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Tag: probe

Who is afraid of Buhari’s probe?

Adamu, a motorist who was once a policeman, was caught making a U-turn on an unapproved junction. Tunde, a new policeman at the junction was about giving him a ticket as fine for his act. Now, Adamu told Tunde that he was not the first person to make a U-turn at the junction; hence, he wants Tunde to arrest all the motorists who had made U-turn at the junction to justify that the law is fair to him. To justify that, Tunde does not have a personal hatred for him. Well, Tunde asked him: “how far do you want me to look?” Adamu replied: “As far as the road was constructed.”

That is how I understand the opinion of former President Goodluck Jonathan, who wanted his successor, Muhammadu Buhari, to probe all past administrations. He believes that is the only way the law would be fair on him.

It is Buhari’s duty to probe anyone, including Jonathan. It was Olusegun Obasanjo’s duty to probe Abdulsalami Abubakar and other past military leaders. It was also Umaru Yar’Adua’s duty to his predecessors. If Jonathan decided to be selective in probing past administration, such action should be seen as his personal conviction. Ditto for Buhari.

As a Nigerian, I presume that Jonathan has done the same thing for his predecessor. Why didn’t he want his successor to probe him alone? When Buhari leaves office, it would be his turn to scream. The game is as simple as that.

To Jonathan and his apologists, Buhari should extend his corruption war beyond immediate past administration. We cannot force a sitting president to take a certain approach in running his government. That is his prerogative. If our hands are clean, we should have no reason to point fingers at where the probe should be directed.

When Jonathan was at the helm, everybody was a saint. Stealing was not corruption. In his twisted dictionary, you could steal all the money in the world and still be seen as credible. That’s his warped philosophy of probity in public office. Now, President Buhari wants to do what many Nigerians had hoped to see since the past four years. As a president, Jonathan clearly failed to bring to book, those who looted our treasury dry. Instead of probing them, he decided to join them and even celebrated openly.

For Bishop Hassan Kukah to say that there is “no case of corruption against Jonathan”, I believe the statement was not conjectural but evidential. For a probe that is yet to start, I wonder why everyone had been running helter-skelter. Kukah may be right in his assertion, which I am not quite sure of, but I am sure of my own assertion too that trillions of dollars were looted under Jonathan’s government.

Have we forgotten that the former Governor of Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Sanusi Lamido, was shown the way out by Jonathan himself, when the former said some $20 billion oil cash was diverted? Should we discuss the scams in the oil sector and maritime industry under Jonathan’s watch? The nation’s treasury under Jonathan depleted profusely and we do not know what the money was used for.

Kukah said President Buhari should concentrate his efforts on providing good governance, rather than expending his energies on probing the deeds of past governments. This is what Nigerians want. This is why Buhari was elected in March.

Has Kukah ever reflected on the changes witnessed in post-Jonathan Nigeria? Does he know that we now celebrate stable power supply which we did not enjoy during Jonathan’s tenure? Does Kukah know that refineries in Kaduna, Port-Harcourt and Warri are now working after almost 30-year lull?

Jonathan could not give us good governance. Yet, he could not probe past administrations to return the country’s stolen money.

GEJ, as former president is fondly called, could not bring back our Chibok girls, neither could he bring back our money. Then, what has he done? Either he watched people steal or supervised the operation. Little wonder, he said: “stealing is not corruption.”

I was bewildered at how the National Peace Committee led by General Abdulsalami Abubakar suddenly became Jonathan’s apologist. Well, here is a committee that was not efficient at restoring peace in the country. It became another tool to massage the flat ego of Jonathanians.

If anything, for the sake of the Chibok girls, Jonathan’s administration should be really probed on many fronts. He needs to account for the profligacy during his tenure.

On this note, I want to appeal to President Buhari not to listen to people that do not want the past administrations to be probed. He must not take such people seriously. In fact, we should begin to probe such people, because only a thief can have effrontery to defend another thief.

Nigerians should pray for ‘quick recovery’ of Allison Diezani Madueke. She must not die. She must live to give account of how she administered the affairs of the oil sector. Let President Buhari begin the probe of anyone, who soiled his hand during the immediate past administration.

September 17, 2015
‘Probe ’ll sanitise society’

Rev. Peter Obadan, accountant and former deputy governor of Edo State, spoke with reporters in Benin, the state capital, on the $75 million loan granted to Edo State by the World Bank, the abandoned East West road and why President Muhammadu Buhari should probe former Niger Delta Minister Elder Godsday Orubebe. Excerpts:

What is your reaction to the $75 million loan obtained by the Edo State Government?

Firstly, I think the Comrade Governor should be highly commended for been able to put Edo state in the position where we now deserve or where we were found worthy to earn the World Bank loan. It is not every state that can profit from World Bank, you need to get your elements right before you can be considered worthy and if you are not a bankable state the world bank will not turn to you because it is not a gift they expect it to be paid back and so they have also done their home work and without missing words we know that the comrade governor is a good manager of resources considering what has happened in the recent that even the we considered as viable or more viable were unable to pay salaries whereas in Edo state salaries were been paid.

I want to also believe that these senators that are opposing it are playing to the gallery because they believe they must be heard because they are in opposition. Must you oppose everything that is good for the people? You have to use your talents. As for the Chairman of PDP, I don’t take him seriously at all because it is certainly obvious that he wants to be heard always and even when the facts are very wrong, he wants to make the noise and don’t forget they do all this so that they can also earn some money. If he doesn’t make the noise how will the sponsor continue to sponsor him so he makes a show of politics and he is not realistic himself and I think the state has gone beyond the level of PDP chairman and the PDP senators and struggling to catch up with the developmental project of the state.

It is rather unfortunate because the two PDP gentlemen I respect them very much and I know deep down in their hearts they should not be opposing and they are not opposing if you have to x-ray the minds but they have to do it for political sensibility so I think that is why they are doing what they are doing.

What do you think will be the benefit of the loan?

Government is a continuum and there are very sensitive projects in Edo state that must be executed and that must continue to be executed and the state governor has his priorities and these money is not for entertainment it is for structural development. The benefits of the last loan that was given is obvious to many of us because we see great works that have been done in the state and you now look back that it is either the PDP was so daft in the past that they didn’t take opportunities of the resources which we had in the state because if they did, a measure of what the comrade governor has done in Edo state the entire state would have been completely transformed and that is the basic truth. Again, if you allow Edo people themselves to judge they will tell you that the PDP era was a total waste and there is nothing you can point to that we can say we achieved, even the infrastructural development there are lot of deficiencies, there are lots of problem with the few things that were done. Don’t forget that Comrade Oshiomhole had to even rework some of the roads they said they had done during their time because they were poorly done and Education was way down and buildings were virtually collapsing on Children and the Hospitals were virtually dead so there were so many things that went wrong.

It takes time to build a destroyed state, it is easier to build from the foundation than when you have built it was destroyed you now want to rebuild. That was the state comrade Oshiomhole found himself and he has done excellently well that both those home and abroad gives him past mark.

With the way President Buhari is going, will this confirm all your statements?

Well, it is obvious. I will tell you that finally Nigeria has taken the bull of corruption by the horn and we are moving slowly but steadily achieving our objectives. This was the change that we were all waiting for because the looting by the past administration was so phenomena and it was a wanton destruction of the economy. Today, just the mere mention of PMB make so many people sane which tells you that Buhari is not a bloodworm but he is a watch dog watching over the economy of the people, he is there protecting the economy of the people. It is in that same spirit that we all want all that they have taken to be returned. Like we know he doesn’t want the blood of anybody but he want the money returned and ones that is done, we will all be happy and that is why again he is been slow in getting his administration right because the moment you put a Jonah in a boat that boat is bound to sink and President Jonathan started by filling his own boat with all the Jonahs in this world. It got to a stage; he was completely overwhelmed because there are more people with corrupt tendencies at the top than you can think of. So you must get the right fellow to pilot the affairs of the Nation and I want to commend the President on this because he is doing it the right way. I want to say that we were gradually moving to a state where the populace would have been revolting against the elite and those in government because the middle class was completely erodent and the rich just kept getting richer, people where no longer talking of millions they were talking of billions which actually they didn’t work for. When a man works to earn his living, you ought to commend him but these were people that were just playing with figures and papers and their hand were totally filled with blood I must say because when you rob the people, you are bloody.

I want to say that it is like a stitch in time that is saving nine because we had reached the peak of it and thank God today we can look back and say we are getting out of that era, it even drifted into the church and there was now the spirit of competition among even the religious leaders. We just have to thank God that that circle of corruption is been broken and then hopefully it should seize forever. Nigeria like we used to say though tongue and tribe may differ we can all leave in oneness and in brotherhood.

As a financial expert, is it not confusing that a minister will have a huge amount of money in his coffer?

To those of us who are accountants, we know that these things are very possible and when Comrade Oshiomhole cried out, many people doubted him, but I didn’t give consideration to the fraudulent tendencies of men and looking at what has been happening. So it is quiet fixable and there will still be more revelations because we were actually deep in corruption and so I will tell you if any Nigerian says he has not sin of corruption, he deceives himself and the truth is not in him because those who stole must have given offering in churches and pastors don’t ask questions instead they praise the people and place them on the altar making them to sit on high tables. Those who stole are the ones that are welcomed in occasions, we clap for the and these are the people we hero worship and they throw peanuts at the populace but we have reached a stage in this country where we should be asking people, how did you make your money, justify it and I think those also in the tax authority should also be more punitive now. If a man goes with cars that are worth millions of millions and you find out that what he is paying as tax is two hundred thousand, one hundred thousand, it calls for investigations. I think that calls for personal investigation and so the Police, the EFCC must be up and doing. There is a lot of injustice in the land born out of corruption and that we must stop.

Do you think that the NDDC should stay because we equally have the Ministry of Niger-Delta?

Those who are appointed to the board of the NDDC peradventure don’t even look at the objectives of the NDDC. What are the objectives, what are the substratum, why was the organisation set up, what are we there to pursue? Peradventure they believe going to NDDC is to go and share money and so they maybe white wash some buildings and put a lot of billions on it and they go back to share the loot. If you put people who are not fraudulently minded, people who are prepared to serve the people in places like NDDC you will see NDDC achieving her objectives. The fathers who did set it up had great dreams and objectives yet the ministry needs to be there, the functions are not the same thing. The ministry is there to oversee what goes on in the NDDC but, the moment you make the NDDC more powerful than the Ministry, you create a structural dissonance and you start having problem and that is the situation we found ourselves.

Will you call on the President to probe the executive of the East-West road contract which has so generated controversies?

There actually so many things that should be probe in my mind without sweeping anything under the carpet. I think we should lift the veil and let the public see what has happen, let them know that this country has been abused by a clique of Nigerians. I think that road issue should be probed and if everybody who stole return their money in my opinion there will be no persecution yet they stole so I will say the man that stole should steal no more. That is the amnesty that could be granted by Mr. President if they willingly return all they have looted. There are some things you can justify and there certain things you can’t justify. When a man fills his house with money, he is even afraid to go to the back with what he has stolen, he is wicked. We are building a new Nigeria and God has given us a president that is spare heading it and my prayer is that the lieutenants and anybody invited to join his administration should also catch his vision. It is only then we can leave a testament behind for children unborn.

What can you make out of the recent visit of Jonathan to Buhari at the Aso Rock?

There is nothing wrong if a former president visits a president to explain himself, there is nothing wrong if the former president goes to arrange for a return of some of the loot or all that he looted. If we can so define that he partook in the corruption and its process, I don’t see anything wrong with that. It will be wrong to say he went there to beg Buhari or to beg on behalf of his ministers. By now talking as an independent person I know former president Jonathan would have looked back to know that he didn’t perform in office and if he has a conscience realise by now that he disappointed those of us from the Southsouth because you don’t have this kind of opportunity twice so it was a complete disaster. I want to say been modest that he will be unhappy with himself because it was a wasted administration and wasted years which is rather unfortunate and you can’t treat your fellow human beings the way Nigerians have been so treated. I want to appeal to all Nigerians to support President Buhari to see to the execution of his objectives and to state clearly that any group whether the military or civilian that will want to rise against this laudable objectives and actions of President Buhari must be resisted and must be fought with our blood because for ones we need to cleanse this and we need to set things right because I want my children to enjoy this country.

September 16, 2015
2015 budget probe: Reps blast perm sec, AGF, Budget Office

The House of Representatives has expressed reservations at the capacity of the Federal Ministry of Finance to effectively drive the economy.

Its position was informed by the discrepancies discovered in documents presented to its ad hoc committee investigating the implementation of the capital component of the 2015 budget.

The public hearing, postponed twice due to the absence of the Permanent Secretary, Federal Ministry of Finance, Mrs Anastasia Daniel-Nwaobia, however, got underway yesterday despite her absence.

She was said to be on the entourage of President Muhammadu Buhari to France.

Agencies at the hearing included the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Budget Office, Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation (OAGF), Revenue Mobilisation Allocation and Fiscal Commission (RMAFC), Fiscal Responsibility Commission (FRC) and National Planning Commission (NPC), among others.

Trouble began after the submission of the ministry by the representative of the Permanent Secretary, Alhaji Aliyu Gusau, who is the director general, Budget Office.

He said the document was too ‘sketchy’ to be of any value to the committee.

The permanent secretary, in her presentation, said N3.45 trillion was budgeted for 2015 of which capital appropriation was N5579 billion.

“Of the amount, N194.492 billion was released as at September 15, representing 34.89 per cent of total releases.

“Of the N375.62 billion budgeted for statutory tranfer, N187 billion was released as at quarter two and N250.41 billion as at August 2015.

“Of N231.41billion Pensions budget, N149.92 billion was released as at the end of August 2015.

Public debt to GDP ratio as at 2013 was 10.82 per cent, and N882.122 billion appropriated for domestic and external borrowing was fully raised to finance the 2015 budget.

“External debt as at June 30, 2015, stood at $7.74 billion and $3.42 billion for states and the FCT; bringing it to $10.31 billion while Federal Government’s internal debt stood at $8.396 billion”.

Reacting to the presentation, the committee said the document lacked depth, while figures in the submission of some invited agencies were contradictory.

Chairman of the Ad Hoc Committee Ahman Pategi said the sketchy nature of the permanent secretary’s presentation failed to give the true position of the implementation of the 2015 capital budget.

He noted that the presentation was silent on revenue accruing from oil while there was a need to know the shortfall from January to August.

Besides, he cited the shortfall recorded in non-oil revenue as contained in the document but was short on explanations on month-by-month details.

He also said the presentation was vague on the nation’s debt profile and silent on the position of each sectors of the economy and how the government planned to liquidate it.

The chairman was also concerned about the inadequate presentation of most of the agencies, spanning January to June 2015, rather than from January to August 2015.

“My own of view of the presentation is that it is sketchy and does not give a holistic view for full understanding of what the 2015 budget implementation is all about.

“We had expected you to provide vivid insight into the regime of import duty waiver using explanatory notes to describe how what was done and why,” he said.

Members of the communittee, including Linus Okorie and Wale Oke said documents presented by the Ministry of Finance, the Budget Office and the OAGF lacked credibility.

Okorie, who said he had no confidence in the documents, noted that they were incomplete and contradictory.

To highlight the discrepancies in the documents presented by the Budget Office and the OAGF, Okorie observed a difference of N248 billion over projected revenue for 2015.

He also pointed out another N146.8 billion difference in figures presented by the two agencies on debt servicing.

According to the lawmaker, who asked for clarification on the nation’s debt profile, the documents showed that N148 billion was overpaid for debt servicing.

In addition, Okorie pointed out the contradictions in the two documents concerning releases to the Subsidy Reinvestment Programme (SURE-P).

Okorie said while one document showed that the entire N21 billion SURE-P budget was released, another said only N14 billion was released and utilised.

On his part, Wale Oke, who later urged the Committee to adjourn the meeting for a week said the various documents failed show the capacity of the Federal government to implement the 2015 budget.

The Committee wondered why the Federal government had to borrow to fund non capital expenditure in addition to using local instruments to service its debt.

N882.1b has been fully borrowed and disbursed to the Consolidated Revenue Account to fund the 2015 budget deficit.

According to the committee, it is against the Fiscal Responsibility Act to borrow to fund projects that were not contained in the capital component of the budget.

The committee advised that an inter-ministerial group be constituted among the agencies to articulate the figures.

According to the Chairman, the opportunity given to the agencies to reconcile the books was not for connivance but to aid the committee in its findings.

The hearing was adjourned to next Tuesday.

September 16, 2015
Senate power probe gets petition

The Senate ad hoc committee investigating alleged sharp practices in the Power sector has received a petition accusing the Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Power, Godknows Igali, of diverting the N3.5 billion meant for the payment of beneficiaries of the National Power Sector Apprenticeship Scheme (NAPýSAS).

The petition was submitted to the committee’s Chairman Abubakar Kyari.

The petitioners claimed that the ministry recruited 7,200 youths for the apprenticeship scheme, which was expected to last six months but was stopped abruptly.

They also claimed that each participant of the scheme was expected to be paid N20,000 monthly stipend for six months, after which they might be absorbed into the sector.

According to the petition, this was not to be, following the failure of the permanent secretary to implement the programme to the fullest, even after N3.5 billion had been budgeted for the programme..

The petitioners are asking the committee, among others, to investigate their allegation.

The petition was signed by the leaders of the participants in the training scheme, Onyemelikeya Chukwuma and Balogun Tirimisiyu, who are the Co-Presidents Solar and Metering.

They urged the Senate to address their prayers.

September 14, 2015
Coomassie to Buhari: Probe religious organisations, others

Former Inspector General of Police, Ibrahim Coomasie, yesterday backed President Muhammadu Buhari in his fight against corruption.

Coomasie, who is the Sardaunan Katsina, urged the president to extend the crusade to religious organisations, military, police, para-military and educational institutions.

Other areas the retired police boss wants the war against corruption extended to include human right associations and organised private sector.

The former IGP spoke in Ilorin, the Kwara State capital, at the 5th Convocation Ceremony of Al-Hikmah University.

He said: “The bold steps taken by the administration so far are highly commendable and it is our hope that these will be extended to other strata of the society.

“It is a fact that both Islam and Christianity abhor corruption under whatever guise.

“Therefore, it is the duty of every Nigerian to support the initiatives of the present administration so that the common wealth of Nigerian could be judiciously harnessed for the benefit of all citizens.”

Coomasie, who doubles as the Pro-Chancellor of Al-Hikmah University, appealed to the federal government to offer financial assistance to private tertiary institutions.

September 13, 2015
‘Probe cannot rubbish Suswam’s achievements’

After the successful handover of the reigns of office to his successor on May 29, after eight years of service to his state, Dr Gabriel Suswam, the immediate past governor of Benue state has opted to for a low profile. He has made only one public appearance since leaving office and that was August 14, 2015 at the funeral of his close political associate, the late Hon.Atoza Ihindan, who was cut down by yet unknown political assassins. Suswam has equally avoided public comments in the media preferring to maintain a dignified silence even on matters of state some of them pertaining to his performance in office as governor.

Those who know Suswam very well can attest to the fact that he is a man of the people, who loves company and public appearances as much as he loves engaging the media on issues. Why has the former Governor chosen to maintain studied silence when his tenure is being put on the scale by the new administration? The answer may not far fetched. As former Governor, Suswam sees himself as a statesman who should carefully weigh all his comments on public matters so as not to unduly overheat the polity thereby constitute a source of distraction to those charged with the responsibility to provide leadership at this point in time.

Although Suswam has maintained his quiet stance on issues, it appears the new administration in Benue state is still not comfortable with his silence and seeming inactivity and would want to bring him to the ring for a political bout. The many probes launched against Suswam speak volumes in this regard.

At the last count, there were about five probe committees launched with fanfare by the government against the Suswam administration. The first was personnel audit of all workers on the state payroll.This probe was ordered by the new helmsman a few days on assumption of office. The objective was ostensibly to check the state’s payroll to fish out ‘ghost workers” and possible reduce the wage bill. That appeared on the surface an objective exercise. But the real reason for the exercise was to identify those employed by the Suswam administration in its last two years in office for retrenchment. In pursuit of this veiled political agenda therefore, the new administration did not wait for a report of the audit, it went ahead and removed from the payroll, all those employed by the outgone administration since 2013, when it had two clear years to the end of its tenure. This obvious political activity has sent nearly 1000 staff off jobs. The “offence” of this people is that they were employed by Suswam, even though due process was followed in making the appointments.

The second probe of the Suswam era was carried out by the Transition Committee. The committee headed by Chief Mike Iordye, who incidentally served for six and half years out of Suswam’sight-year tenure as Head of Service its report with fanfare. The Transition committee which was supposed to receive hand over notes, study and summarise same for the new administration turned into a probe committee as it traversed the state visiting projects sites. It summoned dozens of civil servants and other private persons to appear and testify before it. The Committee submitted a report with spurious findings on the debts left behind by the Suswam administration.

Not satisfied with the Transition Committee, the new administration inaugurated two judicial commissions of inquiry all in one day-The first is to investigate and determine all revenues which accrued to the state since June 2007 when Suswam assumed office to May 2015 when he left office. The Panel headed by Justice Margaret kpojime has six months to determine how such revenues were applied, the contracts awarded, who awarded the contracts, the status of the various jobs, and whether there was value for money in the transactions, to identify any case of malfeasance and recommend appropriate measures for consideration of the government.

The other probe panel is for verification of government assets. The committee headed by Mr. Moses Atagher, a Lawyer and former Acting Managing Director of the Federal Mortgage Bank has the mandate to determine all assetsof the state in terms, landed property, vehicles, shares, equipment, factories, etc their location, whether such assets were under lease arrangement, to determine the identity of the persons behind the lease, the terms of the lease, whether there have been improvements on the property etc.

All these probe panels have since commenced sitting in Makurdi. And the target from all indications is to get at Suswam, destroy his political base, ruin his reputation, cast his administration is the worst light, and reduce his political viability and dent the image of as many Benue sons and daughters who were privileged to serve their state during Suswam’s eight-year tenure.

Although the administration in the state has denied that it was out to witch-hunt, the series of probes and mandate given the probe panels points directly to the desperation to nail Suswam by all means.

Unfortunately for the administration, the Suswam bashing has so far proved counter-productive as the achievements of his administration which is under scrutiny stand out confront the present actors on the political stage where ever they go across the state. The achievements are most unlikely to be pushed into oblivion anytime soon.

Take a look at the numerous infrastructural projects executed by Suswam. Most of the streets in Makurdi, Gboko, Otukpo and Katsina-Ala were tarred during his tenure. Over 1000km roads were built linking each of the 23 Local Government headquarters in the state. Most of the roads were completed and commissioned, some were at different stages of completion. The rural communities got a fair deal as over 150 communities benefitted from rural electricity projects. The primary and secondary education sectors received a huge boost in the provision of classrooms, toilets, offices, libraries, laboratories and other infrastructure to boost teaching and learning. The states tertiary institutions were transformed to centres of excellence. The Benue State University particularly benefitted from several projects including a new Faculty of Law complex, convocation square, lecture theatres, faculty offices among others. The University Teaching Hospital was completed and accreditation of the School of Medical Sciences achieved to enable Medical students graduate from the Uinversity.

The Suswam administration completed three major water projects in Makurdi, Otukpo and Katsina-Ala to provide potable water to the populace.

The administration constructed an ultra-modern Government House with offices, logde, banquet hall and guest houses. The facilities are being enjoyed by the new helmsmen.

Suswam’s ill-luck is that his party, the Peoples Democratic Party(PDP) lost at the polls in the last general election. The on-going political malevolent guised in judicial probe panels is a direct byproduct of the outcome of the hotly contested elections. The inclusion of those who previously served the state and were involved in the very activities now under probe exposes the desperation to craft reasons for Suswam’s political subjugation within the realms of Benue politics. But how far will political vendetta go under the guise of Judicial probes?

The former Governor is confident he will come out clean from the probes. He is sure of his record of activities and has stated that he would subject himself to the probe.

Rather than obliterate Suswam politically, the serial probes are making Suswam even the more relevant in the politics of Benue. His traducers are not bringing anything on the table for the people to appreciate. Benue people are not seeing anything coming from the men on the stage in terms of positive intervention on development issues rather than the façade of Suswam bashing which has unfortunately become the official policy of the administration in place.

It is high time the government in Benue found another area to divert the peoples attention from the real developmental challenges confronting the stateas the probe panels aimed at discrediting the erstwhile Suswam administration are proving to be counter-productive.

Abul, a political Affairs commentator contributed from Katsina-Ala, Benue State.

September 4, 2015
Wike/Amaechi rift: What manner of probe?

Controversy has continued to trail the activities of the Commission of Inquiry set up by Rivers State Governor Nyesom Wike to probe his predecessor, Rotimi Amaechi. A section of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) believes that the investigation is necessary to foster accountability. But, many indigenes have cried foul, saying that the governor set up the panel to humiliate his former boss because he collaborated with progressives in other geo-political zones to abort the second term ambition of former President Goodluck Jonathan. EMMANUEL OLADESU examines the politics of the probe and the crisis it has unleashed on the Southsouth state.

The probe of former Rivers State Governor Rotimi Amaechi is generating ripples. Governor Nyesom Wike, who set up the Commission of Inquiry to investigate his predecessor, has explained that Amaechi has a duty to shed light on the finances of the state when he was in charge. The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), which has hailed the probe, said that it is a moment of accountability.

But, many indigenes have objected to the probe, saying that the governor is full of vendetta. The investigation, in their view, was meant to dent the image of the former governor. They argue that, a credibility crisis is being orchestrated by the PDP to discourage President Muhammadu Buhari from nominating Amaechi for any position in the Federal Executive Council. Between now and the time the President will name his cabinet, the campaign of calumny will intensify in the media to pull down the former governor.

According to the Rivers State All Progressives Congress (APC), Wike is afraid of the rising influence of Amaechi, who is perceived as one of the heroes of democracy. In a statement, the APC Chairman, Davies Ikanya, said: “These retrogressive forces, led by Governor Nyesom Wike, are so afraid of the shadow of Amaechi to the extent that they are willing to go to any length to ensure that he is not accommodated in President Buhari’s cabinet.” The party chairman said that it is ironical that Wike, who rode to power through a flawed electoral process, has raised a panel to probe his successor.

Four years ago, Wike and Amaechi, were political allies. Wike, a lawyer, was Amaechi’s Chief of Staff. During the second term battle, he was also the Coordinator of the Amaechi Campaign Organisation. Little did the two friends know that they will part ways, ahead of the last general elections. Their political difference has polarised the Southsouth state. While Amaechi defected to the All progressives Congress (APC), following protracted rift between him and former President Goodluck Jonathan, Wike became the arrowhead of the PDP in Rivers. Amaechi worked for President Buhari’s success at the poll. But, he was succeeded by Wike, although the battle has now shifted from the ballot box to the court.

On the campaign podium, Wike had threatened to probe his former boss. When he was sworn in, he unfolded a plan to carry out a forensic audit of government accounts. He said the probe is consistent with the anti-corruption crusade of the APC-led Federal Government. Amaechi challenged him to carry out the threat.

On June 19, the governor set up the panel. The commission is headed by Justice George Omereji. Other members are Dr. Edith Chukwu, Chief Monday Ekekenta, Ven. Alex Isifo and Elder Ignatius Piegbara. Reacting to the setting up of the panel, Amaechi said it was not set up in good faith, adding that it was a sham and fraudulent witch-hunt to deceive the people. “All the noise Wike is making is to grab media headlines with his lies of monumental corruption against Amaechi. It is all drama made for the media. What is playing out is a script written and directed by Nyesom Wike. Wike should move to Nollywod where his devious skills would probably be useful. While it is no longer in doubt what would be the report of Wike’s sham probe commission, what may shock Nigerians is the extent Wike has gone and is ready to go to manufacture stories of corrupt practices and the kind of bogus tales of corruption against Amaechi that he would soon be feeding the nation,” he added.

It is not the first time Amaechi will run into storm in his political career. When he vied for the governor, powerful forces nearly denied him the mandate. Former President Olusegun Obasanjo said his ambition had k-leg. He survived. The second term battle was also fiercely fought in Rivers. At the end, he was victorious. His second term was turbulent. The former President, Jonathan, and his wife, Dame Patience, who hails from Rivers, moved against him. At a public function, the former first lady snatched the microphone from him. Later, the police, led by Joseph Mbu, became a thorn in his flesh. He was even denied entrance into his office. The battle shifted to the House of Assembly. Efforts to impeach Amaechi unlawfully were resisted. Despite the awesome presidential powers, he triumphed.

The on-going probe is another phase of his political life. Efforts to stop the probe has failed. A court has affirmed the right of the governor to probe the previous administration. A High Court Judge, Justice Simeon Amadi, said the panel was set up, not to investigate the former governor in person, but his defunct administration.

However, many stakeholders have picked holes in the investigation. Former Rivers State Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice Worgu Boms described the probe as a comedy of errors. He accused Wike of bias, saying that he has demonstrated prejudice. He also alleged that some members of what he described as ill-conceived and ill-motivated panel, have their bias towards the former governor.

His counterpart in the Ministry of Information, Mrs. Ibim Seminitari, described the probe as an unnecessary diversion from subsisting electoral issues. Besides, she said the probe cannot dent Amaechi’s image because he lived up to expectation as governor. The former commissioner said that the people will always applaud the achievements of the governor in the last eight years. “These achievements are visible in all sectors,” she added.

Amaechi, who has never underestimated Wike’s capacity for politicking, reasoned that the governor set up the probe to create more crisis so that stakeholders can bring the two sides to reconciliation. He said, since Wike knew that he got to the State House through fraudulent election, he decided to witch-hunt him so that he can yield to pressure to withdraw the suit against his victory. Amaechi said that the APC and its candidate, Hon. Dakuku Peterside, will now bow to pressure to abandon the case.

Explaining why he has refused to appear before the panel, the former governor said the panel is illegal. “He has not complied with the law in setting up the panel. The rule of natural justice and fair hearing is not adhered to. You sit down and you tell a man, ‘go and find him guilty openly. He is guilty; go and investigate him,” Amaechi stressed.

The former governor denied the allegations of corruption. He said Wike should reflect and examine himself before throwing stones. He challenged anyone to name any account in his name, except his official salary account and the FCMB account. When the time is ripe, he promised to open upon Wike.

Amaechi said: “The funny thing about the young man is that he knows that I know him. I know Nyesom Wike up to his companies.; Zico, Easy E. I was his governor and I have documents to show that he is a contractor. I have Wike’s account details. But, you don’t reply him by saying, you see, you are a thief, see what you stole. It will appear like I am a thief, but you are also a thief. So, what you do is to say no, I am not a thief and I don’t know what this man is talking about.

“Rivers people forget so easily, and I annoys me. During the campaign, I named the roads that nyesom Wike did and abandoned. He is reconstructing some of them after we have paid him and no Rivers man is talking or asking, except the young boys who are replying him on the social media.”

September 3, 2015
‘Wike’s probe of Amaechi, a distraction’

Former Rivers State Governor Rotimi Amaechi’s Media Office, in this piece, argues that Governor Nyesom Wike is chasing shadow by probing his predecessor.

Again, our attention has been drawn to comments by the governor of Rivers State, Nyesom Wike, where he attempts to justify his fraudulent, sham probe of the immediate past governor of Rivers State Rt. Hon. Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi and distort our statement on the amount of money Amaechi left in the State treasury.

No matter how hard Wike tries, the public can clearly see through his fraudulent deception and the sham he calls Commission of Inquiry to probe Amaechi. That panel was set up to indict Amaechi of corruption. Everything about the probe commission is at variance with the ethics and laws of a fair, just and unbiased probe commission.

Indeed, the hack panel has not disappointed its paymaster since it started its shambolic public hearings. As we earlier warned, it is a comedy to grab media headlines with bogus, phantom and fabricated claims of corrupt practices against former governor Amaechi. The public hearings have become a comedy of errors for the media. We maintain that Wike’s probe commission shall not achieve anything beyond political excitements, entertainment and theatrics.

However, what the public may not know is that Wike’s deceptive probe of Amaechi is a distraction to entertain and keep the public focus on his circus show, while he siphons and salt away billions of naira from the State treasury. From the moment he stepped into Government House, Port Harcourt, Wike has run a government of lies, deception and fraud.

He first made a show and gave a performance of his false accusations that Amaechi stripped the Governor’s Lodge bare, saying that the former governor stole spoons, plates, knives, cups, mattresses, forks and even curtains from the Governor’s Lodge! However, in the images Wike showed to back his lies, the curtains in the lodge were clearly there, seen and intact.

Wike then claimed he met a completely empty treasury. That again is another big lie and grand deception to steal state funds. We have said that former governor Amaechi left billions of naira and we even went ahead to mention the banks and give the names of the accounts the money were, as at May 29, 2015.

We repeat that N7.5billion cash were left behind as balances in the State Internally Generated Revenue (IGR) account with Skye Bank, FAAC account with Zenith Bank, balances with Access Bank and funds in the State reserve fund account in First Bank. This is besides other balances in the state Government House account with Zenith Bank and other government Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) accounts, like the Bureau for Public Procurement (BPP). Amaechi left N939 million naira in the Commercial Agric Credit Scheme Account in Zenith Bank. By the time you pull all these balances together, we are looking at readily available cash in the region of eight to ten billion naira left for the Wike administration. We have mentioned banks, account names and funds left in the accounts. These are facts that cannot be distorted by Wike.

If Wike says he’s not lying that he met an empty treasury, we challenge him to publish the statements of these government accounts that we have mentioned and other Rivers State government ministries, departments and agencies (MDAs) accounts as at May 29; to prove his claim and show the public that Amaechi left an empty treasury for him. But, we dare say, he will not because he runs a government of lies, deception and fraud, always wanting to hoodwink the public as he siphons billions of naira of State funds.

Rather than this comedic, puerile and silly distraction he calls probe commission, Wike should explain to Rivers people what happened to the funds Amaechi left, the N30 billion naira loans he took under 30 days and other funds that has accrued to Rivers State since he became governor. Amaechi left a legacy of accountability; Rivers people expect nothing less from Wike.

September 3, 2015
Probe: Jonathan holds meeting with ex-ministers
Former President Goodluck Jonathan has met with some members of his cabinet in a bid to defend his integrity.

He was said to have told the former ministers that he was “not a thief in office as being portrayed”.

He explained how he met President Muhammadu Buhari for 20 minutes on two issues.

They are:
- advising Buhari against subjecting his person and former cabinet members to “media trial” on alleged corruption and;
- why the Election Petition Tribunals in Rivers and Akwa Ibom should be allowed to work unhindered.
He deplored what he called the involvement of the Department of State Security Service(DSS) on election-related matters in the two states.

According to sources, the meeting was held at Jonathan’s Abuja home a few days ago.

It was gathered that about 15 former ministers (including two who were recalled from London) and some former security chiefs attended.

One of the former media aides in the Presidency attended the “strictly private” session to put issues in the correct perspective at the right time.

But the Minister of Petroleum Resources, Mrs. Diezani Alison-Madueke, who is central to the allegations against Jonathan, was absent.

A source, who spoke in confidence, said the session was “a frank and fact-finding” against the backdrop of plans by the Buhari administration to probe Jonathan’s tenure.

The source said: “The ex-President confided in the meeting that he was worried that the gains of his administration were being washed away daily by the allegations of corruption being reeled out by the government.

“He said he called the session to set the records straight and get facts because his administration was not enjoying any benefit of doubt among Nigerians, especially the media.

“At a point, Jonathan, in an emotional manner told the meeting that ‘I am not a thief in office as being portrayed.”

Another source said the former President asked all the ex-ministers to “brace for the probe ahead and keep their records intact to reply Buhari’s administration on issues being raised.

“The ex-ministers unanimously agreed that there were better sides of Jonathan’s administration than being painted as a tenure of graft.

“The key ministries, such as Works, Finance, Health, Aviation, Education and even Petroleum Resources were mandated to produce lists of achievements.

“Some of the ex-ministers lamented that the Permanent Secretaries proving to Buhari as holier-than-thou were part of the Jonathan administration and they even made input into the handover notes.”

Responding to a question, the source said: “Jonathan and the ex-ministers admitted that the administration might have some issues to clear in the management of the Ministry of Petroleum Resources.

“But they said the situation was not as bad in the oil sector as being alleged.”

A third source said: “I think we should expect some fireworks in the next few days. The meeting resolved to reach out to the public in the same equal weight the allegations of corruption will be released by the Buhari administration.

“But there was a word of caution that any response must not be abusive. The President personally appointed a former Minister of National Planning, Dr. Abubakar Suleiman, to sign any statement on cabinet issues.

It was learnt that some of the ex-Ministers asked Jonathan what he actually discussed with Buhari.

“The President said he raised two issues with President Buhari within 20 minutes. This border on the need to avoid media trial on any allegation of corruption being looked into. He said he told Buhari that his image and members of his cabinet were being dragged in the mud. He said even in law, an accused person is deemed innocent until proven guilty.

“Jonathan also said he asked Buhari to leave the Election Petition Tribunals in Rivers and Akwa Ibom states to do their work instead of the hounding of some INEC officials and politicians by DSS.”
August 31, 2015
Anambra APC wants FG to probe DSS over alleged brutalization of member

The Anambra State chapter of the All Progressive Congress (APC) has called on President Mohammadu Buhari to probe the Department of State Service (DSS) in the state over an alleged brutal treatment of one of its chieftain, Chief Ifeanyichukwu Nwokoye.

The APC leader, who was Buhari’s presidential campaign coordinator in Anambra state in 2007, was allegedly brutalized and beaten to coma by DSS operatives in the state on April 27, 2015.

Nwokoye was allegedly beaten for refusing a request by the DSS operatives to provide a list of expatriate doctors who were lodged in his Hotel (Mayroses).

The doctors were brought in by Governor Willie Obiano to the state to treat the less privileged in the various communities,

Nwokoye and his wife, Jessie, were allegedly handcuffed and locked up in a DSS cell at Amawbia, where they were left naked like common criminals.

The DSS men allegedly broke Nwokoye’s shoulders, damaged his scrotum and his retina, leading to his being flown abroad by his family for surgeries.

Since the ugly incident, prominent citizens of the state, including Senator Chris Ngige, Senator Andy Uba and Chief Simon Okeke, among others, had condemned the action of DSS in the state.

The state secretary of the APC, chukwuma Agufugo, called for a probe of the incident.

According to Agufugo, “Nwokoye is not only a chieftain of APC in Anambra State, but a prominent citizen of Nigeria, who has paid his dues in politics, and for him to be treated like a common criminal by the DSS is unacceptable to APC.

“Our security operatives should learn how to treat those who are under their care, and not to harass, molest, intimidate and humiliate them. This should serve as a deterrent to others who are planning such evil in a civilized society.”

August 29, 2015