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Tag: corruption

  • ISGPP holds seminar on corruption

    THE Ibadan School of Government and Public Policy (ISGPP) will hold a seminar on Governance and Corruption tomorrow at the school hall.

    The guest speaker at the seminar, entitled: “Constitutional foundations of political corruption in Nigeria”, is Prof.  Rotimi Suberu from Bennington College, Vermont, United States of America (USA). The lead discussants are: Dr. David Enweremadu of the Department of Political Science and Dr. Muyiwa Adigun of the Faculty of Law both of the University of Ibadan.

    According to the institute’s Programme and Research Manager, Mr. Tobechukwu Nneli, the seminar will analyse issues such as effects of corruption on political institutions and examine constitutional reform strategies for curtailing political corruption in Nigeria.

    Nneli, who observed that weak political institutions remain a key factor for corruption in Nigeria, promised that the seminar will identify cogent factors responsible for endemic corruption in the country as well proffer solutions.

    Professor emeritus Akin Mabogunje is expected at the seminar and Prof. Ayo Olukotun of Olabisi Onabanjo University, Ago-Iwoye, is the chairman.

  • Zuma makes second court appearance on corruption charges

    Former South African President Jacob Zuma, who was ousted by his own party in February, arrived at the Durban High Court on Friday for his second appearance on corruption charges relating to a $2.5 billion arms deal in the late 1990s.

    Zuma faces 16 charges of fraud, racketeering and money laundering relating to the deal to buy European military hardware to upgrade South Africa’s armed forces after the end of apartheid in 1994.

    State prosecutors and Zuma’s lawyers are expected to argue over a start date for the trial, a rare example of an African leader being held to account for his actions.

    The national prosecutor this week turned down a request by the 76-year-old to delay Friday’s hearing pending the outcome of a separate legal challenge over the state paying his legal fees.

    The speed with which prosecutors have moved against Zuma is a sign of his waning influence since he was replaced as head of state by Cyril Ramaphosa, his former deputy, four months ago.

    Ramaphosa has made the fight against corruption a top priority as he seeks to woo foreign investment and revamp an ailing economy.

    Zuma’s supporters say the former president, whose nine years in power were marked by economic stagnation and credit rating downgrades, is the victim of a politically motivated witch-hunt. (Reuters/NAN)

  • Fair deal, but …

    President Muhammadu Buhari, in his May 29 Democracy Day broadcast, rolled out an impressive list of achievements. The President  reeled out his score card, based on his government’s three pillars: security, corruption and the economy.

    In general terms, he was true in what he claimed his government had done. But whether that score card has met the general high expectation of the change mantra, that propelled the president and his All Progressives Congress (APC) to power, is another matter.

    Still, given the rather tenuous juncture at which the administration took over in 2015, it should be fairly proud of its achievements, forged in the most difficult and testy of times.

    The president was, therefore, right on the money in his opening assertions, in the second of his 37-paragraph speech, when he said, inter alia: “The commemoration of this year’s Democracy Day is … a salute to the resilience and determination of Nigerians …”  Indeed, it has been tough for everyone, the governors and the governed — a crucible Nigeria had not experienced for a long time.

    That is why, to every claim the president has made, there is probably a counter-claim, earnest or cynical. But that would appear a function of a polity that agrees it has glaring problems, but fiercely disagrees on how to solve them. Also, there is hardly any agreement on how to tackle spin-offs from a problem being solved. That is, because the society reeks with mutual distrust — ethnic, religious, communal.

    Take the security question. On Boko Haram, the most critical security blight the administration inherited, the president said — and it is true — that his government has done much better than the Goodluck Jonathan Presidency.

    Enthused the president: “Before this administration came into being three years ago, Boko Haram held large areas of land spanning several local governments in the North East.  Today,” he added, “the capacity of the insurgents has been degraded, leading to the re-establishment of authority of government and the release of captives”.

    True — and those right in those troubled spots — returning emirs that fled their courts; and locals that sought refuge in the bush and in Internally Displaced Persons (IDP) camps — would probably appreciate that remarkable transition, much more than those commenting, hundreds of miles from the North East vortex.

    Yet, despite that progress, the Dapchi school girls’ capture — all 104 of them — re-echoed the shameful abduction of the 276 Chibok girls, of the Jonathan era. Though the Buhari Presidency moved fast to negotiate the release of the Dapchi girls, save the sole Leah Sharibu, still in captivity for insisting on her Christian faith, that Chibok could repeat itself in Dapchi put a dent on the administration’s anti-terror score card. Still, it is also fair to say that Buhari has negotiated part-release of the Chibok girls — what Jonathan could not do. But that the rest are still in captivity gores not a few.

    Even then, as the government was lifting the Boko Haram siege, another pestilence of killers were descending upon the land, this time mainly in the Middle Belt. In the first quarter of 2018, the killings were so brazen, particularly in Benue and Taraba, as to rubbish whatever records the administration had chalked up on security.

    The crisis is not helped by the simplistic blaming of every killing on “herdsmen”; and the explosive allegations that the killings were “ethnic cleansing”. Later investigations, however, would reveal a more complicated problem, spanning farmers-herdsmen tension, politically motivated killings allegedly by cult groups, and even ancient feuds revived by crippling poverty, among sundry anomie.

    But whatever the scope or source of these killings, the Buhari administration cannot claim to have made  a dent on security without eliminating the bloodletting  and making every corner of Nigeria safe. It should also be wary of declaring success on the war against terror. Until the last terrorist, suicide-bombing soft targets, is curtailed, the war on terror cannot be won.

    On corruption, the Buhari government, of truth, has much to crow about.  Aside from big name convictions, the anti-sleaze war has not only been on the front burner, there is increasing consciousness that maybe a Nigerian government is at last ready to punish corruption. Indeed, only on May 30, the long-drawn trial of the Revd. Jolly Nyame, Taraba two-term governor from 1999-2007, ended in a 14-year gaol term, without any option of fine. That is an encouraging feat.

    The president was also right on the strict implementation of the Treasury Single Account (TSA), ironically an initiative of the Jonathan Presidency, which didn’t have the will to walk its policy talk. Aside from saving a large quantum of cash  — the president put the figure at N200 billion — from pilferers, implementing TSA is attacking corruption from the preventive side. That is far cheaper than chasing stolen funds. But the most obvious gains from the anti-sleaze war would appear generally doing more with less, when compared to the boom period of the Jonathan administration.

    Still, there are abiding worries, in some quarters, that the corruption war is one-sided, and driven by political affiliations, rather than strict merit. But another view point has also countered that the opposition was crying wolf, just to corral sympathy.  Whatever it is, President Buhari must ensure the corruption war is fair to all.

    From corruption to the economy, the adminstration’s third pillar. Again, from the recession that dawned with its entry into office, the economy would appear at last on the mend. The president, quoting the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), said the economy grew by 1.95 per cent, in first quarter 2018, against the deficit -0.91 growth in first quarter 2017, even if back then, the economy was inching its way out of recession.

    Foreign reserve has also grown to US$ 47.5 billion in May 2018 from US$ 29.6 billion in May 2015, when the administration took over. Of course, there is the huge investment in agriculture, symbolised by rice and yam, two popular staples, that drive the government’s policy sing-song that Nigeria must grow what they eat and eat what they grow. The president said the aggressive cultivation of rice has reduced rice importation by 90 per cent, within three years. Also, all over the country there is clear evidence of fixing roads, and building rail — the result of 30 per cent of the budget on capital expenditure, a rarity, many would say, since 1999.

    At best, however, what the administration has done is priming the economy for its eventual rebound. For it to achieve real success, it must continue on the right path of fiscal discipline and an even increased spending on infrastructure, not to talk of finally delivering on the power sector, which generation is now put at 7, 000 mw. Then, and only then, would its exertions translate to direct citizens’ joy and less hunger in the land.

    But aside from these three pillars, the Buhari Presidency should be more sensitive to appointments, to conform to Nigeria’s diversity. The president has always argued that his cabinet has met the national spread, as demanded by the Constitution — which is true. But others have countered that his security appointments are skewed to the North, thus eliciting some form of alienation from those parts of the country that feel left out. The president would therefore do well to be more sensitive on this score and balance the appointments.

     

     

  • Gowon, ouster and corruption

    Open confession: I doubt if I can ever be critical of Gen. Yakubu Gowon, former military Head of State (1966-1975).

    As a pupil of St. David’s Anglican School, a public primary school in Okesuna-Lafiaji, on  Lagos Island, Gen. Gowon, with his Lagos Governor, then Lt. Col. Mobolaji Johnson, did what Osun Governor, Rauf Aregbesola, now does for Osun’s most vulnerable families — school feeding.

    True, the Gowon-Johnson mid-day meal programme, for Lagos public schools, was not entirely free.

    But for a termly token, the government blessed the pupils with delicious and nutritious food, some of which — like Semo: vita and lina, barley cooked like jollof rice, stuffed with corned beef, spice and dried fish, and other staples, superbly cooked — most of us first sampled, and thoroughly enjoyed, in school.   Why, generous fruits and chilled fan milk came with the treat!

    That proved superb bonding, with impressionable minds, by a caring state!

    So, when by October 1974, the inimitable Dr. Tai Solarin started writing his “Beginning of the end” letter (because Gen. Gowon reneged on a 1976 promised return to civil rule); and other heavyweight moulders of opinion then were calling Gowon the worst to have happened to the Nigerian humanity, a bit of my child’s mind balked — what the hell are these adults talking about?

    Though almost a secondary school graduate at Gowon’s 1975 overthrow, and replacement by Brig. Murtala Muhammed, my teenage mind felt something close to personal grief.

    Fond recall of the Gowon regime, seeping with child-like innocence and naivety!  Even then, Gen. Gowon’s May 15 Abuja recollection of that ouster evoked that same deep pathos, echoing a long lost age, of child-like military innocence!

    At his ouster in 1975, he told the 8th AGM and Conference for Heads of Anti-Corruption Agencies in Commonwealth Africa in Abuja, that he had no dime, save his salary savings.

    It was a Monday morning, away at Kampala, Uganda, heading the Nigerian delegation to the summit of the Organization of African Unity (OAU, now rechristened African Union, AU).

    Even worse: his tearful delegates had to contribute part of their estacodes to fly him to London, UK, his new home in exile.  Otherwise, he would have been stranded in Uganda.  Yet, he had been military Head of State for nine years, superintending Nigeria’s first Oil Boom!

    Gen. Gowon’s conclusion?  That big-scale corruption came after his regime, since his military successors were scared stiff of ending up kobo-less like him.

    With all due respect to Gen. Gowon, that conclusion cannot be right.

    For starters poverty, real or feared, cannot be basis for stealing.  If stats shows Nigeria’s rich elite are more vicious thieves than the vulnerable poor, it logically follows that those who steal are driven by base instincts, just as those who don’t are driven by high principles.

    Besides, there was that “You-Tarka-me-I-Daboh-you” scandal, broken by the old Daily Times.  Godwin Daboh (now dead) accused the late Joseph Tarka (Benue co-native and Federal commissioner — minister — under Gowon) of corruption.  The crusading media back then accused Gen. Gowon of alleged cover-up.

    And, after Gowon’s overthrow, the Murtala regime indicted 10 of Gowon’s 12 state governors for corruption (Lagos’ Mobolaji Johnson and Western State’s Oluwole Rotimi were the two exceptions); and ordered seizure of their assets.

    So, for Gen. Gowon to claim corruption came after him would sound rather rich.  Yet, there is a sense that hyperbole could make some sense, when you compare the modest Gowon-era military office holders, with the Murtala-Olusegun Obasanjo set of successors.

    The mercurial Murtala boomed and roared and kicked against “indiscipline and corruption”.  In fairness to his memory, he walked his talk for the six months he ruled (29 July 1975-13 February 1976).

    But that cannot be said of his successors, despite projecting empty exceptionalism.   The ex-general as a super-rich citizen, bristling with an offensive sense of entitlement, dawned after the Obasanjo handover to civil rule in 1979.

    Gowon’s “corrupt” governors included names like Bendel’s iconic Sam Ogbemudia (God bless his soul!), Kano’s Audu Bako, Rivers’ Alfred Diette-Spiff (now a king) and even Kwara’s David Bamigboye.

    Though tarred by Gowon ouster probes, their achievements and regime conduct still loom large in their respective states, so much so that the late Ogbemudia, aside from rallying back as elected Bendel (now Edo and Delta states) governor (1 October-31 December 1983), died a hero among his people.

    In contrast: former army generals, morphing into emergency, much sought-after boardroom czars, just to pimp illicit influence to corner public sector contracts, was basically a post-Obasanjo affair.

    While Gowon, as ex-Head of State, exited as a golden pauper, Obasanjo exited the same position, even after a shorter duration, as a big-time farmer.

    Obasanjo’s deputy, the late Maj-Gen. Shehu Musa Yar’Adua, that regime’s Chief of Staff, Supreme Headquarters, exited as big-time investor with niche interests in banking, shipping, publishing — the so-called commanding heights of the economy.

    Contrast that to Gowon’s No. 2, Vice Admiral Joseph Edet Akinwale Wey (1918-1991), and you’d probably figure out Gowon’s claim that corruption came after him.

    Besides, though not many noticed it back then, a more noxious strain of systemic corruption, tailoring public policy to private ends, if not entirely novel, would appear to have luxuriated.

    Take Obasanjo’s laudable Operation Feed the Nation (OFN) campaign, of household food gardening and mass farming.  That birthed the Land Use Decree (now Land Use Act).  But that access to land on the cheap — courtesy that law — created many ex-army general farmers, including Obasanjo himself.

    This clever ploy of self-settlement, hiding behind the veneer of productivity, would decay into the subversive generosity, aka ”settlement” and sweeping sleaze of the Babangida regime; and hit the nadir of brazen heist, of the Sani Abacha era.

    Why, even Obsasanjo’s second coming, as elected president (1999-2007), boasts its own holy acquisition: when a “blind trust” saw clearly enough to suborn the flower of Economic Nigeria, to “donate” to a sitting president’s exit library!  The result today is the Olusegun Obasanjo Presidential Library (OOPL), first in Africa!

    Not even the vilest of the Gowon era boasts such audacity!  Yet these military regimes, starting with the Muhammadu Buhari junta (January 1984-August 1985), were proud “off-shoots” of the Murtala-Obasanjo regime!

    But the spartan Buhari, now sitting president, would appear the only refreshing difference, from that post-Gowon era of holy venality.   That clearly explains his missionary zeal to risk all to kill corruption.

    But Prof. Wole Soyinka, our own WS, has nailed the anti-corruption argument: until EFCC brings thieving past leaders to justice, there would be little dent on that nation-slaying monster.

  • Transparency Initiative calls for investigation of massive corruption in Benue State

    An anti corruption group, Initiative for Transparency (TI) has urged the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to investigate the Benue state government to find out what it did with its share of all revenues accruing to the state.

    Addressing journalists in Abuja, convener of the group, Pastor Samson Ayodele explained that under the guise of tackling the crisis in the state, the state government has increased sharp practices to ruin the state and subject the people to pains, sorrow and hunger.

    He accused the state government of using the security challenges as a front for diverting public funds, stressing that the state is basically bankrupt to a point that it will descend into crisis once a solution is gotten to the killings.

    According to him, the state government has been unable to account for the huge amount of the Paris Club refunds as well as ecological fund which accrued to the state.

    He said despite the huge resources, the state government has been unable to pay workers their salaries and also unable to tackle the security challenges.

    He said, “we make this demand because there is credible information that the EFCC has all the evidence it needs to prove that Ortom has stolen another N18.8 billion, which the reason Benue workers cannot get salaries as at when due. It is the reason the state can never witness any positive development under the present administration of Samuel Ortom and his band of thieves.”

    Besides, Ayodele charged the Federal Government to take the necessary steps to stop further release of funds, especially the ones that can be withheld, to the Ortom administration until a prudent regime is in place in Benue state as any additional funds released will end up like the N18.8 that went into private pockets.

    He said further, “it is on the strength of the foregoing that we have found imperative to expose the Ortom administration as a cesspit of corruption that it is. it is on this basis that we demand that the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) should step to the plate and do its work as things would have taken an irreversible turn should the Commission wait till the governor’s tenure is up for him to lose his immunity.

    “Immunity did not stop the courts from granting EFCC’s request to freeze the bank account that Ekiti State Governor, Ayo Fayose used to receive alleged proceeds of corruption so Benue state cannot be different. Even while Ortom’s immunity subsists, his aides that have no immunity and facilitated the theft of state money should immediately be tried for their roles.”

    He said the he EFCC is presently investigating the governor for this fresh N18.830 billion which was withdrawn on his behalf by the trio of Oliver Mtom, Aorga Emmanuel and Ochoga Peter.

    According to him, the three suspects confessed to the EFCC two weeks ago that they truly withdrew the huge funds for the governor from Benue State accounts with UBA, GTB and First Bank.

  • IGP urges Nigerians to fight corruption

    The Inspector General of Police, Mr Ibrahim Idris has called on Nigerians to support President Muhammadu Buhari’s fight against corruption to put the country back on the path of greatness.

    Idris made the call at the customary dinner organised for the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) Detective Superintendent Course (7) 2017/2018 at the Nigerian Defence Academy, Kaduna.

    He said the feat achieved by the EFCC with the recovery of looted funds under the leadership of the Acting Chairman, Ibrahim Magu, could not have been possible without the support of Mr. President.

    “Without the support and prompting of Mr President, the achievement made by the commission would not have been possible.

    “Mr president has zero tolerance for corruption and I urge all Nigerians to support him to carry the fight to its logical conclusion,” Idris added.

    The IGP, while congratulating the 314 cadets who successfully completed the 13 months training course, charged them to exercise high sense of professionalism and courage in carrying out the task ahead.

    Read Also: Invitation: IGP should not hold on to straw, says Senate

     “You have been called upon to join the anti-corruption crusade of the President, Commander -in-Chief of the Armed Forces of the Federal Republic of Nigeria; as such, you must be professional, committed and courageous in the fight.

    “This is the only way you can guarantee your service in the commission,” he said.

    He warned them against temptations in the course of their job, urging them not to pervert the course of justice for monetary and material rewards.

    “I advise you to be above board and resist all the temptations.

    “You must be contented with your salary and allowances and know that being an officer of the EFCC does not make you immune to arrest and prosecution if found wanting,” Idris said.

    He said that the Police would continue to partner with the commission to ensure that all those who looted the treasury and diverted funds that would have been used to develop the economy were arrested and prosecuted.

  • Corruption: TI rating on Nigeria faulty, says Magu

    The acting Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, Mr. Ibrahim Magu, yesterday faulted the corruption index on Nigeria by Transparency International (TI).

    He said politics was already creeping into the indices being used by the international body.

    He also said having special courts to tackle corruption will help to accelerate trial of looters.

    Magu, who made his feelings known at a briefing preparatory to the inauguration of the N24billion new office complex of EFCC, also said the EFCC will not punish the innocent.

    He said: “There is a lot of politics in these indices. I don’t believe it is right. You are in this country. Would you say the situation is the same as when we took over?

    “So, I don’t believe it but we are doing all we can to improve on our ratings next year. We should all work together on this. The job is not for us alone.”

    On Special courts to try corruption cases in Nigeria, Magu described it as “a good idea that would go a long way to reduce the long years it takes to prosecute one case in all the courts from the Federal High Court to the Supreme Court.

    “It would go a long way to speed up the tackling of corruption. The current system takes too long to conclude one case.”

    He assured Nigerians of fairness by EFCC and clarified that the innocent will not suffer.

    “We are doing a lot to make the agency serve Nigeria and Nigerians better. It is an institution that will stand the test of time.

    “We will ensure that only those who genuinely looted the treasury are investigated, prosecuted and jailed and innocent persons not arrested indiscriminately,” he said.

    Magu said contractors of Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) will now be henceforth monitored by EFCC.

    He said: “There was a time we met with the NDDC and civil societies. So, for instance if you have abandoned projects in Rivers State, we have civil organizations, we work together, we monitor and we go and inspect the abandon project, we bring them to book.

    “We have been working on that even though it has not been very effective but we are on it. We deal with the HoS and civil societies in that particular state because it occurs across states. So, we have been working on it. It is very annoying that the NDDC gives jobs, people collect monies and they do nothing.”

    The EFCC chairman said the new N24billion office complex will be inaugurated on Tuesday by President Muhammadu Buhari.

    Magu said the cost of the 10-storey complex was not too much as being alleged.

    He said:  “How can N24bn be too much for this building? That is not fair. We were able to even do it at that cost because we procured most of the equipment. If you bring any valuer here, they will value the property at no less than N100billion.

    “This shows prudence and transparency in the transaction. At that price! Go and see the transformers, the water filter and even the main building. How can it be too expensive?

    “Somebody can even claim to have collected N24bn for constructing our clinic alone. It happens. They will collect that money and this place would be the same.”

    When asked how he was able to finally complete the project after nearly 10 years, Magu attributed the feat to hard work and prudence.

    “As long as you give them (contractors) money, they will work. I told them I wanted honest work and I gave them all the money. I warned all of them against sharp practices. I can tell you that before you can get a property like this, people will ask you five times the current price.

    “If you like you can go round the whole of this country. You cannot get this kind of property with the equipment worth N24bn. No. You can go and bring valuers and ask them to value it.”

  • Facts on grand corruption under Jonathan-VP’s spokesman

    Spokesman of the Vice President, Laolu Akande has responded to claims that the allegations of corruption against the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) government led by former President Goodluck Jonathan  are mere lies.

    He also denied that Vice President Yemi Osinbajo specifically mentioned former President Jonathan in the accusations against the past government.

    According to Akande, the facts in public domain on corruption in the last administration are “only a tip of the iceberg.”

    The statement is reproduced below:

    We have read reports attributed to “a media office of former President Goodluck Jonathan”. It is clear from the foul language of the authors that the statement could not have come from the former President, but from the motley group of loud and rude characters whose brief seems to be to deny all and anything said against the former PDP government and to do so in the crassest possible language.

     

    The alleged spokespersons of the former President say that  facts long in the public domain, some even being used to prosecute several corruption cases are lies and that those of us in government restating these well known facts are liars.

     

    They accuse Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, SAN, of lying against the former President or his government citing their  involvement  in the stealing of three billion dollars, while speaking recently at The Platform event on the 1st of May.

     

    Just for clarity, I quote the Vice President, “Grand corruption remains the most enduring threat to our economy. Three Billion US dollars was stolen in what was called the strategic alliance contacts in 2013, three Nigerians were responsible, today three billion dollars is one trillion Naira and our budget is 7trillion! ….”  (www.yemiosinbajo.ng/how-young-people-outside-politics-are-boldly-building-the-nigerian-nation-by-vp-osinbajo/)

     

    Two issues emerge. First, no mention is made of the former President.

     

    Second, the story is not only true, it has been in the public domain for almost three years and it is the subject of criminal investigation and trials both here and in the UK.

     

    The spokespersons also say that the allegations of corruption against the PDP government are mere lies. For clarity, the facts are laid out as follows:

     

    As the Vice President said, $3B was stolen in the so- called NNPC Strategic Alliance Contracts.  The three persons involved  are   Jide Omokore, Kola Aluko and the former Petroleum Resources Minister Diezani Alison- Maduekwe.  The companies of both Jide Omokore and Kola Aluko lifted Nigerian crude oil  and kept the proceeds.  The total sums converted is in excess of three billion dollars including royalties, taxes and fees unpaid for the asset from which the crude was taken.  The case is the subject of a trial in Nigeria, and criminal investigation in the US and UK, and the assets of all three individuals have been forfeited in Nigeria, the US and the UK.

     

    1. The criminal diversion and theft of sums in excess of $2.5 billion meant for purchase of arms to prosecute the war against Boko Haram: The first phase of the investigations revealed several sordid details, many of the assets of culprits have been seized from them and they are facing trial.

     

    1. The release of the sum of $289m in cash on February 25, 2015: Documents including cash vouchers indicate that the the sum of  $289,202,382 was taken  from the Joint Venture (JV) Cash Call Account No. 000-0000-11658-366 of the NNPC/NAPIMS with JP Morgan Chase Bank, New York, USA.

     

    1. N70 billion was released in parts from the national treasury between January 8 and February 25, 2015.

     

    5.In another illegal disbursement,  25th August 2014,   N60B in cash in tranches of N40billion and N20billion:   The sum was not tied to any project or procurement and was then shared between two security agencies under the supervision of the then NSA. Most of these sums ended up in the hands of senior PDP members some of whom have returned parts of the loot. Some are standing trial for these offenses. These facts are in the public domain.

     

    1. There was yet another set of illegal fund withdrawals under one week between January 8and 16, 2015, where the sum of N1.5 billion was released in three tranches of N300m, N400m and N800m respectively. This money was released from the MEA Research Library Account .

     

    1. Another document showed that N10 billion was released to the Office of the National Security Adviser by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) on September 15, 2014. The money was released in tranches of foreign exchange of $47 million, $5 million, 4 million Euros and 1.6 million Euros. A letter from the Office of the NSA in November 2014 further showed that the monies were released as ‘funds for special services’. This particular release of N10B was sourced in November 2014 from a N40 Billion CBN released funds meant for Corporate Social Responsibility, CSR. Investigators showed that this money was released for the PDP Presidential Primaries.

     

    1. Lamido Sanusi, then CBN Governor was sacked for speaking up about the over $20billion missing from oil proceeds.

     

    These cases of grand corruption and open looting of public resources pauperized Nigeria and left us with little or no savings in the years when oil was selling at 100 to 114 dollars a barrel and we were producing 2.1 million barrels a day. When  in 2015 oil prices went even as low as between 28 and 35 dollars a barrel and oil production fell to less than one million barrels a day we had no buffer, no savings, to tide us through.

     

    The amount released from CBN in cash on a single day, ie the US$289M ( N88.1Bn) is  enough to  fund 244,000 N-Power graduates for a year, or pay for  1.2Billion school meals or  complete half of Lagos -Ibadan or half of Abuja -Kaduna -Kano roads.

     

     

    The Vice President also made the point  that in 2014 with oil prices as high as 120 dollars per barrel,  the total capital released for Power, Works, Housing, Defence, Transport, Agriculture and Defence were just N152Billion for the whole year.

     

    By contrast, the Buhari administration committed N578Bn to the same Ministries in 2016 with oil prices as low as US$28 per barrel as part of the strategy to end the recession. The government was able to do more with less by stopping grand corruption and impunity.

     

    Recently, the Minister Coordinating the economy in that administration has written a revealing book : Fighting Corruption is Dangerous: The Story Behind the Headlines. Who knows, perhaps her stories too are all lies!

  • Fighting corruption from the grassroots

    THE serene city of Uyo, capital of Akwa Ibom State, played host to stakeholders drawn from diverse sectors who gathered at the Ibom Hotel and Resort for a five-day social behavioural change strategy workshop hosted by the Centre for Communication and Social Impact. The workshop was hosted as part of the anti-corruption campaign for Strengthening Citizens Resistance Against Corruption (SCRAP C) project, which is aimed at seeking a shift from a traditional approach in fighting corruption in Nigeria. Already in its second year, the DFID (Department of International Development, UK) funded initiative is anchoring the #UprightforNigeria campaign which runs with the vision of mobilizing citizens to accept and own the anti-corruption campaign. Implementing partners for the project comprise nonprofit organizations such as Action Aid Nigeria, Centre for Democracy and Development, Youth Initiative for Advocacy, Growth and Development and a host of other NGOs. Mr Tunde Aremu, the policy and campaign manager for ActionAid, a partner organization leading the consortium, told The Nation that the campaign would be implemented with the development of communication tools which speak to the aspiration of the average Nigerian on anti-corruption, especially as studies have shown that the average Nigerian detests corruption. The Nation learnt that owing to limited resources, the campaign would run in select states of the federation namely Kano, Kaduna, Uyo, Lagos, Enugu, Bornu and the federal capital territory, Abuja. However, it bears stating that restricting the campaign to just few states in a nation with a teeming population like Nigeria could serve as a limitation to achieving a wide spread behavioural change objective.

    Aremu differs on this position, saying that widespread behavioural change on corruption could still be achieved since people at the grassroots would be actively involved in pushing the message to places where the consortium members cannot physically reach. “Part of our critique of the government approach to fighting corruption in the country is that it has not been with the active involvement of the people. Citizen ownership of the fight against corruption is what is lacking and that is why we are using six states in the federation and the federal capital territory. We believe the gains of the campaign would be adopted as a model for other organizations”, he assured. Aremu also added that the locations were consciously selected to act as hubs for the different regions in the country. Enugu was selected because it is a regional hub, while Akwa-Ibom was picked because of its centrality in the South-South. The campaign would also focus on Lagos because it is a business hub not just for the South-West but the whole of the country.

    Kano and Kaduna were also selected because of their strategic locations in the North-West, while Borno was considered because of its location in the North-East, a region in the country which has become an epicenter of development activities as a result of the Boko Haram insurgency. Added to this is also the fact that resources meant to transform the lives of Nigerian citizens in the North East are passing through the route, hence a need to mobilise citizens to be actively involved in keeping eyes on the utilization of resources that have been sent to that part of the country. It is anticipated that the anti-corruption campaign activities in the selected areas would resonate in other locations and inspire similar efforts to spring forth from non-governmental and government organisations.

    What if corruption fights back? In Nigeria where corruption has become somewhat of a dragon, it is not out of place to anticipate that corruption would fight back when there is a movement bent on ending the scourge. Often times, corruption fighting back often manifests in the form of powerful people in the society using stolen resources to mobilise citizens to counter anti-corruption efforts. At this point, one is tempted to ask, does the #UprightforNigeria movement have a defence mechanism in the event that this happens? To this, Mrs Funke Fagbemi, the Executive Director of the Centre for Communication and Social Impact, who led the strategy workshop, responded that the campaign would be relying on anti-graft agencies with the mandate to eradicate corruption in order to ensure actions would be taken and justice is done when cases of corruption are reported by citizens. She added that the campaign will achieve its aim with the support of unrelenting civil society as well as the resilience of people from the grass root. “We are asking people to stand up and be counted as voices that want to stand upright for Nigeria, going with the current narrative that all Nigerians are corrupt, which is actually not true. We are hoping that for every issue of demand, there is a supply side. By the time we are able to refine a communication theory, we would be able to change the way Nigerians think by instilling a cando mentality whilst empowering citizens to know they can do something,” she said.

    Exploring mediums such as media and publicity, the campaign will target a diverse group of citizens including working professionals, civil servants, men and women as well as faith-based organisations and community mobilisers. The effort is to ensure the campaign resonates with the emotions of the audience in the context of use. Even at this, she is quick to admit that the complex side of Nigeria does not allow for a one size fits all approach, hence the need to ensure that the strategy would resonate with what is appropriate for the contexts of each group and community. Speaking more on this, she said: “One of the designs of our campaign is the consumer lens approach and we are relying on the result of the study we carried out to identify what gaps are in perception and knowledge. We are going to leverage on these findings from research and actually build a strategy that is evidence based,” Fagbemi said.

    One of the things achieved during the workshop in Uyo was the development of a context specific anti-corruption strategy for the SCRAP-C project which birth the branding of the campaign as #UprightforNigeria. Mrs Fagbemi added that the campaign would be developed in different languages, using the local structures that are working. A movement, not a project The Centre for Democracy and Development, (CDD), a nonprofit organization involved in research training, advocacy and capacity building organization, is also an implementing partner of the consortium for the project. Mr Yusuf Shamsudeen, a senior programme officer with CDD, told The Nation that the #UprightforNigeria movement would be leveraging on the strength of the networks and social groups to see how those in the informal sector can be mobilized to stimulate conversations around social norms and corruptions. Speaking on the efficacy of the fiveyear project which is already in its second year, Shamsudeen conceded that although five years may not be enough to rid the country totally of corruption, however, he is optimistic that something substantial in the anti-corruption movement can be achieved within the timeframe. “We want a movement, not a project so a project sustainability plan has been into the campaign.

    We are trying to initiate a process in which people will own the project itself; that is why we are focusing more on engaging people at that grassroot, level. “We want them to give direction to the entire conversation around as champions of the campaign. If we are able to build a movement around this, it becomes something anybody can pick up not for the financial emolument but because it changes the mindset of people about corruption,” he argued. Adding her voice to the assurance on the timeline, Mrs Fagbemi conceded that although it will definitely take more years to have a 360 turn around; conservation would be ongoing at various levels including national, state and grassroots as citizens who understand that they don’t have to be complacent. Although behaviourial change can happen within a short time frame, there is the challenge of surmounting the undercurrents and intervening factors such as poverty, lack of resources and desperation to survive the vicissitudes of life which have made corruption thrive in the Nigerian society. Even if the campaign may not be able to end corruption in five years, it should progress to the extent that those who are engaged in the act of corruption would be forced to beat a retreat by the time citizens start standing up to them.

  • Corruption: Popular leadership culture in Nigeria

    Nigeria is bogged down in mud arising from monumental and endemic corruption. Corruption is the abuse of public power and/or position by the elected political class including appointed civil servants for personal gains in a myriad of ways. This monster walks unhindered on the Nigerian mindscape. However, corruption is a feature of human society which cannot be totally eradicated. It cuts across local, regional, and global geographies and temporal scales. In addition, it is political, psychological, financial and economic in character. Corruption encompasses all unethical behaviours like giving/taking of bribes, extortion, internet fraud, rigging of elections, failure to follow due process, examination malpractices, sexual harassment, and prostituted promotions in places of work including the academia.  All these can be classified into political corruption, academic corruption, public corruption, judicial corruption, police corruption and military corruption. Nigeria’s stalled development (although not completely separable from its colonial history), is intricately linked with corruption.

    Despite the socio-cultural sophistication of Britain, the geo-polity is not completely immune to corruption. But corruption here is not on an endemic scale. Thus, for example, Transparency International has recently discovered some scandalous practices such as phone hacking corruption in cricket, and political party funding in the country (Britain). Similarly, six out of 10 people claimed that the level of corruption had gone up in the last one year in the U.S. As of 2016, 36 percent of Americans believed that corruption was pervasive in the White House. Currently, the level has increased to 44. In Ukraine, politicians are always accusing each other of corruption, a scenario akin to what obtains in Nigeria today. But unlike Nigeria-a microcosm of Africa, the followership of each European country and the U.S is very active.  They are not afraid of the authority. Europeans and Americans monitor very closely their leaders in order to pave the way for transparency and accountability- two indices of good governance.

    But in Nigeria, corruption has become a normal way of life of leaders including most university managers and secondary school principals. One reason for this ugliness is that those who looted the public treasury before were never brought to justice. It is only a hungry, poor man who steals a tiny goat that goes to jail. We may not be able to rule out judicial corruption in this connection. Mother Nigeria is thoroughly sick! This monster called corruption can be substantially tamed, using the platform of rules and regulations anchored to respect for established institutions. In Yoruba philosophy, man is a corrupt animal. His excesses can only be controlled by laws.

    According to Leonard, D.K and Straus,S. (2003), “patronage politics” – a component of “patrimonialism” promotes corruption. It paves the way for a political leader to be amassing a fortune at the expense of the ordinary people. This situation leads to widespread discontent among the people. It also promotes rebellion, political strife, economic disruption/dislocation and fears coupled with insecurities.

    The African Union appears not to be doing enough to liberate the peoples of Africa from local and continental predatory politics. African leaders seem to believe that materialism is the only defining characteristic of robust humanity. They have thrown spiritualism- the core value of Homo sapiens to the winds. This is why they continue to make a fetish of hedonism and self-indulgence.  Permit me to illustrate here, the disturbing scale of corruption in Nigeria and Africa as a whole. That is, how collective resources are being blatantly used to support ostentatious life styles of government officials, their relations, cronies and business associates.

    According to newspaper reports, state governments in Nigeria are spending billions of naira in pension payments annually on former governors and their deputies. Twenty-one of these governors are currently serving as senators and ministers. This is a good example of political corruption. They are taking double emoluments/salaries at the expense of the suffering masses. For instance, in Rivers State, the law provides for 100 percent of annual basic salaries for an ex-governor and his deputy. This is in addition, to one house for the former in any location of his choice in Nigeria. There are other benefits too long to be listed here.  This is how obnoxious laws/bye-laws promote evil in the land. A similar scenario exists in most parts of Africa.

    For instance, despite the collapse of the Zimbabwean economy due to mismanagement and external sanctions, “Times International” reported the extravagant/lavish birthday party for former President Robert Mugabe when he was 85 years old. These extravagant tastes are a reflection of government insensitivity to the plight of the ordinary Zimbabweans. This is a country where unemployment rate once reached 94 percent and most citizens could not afford one square meal daily. Items for this birthday party included 2000 bottles of champagne; 8000 lobsters; 3000 ducks and 8000 boxes of Ferrero Rocher chocolates. It was also reported in 2009 that the ex-gratia payments determined for the out-going Ghanaian president (John Kuffour) were scandalous, leading to a national protest. These benefits included US$400,000 pension; six prestigious cars to be replaced every four years; two fully-furnished houses at the place of his choice; 60-day overseas travel with three staff members each year. And 18 months consolidated salary. Meanwhile, the per capita incomes of Ghana and the U.S were US$1400 and US$46000 respectively.

    But despite the gulf between the two countries, the pension for former U.S president who equally spent eight years like his Ghanaian counterpart was US$191000.  No cars; no houses; no end-of-service gratuity; free medical and dental care for the former president and his spouse and official travelling expenses with two members of staff. Former President Omar Bongo of Gabon, who died in 2009 after ruling his oil-rich country for 41 years, maximally looted the national treasury. According to the “ Free Express”- an adjunct paper to the “Washington Post” in its September 4, 2009 issue, Omar Bongo had 45 houses in France and more than 12 luxury cars including a Bugatti worth US$1.5 million. Meanwhile, more than one third of the citizens lived in abject material poverty. This was/ is how African political leaders (with a few exceptions) stalled socio-economic development in their various countries.

    Nigeria and by extension, Africa can get out of the woods by embracing the principles of fair/equitable distribution of resources. Wastes must be reduced to the barest minimum. Corrupt government officials and their business associates have to be sanctioned according to the rule of law. Pensions of retirees should be paid as of when due so that workers would not start stealing preparatory to the rainy days. Government has to work for justice- a precondition for peace. Creating sacred cows is a form of political corruption.  President Buhari may need to tell some of his over-zealous and arrogant assistants/aides to keep their mouths shut and not rock the boat. Most Nigerians are interested in the progress of our country, not smelly politics or politicking.

     

    • Prof Ogundele writes from University of Ibadan.