethics, values and standards.”

    To him, no project can be designed, evaluated, bidded for an d contracted out for execution without the involvement of professional managers.

    “How come Nigerian contracts, particularly in the areas of infrastructure, are among the most outrageously expensive in the world? Why should constructing a kilometre of road in Nigeria cost about  N1billion whereas it would cost about  $ 350   million in some other places in environment of similar charac  teristics with our own?

    “How come our roads, despite the high cost, collapse after a few years of use? Were they designed in the first instance to fail so that new contracts can be awarded to repair or rebuild them? What about those abandoned   projects, over 12,500 of them scattered all over the place in Nigeria and worth over N12 trillion?”

    Omotoso said Nigerians voted the All Progressives Congress (APC) because of President Muhammadu Buhari’s integrity, adding that it will be unfair to expect him to single-handedly effect the changes Nigeria needs.

    The president, he said, requires various institutions and all Nigerians to buy into the prevailing mood of change.

    On what role professional managers should play, he said: “Our number  one  role is that of admission that we have performed abysmally in the area of in tegrity,    probity,  accountability and professionalism.

    “Many of us both in the public and private sector have made ourselves tools in the hands of politicians, businessmen of dubious characters, foreign and local, for looting the wealth of our coun try. In the process, we have helped ourselves, too, to acquire assets beyond our legitimate means.

    “Professional Managers must re-orientate themselves and re-affirm their faith and adherence to their  professional standards and ethics,” he said.

    No fewer than 117 members were conferred with Fellows, while five were inducted as Life Members.

    NIM President/Chairman of Council Dr Nelson Uwaga urged the new fellows to see it as a call to higher responsibility and service to the nation.

     

  • Council of Imams back Buhari’s loot recovery

    Council of Imams back Buhari’s loot recovery

    The Council of Imams and Ulama in Kaduna State, on Sunday said the effort by the President Muhammadu Buhari-led administration in recovering stolen wealth from past corrupt officials, was commendable.

    The resolution was passed in Kaduna after the council’s annual conference.

    The Chairman of the Council, Alhaji Baban Tuni and the Secretary-General Yusuf Arrigasyyu, presented the resolution.

    According to the resolution, the effort of the Federal Government to recover all ill-acquired wealth looted from the nation’s treasury was laudable.

    Tuni said: “Therefore, it is compulsory to retrieve the people’s right from corrupt and selfish persons.

    “The Council is urging the government to do justice to the culprits according to the provisions of the law.

    “The Council also feels delighted and appreciative of the Federal Government under President Muhammadu Buhari in its effort to wipe out insurgency and other terrorists acts from Nigeria.

    “The Council equally observes that some progress and successes have been recorded at various levels within few months of this administration.’’

    Tuni said further that the council was impressed about the recall of officers and men of the Nigerian Army who were dismissed on grounds of insubordination, treason and various other charges.

    The Council, however, reminded Buhari and all other political leaders to fulfil their campaign promises to the electorate.

    “We call on all Nigerians to remain steadfast and continuously pray for the sustenance of our country and we pray that Allah help our leaders to be just and truthful.”

  • The war against corruption

    To fight the war against corruption, the first step to take is to set up an anti-corruption tribunal with its own laws & guidelines which will make it impossible for a case of corruption to last more than six months before judgement is delivered with a reasonable punishment.

    If corruption cases are channelled through the regular courts, some of the cases will outlive the GMB’s government before it gets to conclusion, if ever.

    This is because the people involved are wealthy people who can conveniently hire the services of as many SANs as possible to defend themselves. They will penetrate the judges through these senior lawyers to procure incessant & frivolous injunctions that will last the four years tenure of the president.

    Prosecuting corruption, I have no confidence in Nigeria’s regular courts because that is where corruption gets its life line from. Corrupt judges feel their reward should not be in heaven but here on earth, helping themselves to filthy money from politicians.

    Since 1999, how many looters of public fund have been tried & found guilty, with looted money recovered & sentenced to some years of imprisonment? None. Examples abound of people who stole a large amount of public money from N2billion to N10billion who were given less than N1million fine instead of imprisonment with hard labour to serve as a deterrent to would-be-looters.  Somebody who looted N10billion & he is fined N1million, does the criminal lose anything?  No, it is Nigeria that loses because 99 % of looted money remains with the looters, apart from the money spent by the govt to prosecute the case.

    Most of the corruption cases prosecuted in Nigeria ended up in plea bargaining which is like robbing Peter to pay Paul.

    Nigerian courts prefer to sentence a pick pocket who stole N2,000 to 10years imprisonment to sending a politician who looted billions to prison. Remember, God is watching everyone.

     

    • By Israel Oyegbile, Sabo Tasha, Kaduna

  • Power, corruption and anxieties

    I start today  on the premise  or saying that power  corrupts and absolute power  corrupts absolutely. To  dilate on this matter I will  look at the life and times of three personalities  in the news recently  and the high expectations and anxieties hanging  on their actions and inactions given their offices and ambitions in their  environment. The first  is our  President Muhammadu  Buhari, his fight against  corruption  and the  public fury over the fact that most  of the appointments he has announced so far  have been lopsided in favor of  the Northern  part  of the nation.

    The  second  personality is  Donald  Trump, American  real estate  billionaire  and for now the   leading  candidate of the Republican  Party  for the 2016 presidential  elections in the US. The  third  is the EFCC  Chairman  Lamorde who is being tried for diversion  of seized money by Nigeria’s  Senate  whose leader  and his wife are good  customers  of the EFCC  on allegations of corruption.

    The  three gentlemen  are very  powerful  individuals and attention is being drawn to  their use  and misuse  of power  by their  actions or  inactions in the last  few days.  Let  me say  clearly  here that  in any democracy such as Nigeria, the largest  black  nation in the  world, and the US  the   leading global  champion  of democracy, the  quest  for equal  opportunities  and  protection  for  all  citizens, fairness  and justice should be the yard stick  to  measure  human progress  and development. It  is in the light  of these values  that I shall   look  at  the relationship of these  three leaders with  the use  of power  or the quest  for it in their  various  stations in life.

    Starting with  our President  I  think he  should  expect  the brouhaha that the announcement    of   appointments has generated  in the nation especially  the South West. This is because  it was in the Southwest  that the egg that hatched a famous presidential 2015  elections  victory  was  hatched  and there is  no need to mention any name. For  now the people  of the Southwest  are  stunned  and in  a quandary.  It  is not as if they  are the only  people in the South  of  Nigeria. But  the last  election results showed  clearly that the  South East  and South  South did  not vote for the new  president.  So expectations are not high there on appointments as in the  South  west  where there is  palpable  grief  and disappointment  on the domination of the North  on the appointments so far. Which  simply  means that the  President should do   a rethink  and redress the imbalance  in the next list  of presidential  appointments. That  is the only way  to prevent the South East  from celebrating what they  see as the emasculation  of the Southwest by the  North and that really will  be  their  way of making merry  with the embarrassment  of the South west which  is what the present  lopsidedness in announced appointments is all about.

    Undoubtedly  the President is experienced enough  as a former  Head of State  and  Commander In  Chief to know that  those  who have sour  grapes  over  his election  are  going to make mischief out of the appointments as they are and revive the fear of the Born To Rule  syndrome associated with  a once dominant North  in our recent political  history. Surely  that must be in the past now and the president’s  subsequent  appointments must reflect Nigeria’s  federal character.  A  redress in the geopolitical   in balance of the present  appointments is needed  urgently to reflect  equity  and justice and reward those  in the President’s  political  camp  who put their lives  on the line to secure  his election and  give  him the huge powers now at his disposal.

    With  regard to Donald  Trump his quest  for the presidency  of the US  was treated  with levity  and contempt before obviously because of  his controversial public  image and  outspokenness. Now most  Americans as  well as their political  leaders are laughing  with the other end of  their  mouths as Donald Trump is slowly  but  surely emerging as the popular choice  among Republican Party  members  and most ordinary Americans. Trump  is handling the campaigns masterfully  and is oratorically  sounder than the rest  of the Republican Party  candidates  and I am  not  too  sure that  he will  not   beat  the  famous Bush  name. Just  like  Barak  Obama emerged from the blues  a few years  back to beat Hilary Clinton and clinch the Democratic  Party  ticket before  going on to become the first   elected  black US president in history.

    Donald  Trump is  lucky he is  contesting  in the US where he is assured  that people  will respect  his immense wealth and know  that he  will  not use his good  offices when  elected  to loot the public  wealth and common wealth. Which  really  is a common  nagging problem in Nigeria when quite  rich people  go  on to  loot  the state treasury on getting  elected  to public  office. A situation that has made  really  honest and wealthy  Nigerians  to stay away  from politics  so  that their  clean money will  not be dirtied  by stolen public  money which some have made indistinguishable  from hard  earned money by their greed  and avarice.

    Lastly  the travails and trials  of  Nigeria’s Anti  Corruption Czar  Lamorde  is to be expected. The  saying is quite true here  that  those  who  live in glass  houses should  not throw stones. Lamorde  should  learn two  things  on the use and misuse  of power on this senate trial. The  first is that media  trial  of suspects and the destruction of reputation  of  suspects before  going to  court is not only unfair, it is unjust  and undemocratic. That  is what the allegation against him has done with his reputation and he has virtually  no sympathizers  as this has  been the modus operation of the EFCC  since its inception  and under his leadership. The  second is that  some crooks  are  bold and shameless  enough  to claim  what they stole  as their  own and are  ready  to  contest the amount in question. A former  governor of Kano State once said he left a  certain  amount in government house  far higher than what the police said  they  found  and that is the same thing happening to the EFCC  boss nowadays.

    Undoubtedly  I  do  not  see Lamorde  getting  away  with the allegations against him at a trial  in a senate which has many of its members on trial by the EFCC  in the media. In  a way  its payback  time for the EFCC  boss  and I do not envy him the grilling  and harsh  questioning awaiting him. I  pray  all  the same that   he  gets  justice in our senate. Otherwise  I  take  consolation in the statement that what is good for the goose  is  sauce  for the gander. Again, long live the Federal  Republic of Nigeria.

  • Corruption: Ambrose Alli University and JAMB

    SIR: Nigerian students are most vulnerable when it comes to corruption in the Education sector; the most recent case has to do with the  Ambrose Alli University (AAU), Ekpoma, Edo State and the Joint Admissions Matriculation Board (JAMB)

    My name is Peter Augustine, I graduated from AAU last year. Due to the general elections in the country, the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) decided to have only two batches of Corps members this year. The first batch was mobilised in May.  The Management of AAU did not mobilise us, the graduates of 2014,  for no reason.

    Now is the time for Batch B to be mobilised and most of the students that graduated from AAU just discovered from JAMB’s website that they were offered admission to a different school entirely and a different course.

    Most of these students have already printed the hard copy of their JAMB admission letters while they were in school. How is it possible for a graduate to have his admission altered after graduation?

    After consultation with the school management, the students were asked to pay a whooping sum of N7,000 to correct the problem. Now, whose fault is it that our admission status was altered on JAMB’s website? And why are we supposed to pay such a huge sum of money to get it corrected?

    Many students for fear of being exempted from the NYSC programme have paid this money to the school.

    The students are crying out for help and saying No to this fraud.  Please help and speak for us; be a voice for the voiceless.

     

    • Peter Augustine,

    Ekpoma, Edo State

  • Corruption tops discussion as Bayelsa health commissioner, ministry bag award

    Corruption tops discussion as Bayelsa health commissioner, ministry bag award

    The awards presented recently  to the Commissioner for Health, Bayelsa State, Dr. Ayibatonye Owei and his ministry were not ordinary. They came from an anti-corruption crusader and a whistleblowing non-governmental agency, the Centre for Ethics and Self Value Orientation (CESVO).

    In fact, for an agency based in Lokoja, Kogi State, to identify excellence in service delivery and high ethical conduct  of a commissioner and a ministry operating in the Niger Delta region further distinguished the awards. Little wonder, the employees of the ministry spent few hours after work to receive a team of CESVO led by the centre’s Executive Director, Prince Salih Musa Yakubu.

    Yakubu, the founder of the Nigerian Parliament, explained why and how Owei and his ministry were selected for the awards. He said: “The Ministry of Health of Bayelsa today, has been found by this group among only 50 most ethically responsible state-owned ministry within the investigations that we have done. That is why we have come to thank you, because we don’t have money to give you.

    “The highest we could give you is to encourage you and to stimulate you more. The health policy of Bayelsa state today, being anchored by the Ministry of Health benefits the Ibos, Yorubas, your tribal men, and even an Igala man like me.

    “A lot of them are here and they are also benefiting from the policy, courtesy of this ministry. Therefore, when we come here to say thank you, you will do more. And Nigerians will be affected positively. That is the news we brought to you today.

    “In the entire country, out of these 50 MDAs that meet our standards, only four state ministry of health succeeded to be enlisted. The rest is story. Lagos is one, Bayelsa is two, Gombe is three, and Delta is four”.

    He said before the ministry was selected, the centre sent out whistleblowers to monitor and observe the activities of the ministry and its relationship with members of the public.

    “We are not anyhow group and so we don’t visit anyhow people. Just the same way we have come to this ministry; we have sent our whistleblowers to you. They meet you in your office like normal Nigerians looking for service. But what are they looking for?

    “They want to establish if there is a symbiotic relationship between you and the public you are called to serve. Who are those that are ruled? An African man can be carried away by the paraphernalia of office, that when they give them little office to handle, they barricade themselves from the people they are meant to serve. We don’t want such people in government.

    “They are those that will continue to barricade themselves and keep on cornering public funds to their own advantage. But no matter how far you go, 6ft measurement is enough for you and you will give account of your stewardship”, he said.

    Turning to the commissioner, he added: “Sir, we have found you worthy in character and conduct. You are such a very upright, straightforward man, full of energy and action, even though your actions at times affect some persons. You are a very rugged commissioner that wants results. We love you for that, sir. Today, we are to formally induct you as Ambassador of Ethics and a man of conscience”.

    To the ministry’s Permanent Secretary, Dr. Biribina Samayin, he said: “Of this ministry, because of your insistence always that due process be followed, you have subjected beaurocratic  procedures to the level that is so appreciated by us. Your non-compromise to beaurocratic procedures and servicom compliance is part of the reason why we are here today, though the attitude may be hated by some.

    “At times, you and your Commissioner may be at loggerheads in the quest to achieve results, because you are human beings. If you don’t quarrel, there can never be results and progress. The commissioner is the political head of this ministry. But you have been able to manage your differences. We have enlisted you among only 200 ethically responsible civil servants in the whole of the federation”.

    He said the centre would return to train 100 employees of the ministry free of charge for two days. He said the trained employees would help to transform others and make them ethically responsible. He said the centre has so far trained over 7000 persons on ethics.

    The commissioner said he never solicited for awards, adding that he never accepted such awards since he was just performing his job. He said it was regrettable that some persons solicited for and paid to get awards.

    He said the award from the centre was no an individual honour but an award meant for the ministry.

    He dedicated the awards to the restoration government of Governor Seriake Dickson saying the governor provided the directive for the ministry to operate.

    “I am very delighted that this award is not a Greek gift. Nobody was paid money for it. Nobody influenced it. We decided to act it not for ourselves but on behalf of the Restoration Government of Governor Dickson who has made it possible for health benefits to reach Bayelsans”, he said.

    He thanked the employees in the ministry for working round the clock to distinguish themselves. He asked the employees to make adjustments and work within the limited resources in the ministry. He said the award would motivate the ministry to deliver service to the people.

     

  • Wanted: Maximum security for Buhari as corruption fights back

    [dropcap]A[/dropcap]s President Buhari digs in without looking back in fighting corruption in Nigeria, corruption is ferociously fighting back like a wounded lion. The most corrupt political party in Africa and the world, PDP, was the first to start the blackmail and intimidation. What the brigands tell us is that the President should hit the ground running and stop chasing shadows.

    When it suits them, they tell us that President Buhari is clueless and unprepared for the big business of governance and hence the pretence to be fighting corruption. In another development, they tell us that Boko Haram has killed more people in a very short time when compared with the same time frame during ex-president Goodluck Jonathan’s tenure.

    The ‘Pay me, I write for you’ Diaspora internet warriors in Jonathan’s camp joined in hitting at Mr. President to form his cabinet as a matter of urgency and give them what he promised. The charge and bail lawyers and charge and write writers among them said the president’s inability to appoint his cabinet three weeks after being sworn in clearly shows unseriousness and unpreparedness on the part of the President who prepared for leadership for sixteen years.

    They are angry. They are frustrated and frightened. Jonathan made heavy investment on them to help him to realise his dream of governing Nigeria for 10years, but the project crashed like a pack of cards. They are yet to come to terms with what hit them. Pains, tears, abusive languages, hate speech and name calling have become their ways of life these days.

    Frustrated left and right, they sought the help of General Abulsalami’s Peace Committee to intervene to rescue them from the bottomless pit they are going into. The Peace Committee moved in with their blackmail and intimidation also to suppress the anti-corruption machine of Mr. President. Hear them: ”I think what we are concerned about is the process (of fighting corruption).

    It is no longer a military regime and under our existing laws, everybody is innocent until proven guilty”. The Peace Committee spoke about former President Jonathan’s commitment and his spectacular deeds as president, whatever that means. But when we look back to see the deep rot in the system and reckless looting of our institutions, the so-called spectacular stuff in Jonathan’s deeds vanish into thin air.

    Those who benefited from Jonathan’s billions of naira and dollars to help him win an election he was bound to lose have resorted to their own arm-twisting and subterfuge. They insist that President Buhari must start his war on corruption from the days of IBB in 1985(30 years ago). After abusing President Buhari, after accusing him of being a Boko Haram sponsor, after denying him of votes from the South East and South South, they are setting an agenda for President Buhari.

    They are now shamelessly dictating to Buhari what to do after selling their votes for a mess of porridge. After marginalising themselves politically, the shameless hungry politicians in Ohaneze are now complaining of marginalisation of Igbo. How many votes did Igbo give to President Buhari? Did we not tell them that Jonathan will not win this election? Did they listen to us? Did they hear us? They abused and shouted us down. Now, you cannot eat your cake and have it.

    Please go to where you took your bath and pick your clothes. You have ruined and destroyed Igboland with your greed and political naivety. If you call your boat a useless boat, children will use it to play. Woe betide a nation whose leaders are children! I thank God that APC South East has risen to rebuke the children in Ohaneze for defending Jonathan who ran the most fraudulent and corrupt regime in the world.

    According to Mr. Osita Okechukwu, the South East APC spokesperson ”We have yet to find any sentence where any of them, even our revered icon, erudite, and constitutional lawyer Professor Ben Nwabueze, in any form denied the mindless, pervasive and unbridled corruption which pervaded ex-president Jonathan’s regime”. There is nothing more to add than to ask Ndigbo and the children in Ohaneze to move on with life and borrow a leaf from Ijaw nation that had moved on since May 29 2015.

    President Buhari has been stunned into disbelief by the gamut of rot PDP left behind after 16 years. According to Governor Oshiomhole: “If Nigerians know what these people did, they will stone them to death”. These scavengers were not interested in building Nigeria, they were not interested in creating jobs, they were not interested in moving Nigeria to join the human race, and they cared less about what Nigeria becomes in future. They were only interested in their pockets. It was a big scramble to pocket anything in sight and damn the consequences. It was primitive accumulation of even what you do not need. It was bazaar. PDP leaders who were less than 0.5% of the population stole 80% of our common patrimony without caring a hoot. Others called it mindless looting, I call it total madness when people do not know when to say enough is enough. These people are ready to do anything to keep their loot. They are sleeping in hospitals abroad pretending to be sick. They are using blackmail and subterfuge as a cover up to divert attention. They are shouting from the rooftop to deceive the gullible, but there is no hiding place for the enemies of progress. They want to run away from justice and keep their loot.

    This is the reason why I want maximum protection for Mr. President. The world and concerned citizens of this country must help this President to succeed. Those who looted Nigeria for sixteen years are too rich and too dangerous to be ignored. They can do anything to retain their loot. They can destabilise the government with their huge resources. They can topple the government of President Buhari if we do not do something tangible to protect the man.

    If anything happens to the President now, the war on corruption will come to a standstill and the looters will smile away. I know that God will keep President Buhari to do this great job but we have to do our own duty also by being vigilant. If you are surrounded by enemies, you must be vigilant all the time.

    ‘The world and concerned citizens of this country must help this President to succeed. Those who looted Nigeria for sixteen years are too rich and too dangerous to be ignored. They can do anything to retain their loot. They can destabilise the government with their huge resources’

     

    • Joe Igbokwe wrote in from Lagos.