CORRUPTION: Ribadu Tongue-lashes Jonathan, Lauds Buhari, Reveals Cabals Still After Him

In a veil manner, a former chairman of the Economic and Financial Crime Commission, Malam Nuhu Ribadu has lambasted past administration of President Goodluck Jonathan for lacking the political will to fight corruption. He however lauded President Muhammadu Buhari for his zeal, political will to fight corruption to a standstill.

Rubadu on Wednesday said he was still “paying dearly” for his efforts to rid the country of corruption, The Nation reports

According to him, corruption would not have become so endemic if past administrations had the will to fight it.

Ribadu, who denied tampering with recovered assets while at EFCC, said highly placed government officials frustrated the commission’s work, culminating in his removal from office and ‎halting the progress being made in the anti-graft war.

“Somebody was brought in to destroy the agency. It was a tragedy,” Ribadu said.

He spoke in Abuja at a National Stakeholders’ Workshop on the Recovery and Management of Recovered Assets, organised by the Presidential Advisory Committee Against Corruption (PACAC), in collaboration with the Commonwealth Secretariat.

PACAC chairman, Prof Itsay Sagay (SAN), said if Ribadu had not been removed, maybe corruption would not have become so endemic.

He said developing strategies for recovery of stolen assets would act as a deterrent to looters.

“Seizure of assets is more painful to them than imprisonment,” Sagay said.

Ribadu, who gave the keynote speech with the theme: Assets Recovery in Nigeria: Experiences from the past, said although he was still paying the price for stepping on some toes, he had no regrets.

He denied allegations that he was part of those who allegedly re-looted recovered assets, including N1trillion, and expressed surprise that it was a subject of Senate investigation.

He said: “Considering the care we took in handling whatever was in our custody, I find it baffling and disheartening when I hear people make insinuations about how we handled recovered assets.

“It is a most unfair remark but certainly not totally surprising as the fight against corruption is essentially a thankless job, especially in our climes.

“That was why I was telling Prof Sagay: ‘Don’t bother sir, people will abuse you; don’t say anything. This is the job’.

“We are hurting people; we are taking things from those who took things and we denied them chance to make use of them and enjoy and with their family.

“I’m still paying dearly. In my own madness, I decided to go into politics and I am still paying for it. But I am not bothered. I’ll continue fighting till my last breath. If I’m given the opportunity I’ll do it again.”

Ribadu believes the Buhari administration has the political will to tackle corruption and has demonstrated it.

He described EFCC chairman Ibrahim Magu as “a good, courageous and honest guy”.

Ribadu said: “We have the most vital tool needed in this war, namely political will. I see in the present leadership, specifically the president, the will to allow the war to be fought without interference and the eagerness to support it in whatever way possible. These two points are important prerequisite in winning the anti-corruption war.

“We are also lucky to have a set of people, including Vice-President Yemi Osinbajo (SAN) who are very passionate and committed to be in charge of the process,” he said.

According to him, due to the limitations of the existing laws on asset forfeiture, the current attempt at enacting a law to cover the spectrum of issues around forfeiture is a welcomed development.

He said despite lack of lack of adequate legal guidance, a lot of stolen assets laundered in several countries had been returned.

According to him, the most significant case of assets recovery prior to the establishment of the EFCC are those stolen by the late head of state General Sani Abacha loot. He said N83billion was recovered from Abacha’s loot locally alone.

“As a legal officer and prosecutor then with the Nigeria Police, I was attached to the team that worked on the Abacha case. With paucity of assets recovery laws, we relied on informal methods including Administrative Confiscation, a mechanism of confiscating assets through non-judicial means. Within the first few months, we recovered billions domestically from such forfeitures,” he said.

Ribadu said a national policy on assets recovery and their use must be developed, backed by a strong legal framework.

“I would suggest that high level, serious consultations be held between all the three arms of government to discuss steps and measures of evolving a very comprehensive national strategy on the fight against corruption that would enumerate the roles expected of all; the executive, the legislature and the judiciary.

“We should have a strategy that is a product of a consensus. Out of this strategy we can agree, if need be, to have new laws or institutions with clear mandates and responsibilities,” Ribadu said.

PACAC Executive Secretary, Prof Bolaji Owasanoye, said between $20billion to $40billion is stolen annually from developing countries.

According to him, seizure is important to the asset recovery process as it ensures the blockage or preservation of assets.

He said such seizures require judicial backing, usually through ex-parte orders (in which notice is not given) so as to prevent the looter from transferring or hiding the assets.

Director, Rule of Law Division, Commonwealth Secretariat, Katalaina Sapolu, said the international community and the Commonwealth would support the Buhari administration’s bid to recover stolen funds.

She said more importantly is what to do with the assets when recovered.

“The management of recovered proceeds is really an issue. Asset recovery has been implemented. But what do you do with the stolen assets once you receive them?

“We do not think that there has been, in many jurisdictions, a really settled view on the approach, because it requires development of policy and establishment of relevant institutional frameworks,” Sapolu said.

According to her, the outcome of the three-day workshop would help in the formulation of such policies.

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$15b Arms Scandal: Battered Dasuki Opens Up, Implicates Jonathan

The embattled former National Security Adviser (NSA) Col. Sambo Dasuki has said he was only obeying the directive of former President Goodluck Jonathan in the disbursement of funds from his office.

According to The Nation, Dasuki, who is standing trial for the alleged misappropriation of $15bn arms procurement fund, said this to some of his associates who recently visited him in detention.

"Based on the service rules in the security circle, I owe it a duty to obey the President and Commander-In-Chief. Ex-President Jonathan approved all the expenses incurred by Office of the National Security Adviser ONSA. I am ready to prove in court how we complied with the directive of the ex-President.”

Dasuki according to his associates is protesting the continued detention and says he is ready to go on trial. 

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“I am ready for trial because they have destroyed my family’s name and my professional integrity, especially how we successfully fought Boko Haram and recovered major towns and cities, not villages. They should let my trial start in earnest to enable Nigerians know the truth from falsehood."
"I don’t believe in secret trial and there is no basis for it because the government has filed all necessary papers in court and attached the list of witnesses. Since the witnesses have become public knowledge, there is no basis for secret trial. Since I was detained in the custody of the Department of State Service (DSS), I have not been shown any warrant to this effect or court order."
"I deserve to be shown the warrant of detention by DSS and the purpose for restricting me to house arrest. My detention is unlawful. All those who collected funds from ONSA have been granted bail but I am still in custody."
"I have been granted bail on all the cases filed against me by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), and even DSS, but I have not been released. If all the beneficiaries of the so-called funds are on bail, what have I done wrong? Nigerians should help prevail on the government to grant me bail. I cannot rock the boat. I am prepared for trial. We did everything with national and security interest.”‎
The EFCC had arraigned Dasuki, and two others on 19-count charge of misappropriation of funds meant for purchase of arms before a Federal Capital Territory High Court in Maitama, Abuja"

Nigeria: A Nation On The Cross, By Goke Butika

Nigeria is in dire straight.  The nation is contending with centrifugal and centripetal forces, but unfortunately, it is still far from equilibrium. This piece intends to explain my take on the war of attrition between the government and the organized labour coupled with the take of ordinary masses as I see it.

There are some things that are not possible both in logical and familiar worlds. Logical world is a world of arithmetic, where analytical statements are used to express what is obtainable, but in reality, is not given. In this line of thought, monkeys and human beings may fall into the category of mortals, but can they be given the same respect in line with the division of soul conceptualized by Plato? No! So, logically monkey and human are the same, but in reality, it is not obtainable; that is the distinction between the concepts of possibility and impossibility.

Another interesting point is possible worlds. In these worlds, everything conceived in the mind is possible, horses could develop wings to fly, mountain of gold is possible, man may live without food and water, economy of a troubled nations can boom overnight, and poor man who went to bed with empty stomach last night may wake up to become multimillionaire in the morning. But can this happen in reality? No.

In a robust debate, idealist would stay glue to the notion of possible worlds, while the materialist would insist that whatever is not obtainable in reality is not possible, for there is no possible worlds anywhere except in the realm of ideas.

The debate on fuel hike and economic meltdown in Nigeria falls into the aforementioned categorization of the concepts. The government is terribly broke, and claims to have only one option left- free the cash locked up in oil sector, the major source of our foreign exchange, or be perpetually broke and fail obligations like salaries of workers.

However, the only way to free cash is to hand over the petroleum market to the marketers who would source for foreign exchange elsewhere and bring in petroleum resources, particularly premium motor spirit (pms) that we call petrol for the use of the country people. That was the narrative of the government.

According to the narrative of a faction of labour union, the government has not consulted widely with the concerned stakeholders, and that the fuel hike has taken away the purchasing power of the national minimum wage. So, no to fuel hike, yes to N56, 000 new minimum wage, and if the government insist on having its way, the economy would be shut down.

Because of the integrity of President Muhammadu Buhari, and the unprecedented looting spree of the immediate past administration of PDP Goodluck Jonathan, the masses were confused on where to go. And the country hangs in the balance. As it stands, the labour has declared total strike (which is flopped) and the law has become casualty; while the organized labour, which was the voice of the masses in the recent past has also become fall guy pathetically.

What is my take in this brouhaha, for once, we have to appeal to reason as a people. It is quite painful for me to advocate for hike in price of anything, let alone the gasoline which connects everything the masses survive on, but can we afford lay-off of workers? Can we contend with work without pay? Can we encourage fleecing of our collective patrimony by the profiteers, who collect subsidy money, and still rip-off the ordinary Nigerians? Can the nation afford economic shutdown? Can we take the cost of total strike at this troubled time? These are the questions that must be brought to the negotiation table.

I support this government, but I feel the heat on the ordinary Nigerians, and it is like a case of a man between the devil and the blue sea. How do I heap the blame on the government that is fighting corruption, but contending with the vandalism of the oil pipes in the creek of Niger Delta, because the corruption must fight back? Do I blame the ordinary people who threw the Jonathan government out of power to have a better life then? These are the posers that brought about the concepts of possibility, impossibility and obtainability in fuel hike war.

In that wise, I would suggest we work with the reality of our economy, and dialogue on what is obtainable, not on the ideology that the organized labour must fight based on theoretical terms of Marxist doctrine, because this is an unusual time, but the government must develop a communication strategy that would explain the economic masterplan without ambiguity. For now, that is the way to go.

In a related development, I read that Amitolu Shittu, one of those who laboured for democratic rule we are enjoying was booed and heckled at a rally organized by the labour in the State of Osun. If the story was true, then those who planned to humiliate the activist, because of his political belief were unfair to him, because they may have an axe to grind with him on his support for Governor Rauf Aregbesola, which is his exclusive right to political belief, but to make an attempt to downgrade the role he played in enthroning this democracy is the greatest injustice done to him, and yours sincerely condemn it.

I am sure, when some of those who reportedly booed and heckled the man were nowhere to be found, it was Amitolu Shittu, who provided leadership and face together with  Waheed Lawal, Goke Butika, Babatunde William (RIP) and other Comrades who put their lives on the line in the face of military brutality. So, we should not humiliate or attempt to downplay the role of our activists who struggled while it was difficult to do so.

Butikakuro is an intercontinental journalist.

Goodluck Jonathan Snubs PDP As Crisis Messy

Goodluck Jonathan, the former president of Nigeria was absent at the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP)’s south-south zonal congress which held in Port Harcourt, the Rivers state capital on Saturday, May 14, HeraldNg Reported

Jonathan’s absence at PDP’s south-south congress attributed to likely misunderstandings between some elders and younger politicians in the PDP, Punchh reports.

Governor Nyesom Wike of Rivers state vowed that the PDP would unseat the APC in the forthcoming governorship election in Edo state.

He said: “The South-South governors will make sure that PDP retains the zone. All the governors in the zone will work as a family. We shall give all necessary support to our party members in Edo State for the party to reclaim the state in September.”

At the occasion, the new national vice-chairman of the PDP, south-south zone, Emmanuel Ogiri, expressed confidence that the PDP would win the presidency in 2019.

Ogiri, said the disagreement between elders in the PDP and some members of the party would be resolved before the May 21 national convention of the party.