3 reasons GEJ could face the EFCC
Will President Muhammad Buhari be the first president to bell the cat?
Former president Goodluck Jonathan was labeled with all sorts of nicknames for allegedly institutionalising corruption in all sectors of the economy and spheres of Nigerian life while he presided over the affairs of the country between 2010 and 2015
The infamous Dasukigate arms deal scandal has been the number one and most talked about corruption case in Nigeria since the new administration came on board last year
Some sections of Nigeria want Dr Goodluck Jonathan to answer for the alleged sharing of the $2.1billion meant to purchase arms and ammunition
Jonathanians believe critics of the ex-number one citizen of the nation are whipping up unnecessary sentiments
History could be in the making since Nigeria returned to civil rule in 1999. The anti-corruption war of the Buhari-led administration has seen many top-notched politicians come under the radar of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) since 2015. However, no allegedly indicted renowned politician by the EFCC is yet to spend at least six months of his time behind bars, not to talk of spending one year in jail.
READ ALSO: 10 things to know about Bola Tinubu as he clocks 64
Moreso, no past president or Head of State, has ever been invited by any of the anti-corruption agencies in the country to answer for allegations of corruption.
The high profile personalities who have visited the court due to allegations of corruption since last year and others who have not, but were alleged to have stolen the nation’s wealth during the Jonathan’s administration include: Namadi Sambo; Sule Lamido and his two sons; Diezani Alison-Madueke; Olisa Metuh; Bello Haliru Mohammed; Uche Secondus; Alex Badeh; Patrick Akpobolokemi; Stephen Orosanye; Sambo Dasuki, among others. The list is endless.
It is important to note that President Muhammadu Buhari has been receiving kudos from many quarters of the country, regarding the way he is waging war against corruption.
The DAILYSUN of Thursday, January 14, had a story captioned Anti-corruption: CAN, Bible society back Buhari. The Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) and Bible Society of Nigeria (BSN) in Kaduna state, expressed their satisfaction with the way the president is fighting corruption. They said Buhari is the Messiah Nigeria needs to succeed as a nation.
In their statement, part of it which reads: “We like the anti-corruption war the government is bringing forth, because, it is from there a lot of things are being revealed, which we know nothing about. The amount of money we hear from the media that people have gone away with is really embarrassing.
“Buhari is the Messiah for the country. God really sent him. You can even see the way he won the election. It is a miracle. That is why we will continue to pray for him to succeed. We believe whenever he will be leaving, whether after one term or two terms, depending on God, whenever he will be leaving, we believe this country will not remain the same.”
Other distinguished individuals and bodies, who want Buhari to uproot all past and present elements of corruption include: Prof Itse Sagay (SAN); the United Methodist Church, Nigeria; Alake of Egbaland; Prof Wole Soyinka, and other colossus.
1. Dasukigate and other allegations of corruption during Jonathan’s administration
No past administration has come under the radar of the anti-graft agency, as the past government of Dr Goodluck Jonathan. The way he presided over the nation’s wealth is coming under heavy scrutiny. It was as if Jonathan had a premonition before he left office, when he said, his ministers should be ready for persecution (meaning: prosecution).
The arms deal scandal during the past administration tagged Dasukigate, was one of the most talked about last year. It was about how some of Jonathan’s men and cronies were alleged to have criminally shared $2.1billion, meant to purchase arms and ammunition, in order to decimate insurgency in the Northeastern part of the country. It was however revealed Jonathan’s men diverted the funds.
READ ALSO: Ex-president Jonathan ignored Chibok girls for 19 days
One of the cogent reasons some public affairs analysts want the EFCC to probe Dr Goodluck Jonathan himself, is based on what many dailies reported on Monday, February 22, where the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP)’S spokesman, Chief Olisa Metuh asked for Dr Goodluck to be summoned in court as a witness.
According to tori.ng which had the story, stated: “Peoples Democratic Party chieftain, Olisa Metuh, has told a Federal High Court, that the EFCC cannot prosecute him, without interrogating former president Goodluck Jonathan in his ongoing trial.”
It should be recalled that the same Olisa Metuh came under fire for tearing his statement in connection to the $2.1billion arms deal probe. His action was seen by many as suspicious and thuggish in nature.
According to African Spotlight of Tuesday, January 12, it gave some of the names of the people/companies involved in the $2.1 billion arms deal scandal, as well as the amount each got from the office of the former national security adviser, Col Sambo Dasuki (rtd).
They are as follow: ex-Rivers state governor, Peter Odili (N100million); ex-Oyo state governor, Rashidi Ladoja (N100million); ex-Sokoto state governor, Attahiru Bafarawa (N100million); ex-Zamfara state governor, Mahmadu Aliyu Shinkafi (N100million); ex-Anambra state governor, Jim Nwobodo (N500million); ex-PDP BoT chairman, Tony Anenih (N260million); ex-PDP national chairman, Ahmadu Ali (N100million); Bode George (N100million); Yerima Abdullahi (N100million); former SGF & finance minister, Olu Falae (N100million); Tanko Yakassai (N63million); Gen Bello Sarkin Yaki (N200million) and Raymond Dokpesi (N2.1billion).
Others are: former Senate president, Iyorchia Ayu’s company (N345million); BAM properties (N300million); Dalhatu Investment Limited (N1.5billion); ex-PDP national chairman, Bello Haliru Mohammed and his son, Abba Mohammed (N300million); Sagir Mohammed, with some former and serving members of House of Representatives (N300million); former chairman of House of Rep on security and intelligence, Bello Matawalle (N300million); ACACIA Holdings (N600million), and Bashir Yuguda (N1, 950,000).
Olisa Metuh, who was reported to have gotten N400million, was also indicted.
It was learnt on Monday, October 5, 2015, that Abubakar Suleiman, who served briefly under the Jonathan administration as Minister of National Planning, had to dismiss an allegation of corruption leveled against Dr Goodluck Jonathan by Governor Nasir El-Rufai of Kaduna state, when the latter stated that the government of his boss, spent at least N64billion in celebrating Nigeria’s independence anniversaries in 2012, 2013 and 2014.
The Kwara state born former minister said the government actually spent N332.6million, but not N64billion, as alleged by the Kaduna state governor.
A good number of Nigerians are currently not just fuming based on the Dasukigate episode; they are annoyed with Dr Jonathan, for allowing the grass of corruption to grow beneath his feet during his administration, thereby flourishing beyond unimaginable height. They are angered because, innocent lives were killed daily by Boko Haram insurgents, as the military lacked the superior firepower to counter the insurgency attacks.
This is one of the reasons, some Nigerians called the former president, ‘clueless.’ They are of the opinion that, if the people that worked with him are tried by the EFCC, there shouldn’t be an exception to the rule. Therefore, Jonathan should be investigated.
On Tuesday, March 15, The Nation published another mind boggling high level of corrupt practice, which occurred in 2014, still under the Jonathan years. It stated that a huge amount of money which ought to have been remitted into the nation’s coffers was embezzled.
The newspaper had the story of the frightening corruption perpetrated during the period as, Audit: N3.2 trillion unpaid into national treasury in 2014. The Nation also went further to give a breakdown of how the said amount was ungodly distributed and inhumanely diverted as given below:
1. $235.6million gas cash diverted to escrow accounts.
2. N73.5billion spent contrary to established purpose.
3. N36.4billion released to ONSA for dam rehabilitation.
4. N10billion SURE-P funds undisclosed.
5. National Assembly’s management disbursed N9, 514,568,222.62, without payment vouchers.
6. N2.6billion rice levy spent on urgent and critical needs.
7. No evidence of accounting for the utilisation of the N5, 199,864,234 police reward fund.
8. Beneficiaries of N803, 165,879.78 withdrawn from Ministry of Niger Delta not named.
9. $2.3million contract was awarded by Nigeria High Commission in Jamaica, without due process.
2. Promise he is ready to account for the way he led Nigeria
Apart from former president, Dr Goodluck Jonathan setting a positive precedence as the first Nigerian sitting president, to willingly concede defeat to his opponent in a presidential election, he is also the first president to make a phone call to his opponent, even when the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) was yet to conclude announcing the presidential election, he was actively involved.
Dr Jonathan is a man of many first. He is the first and only Nigerian politician to have been in elective positions for 16 good years (1999-2015).
For record sake, Jonathan’s elective positions were: deputy governor, governor, vice president and president, while he served as acting president also. His ascension through the ranks to the top is second to none in the history of Nigeria’s democracy since 1960.
The former Bayelsa state governor’s gentlemanly nature, speaks so much about who he is. It is this nature of his that made him to reiterate his perception regarding if he wins or loses the 2015 presidential election, when he emphatically stated during almost all his campaign rallies that: “My ambition is not worth the blood of any Nigerian.”
The nation’s former vice president kept to his promise, by handling over power to Muhammadu Buhari, without any single blood shed or riot in the country, despite earlier threats by some of his fanatic supporters, who initially beat the drum of war, saying blood will flow everywhere in Nigeria, if Jonathan loses the election. Jonathan actually lost, and there was nothing of such.
Due to this quality of his, which has earned him so much accolades, even after he left office, it is believed he will willingly give himself out to the EFCC, if the commission calls upon him for investigation.
3. Calls from some sections of the country for Jonathan’s probe
There was a time it was reported that the EFCC chairman, Ibrahim Magu said if the commission gets enough evidences to probe Dr Goodluck Jonathan, it will surely do so.
One of such calls was also made by a civil society. The call by the civil society was titled, a nation challenged by enemies within in the DAILYSUN of Wednesday, January 20.
The statement of the civil society reads: “The true story of how a group of men embezzled and misused tax payers’ money for their personal ends will never be known until former president Goodluck Jonathan, the head of the government and the man who had the constitutional obligation to govern in the best interests of the nation speaks willingly, openly and dispassionately about what he knew and what he did not know about whether senior officials of his government and other people remotely and closely connected with the misuse of the security funds, were given the nod to dispense the money anyhow they wished.”
Based on the above and many other reasons, some Nigerians are of the opinion that, it is not a dent on the image or person of Dr Goodluck Jonathan, if he is investigated and tried by the anti-graft agency.
On the other hand, others want the anti-corruption war to be holistic, meaning, not just Jonathan will face the EFCC, but other presidents, who led the country before Jonathan.
It is left for Nigerians to judge, if Jonathan should eventually face the EFCC or not.
Source: Legit.ng
