On Monday, October 24, former President Goodluck Jonathan was a guest speaker at the famous Oxford Union where, at his request, he delivered a long and rambling speech on ‘Youth Empowerment, Entrepreneurship, and Corruption’ in Nigeria. The speech was intended to defend his record in office as president. I have obtained and read the full transcript of his speech in which he made some astonishing claims about the contribution of his government to job creation in Nigeria, through youth empowerment and the development of youth entrepreneurship in Nigeria. He claimed that, under his administration, the country achieved an average annual growth rate of 6 per cent, the third fastest growth rate in the world. That may be correct, but this high growth rate was fuelled largely by the stupendous growth in our oil exports and revenue, the highest ever. Sadly, it did not translate into a significant economic development of our economy; a classic case of growth without development. As we have seen in media reports of financial scandals, under his watch the rich in Nigeria got richer and the poor poorer. Today, youth unemployment and mass poverty are at highest levels in our country.
Specifically, he claimed that his tenure in office as president marked ‘an era of unprecedented growth for Nigeria’. But where are the jobs he created through the so-called youth empowerment and entrepreneurship programme? The fact of the matter is that his so-called youth empowerment and entrepreneurship consisted largely of handing over vast sums of money to unemployed youths and warlords, the Tompolos, mostly in Bayelsa, his state, who lacked any skills or much education to make use of the funds. Instead, the funds were diverted, possibly with his approval and knowledge, by the so-called ‘avengers; and militants to acquire weapons to wage a war against their own country, and sabotage oil installations and pipelines in the country. We were even threatened by these militant youths that unless Jonathan was re-elected in last year’s presidential election, they would make our country ungovernable. Is that not what the current violent militancy in the Niger Delta is all about? These were the youths Jonathan financially empowered to wage a war of attribution on our country.
His claims about creating jobs are a lot of ridiculous hogwash. Many domestic and foreign observers have already dismissed his government as inept, inefficient and corrupt. Suffice it to say that oil revenues during his administration were the highest in Nigeria’s fiscal history, and that he could have done a lot more with this huge oil revenue to address the critical infrastructure deficit and other economic challenges in our country. As we now know, most of the vast income from oil was simply squandered and frittered away on vast public corruption and unbridled foreign imports under his watch. Little, or nothing, was done by his government to diversify the economy and start the whole process of moving the national economy away from its over dependence on its oil revenues. In his last year in office the high growth rate had begun to plummet due to the fall in oil exports and revenue. It had fallen to less than 2 per cent. A year after the country is in a deep recession. If he had been re-elected president, our economic situation would have been far worse now. We needed an urgent review of our fiscal and monetary policies to stop the financial haemorrhage. Because of powerful domestic vested interests which he tended to protect and support he did nothing about the wasteful and corruption ridden oil import subsidy, or the exchange rate adjustment that had become necessary. He chose to ignore the danger signals in the economy in the hope that he could bribe his way to re-election as president. Even the Sovereign Wealth Fund (SWF) of $1bn, a kind of investment abroad for the proverbial rainy day, was virtually depleted before he left office after his woeful defeat in the presidential elections.
As regards public corruption under his watch, the most astonishing claim he made in his Oxford Union speech was that his former National Security Adviser, Col. Sambo Dasuki (retd), did not steal the $2.2bn for which he is being detained and for which he may face trial in court shortly. Instead, he said the funds in question were used to buy military aircraft and weapons for the Nigerian Armed Forces. In fact, Jonathan said the issue of public corruption in Nigeria was being ‘overblown’. But in a swift reaction to his absurd claims, the Nigerian military has said the three Alpha jets and two helicopters Jonathan bought for the Air Force were largely ‘unserviceable’. It said the jets were ‘not weaponised and the helicopters were cannibalised eventually, as they were not serviceable.
But the real issue that Jonathan failed to address in his Oxford Union speech is where did all that money, the $2.2bn, that Dasuki improperly disbursed to Jonathan’s political hacks and cronies come from, and what purpose was it originally intended to serve? Was it not intended to procure arms for the Armed Forces to fight the Boko Haram insurgency? Why was the fund diverted instead to private pockets? The matter, as admitted by Jonathan, is sub jidice. It is for the courts, not Jonathan, to determine whether, or not, the funds were stolen. Already, in anticipation of his own trial, Dasuki has been reported as claiming that, in those sordid financial transactions, he acted solely and wholly on the instructions of President Jonathan. Well, Dasuki is better able to defend himself in the court of law. When the trial begins, as it should as soon as possible, Dasuki has said he will call President Jonathan as a star witness. The drama in the court between the two will be very interesting and exciting. As he is out of office, Jonathan can no longer claim any immunity from investigation, or trial for gross and inappropriate financial misdemeanours. Presidential immunity does not cover criminal actions by the president. It is intended merely to protect him from frivolous civil litigations for actions taken by him while in office. Dasuki’s lawyer has been reported as calling for a ‘political settlement” of the matter. This will be a terrible disservice to our nation, as the price we have had to pay collectively for this financial heist is just too high. In any case, President Buhari does not even have the constitutional power or authority to go for a political settlement of the case pending in court. Even if he does, prudence will require him to let the sordid matter be determined by the court. Otherwise, he will undermine the fight against public corruption in our country. It will amount to a negation of accountability in governance in our country.
The Oxford Union speech is obviously the first salvo by former President Jonathan to fight back on the allegations of corruption against him and his government. We can expect more foreign speeches by him. But he is better off giving the speech here at home. He did not impress the members of the Oxford Union as the reactions of the Union to his speech were reported to have been largely negative. Oxford students are well informed about world affairs and are very discerning. The few Nigerian students who are now able to go to Oxford and who were at the Union were reported as heckling him. As a Life Member of the Oxford Union and a former Commonwealth post-graduate scholar at Trinity College, Oxford, I was privileged to have attended and participated in some of its debates in the late 1960s and early 70s. I am proud of its noble and liberal traditions and of the fact that the Union provided Jonathan with a platform to air his views freely. That is the hallmark of the Oxford Union. Oxford students work incredibly hard. The Union provides them a relaxed place they can go to for robust debates and speeches from distinguished guests. It also has an excellent bar and a good library.
The Oxford Union prides itself on being the world’s most prestigious debating society, with an unparalleled reputation for bringing to Oxford international guests and speakers. Steeped in history the Oxford Union was founded in 1823 as a forum for debates and discussion at a time when free speech was still largely restricted in the universities and in Britain. Many of its Presidents go on to become British Prime Ministers. One of these, William E. Gladstone, was President of the Union in 1830, and went on to become one of Britain’s greatest prime ministers in the 19th century. Because of its collegiate system, Oxford University does not have a central students’ union. The Oxford Union is independent and has no political leanings. It provides, instead, a forum for debates on controversial issues in the university. Its previous guests include Tariq Ali, Malcolm X, Richard Nixon, Gerry Adams and O.J. Simpson, all of them controversial public figures. In 1933, when Hitler and the Nazis were rising in Germany, the Oxford Union passed by 275 votes to 153 a motion that “This House will under no circumstances fight for King and Country”. Winston Churchill dismissed the motion as an unprecedented disavowal of the country. It had no effect in Britain. Every year a motion is routinely debated in the Union that “This House has no confidence in Her Majesty’s Government”. It is usually passed but has no political significance. It is merely symbolic. It is in keeping with its proud and irreverent debating reputation that the Oxford Union accepted Jonathan as a guest speaker. His speech there will not in any way influence British public opinion of him as an inept and corrupt leader. It was all done in good humour.
