Waivers Fraud : Punch Newspaper Rips Okonjo-Iweala’s TEDxEuston London Speech

Minister for Finance, Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala

By Punch Editorial Board

What do you do when you find yourself in a slimy hole?  Wisdom dictates that you stop digging. But for Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, Finance Minister and Coordinating Minister for the Economy, this treasured American dictum makes no sense as far as the issue of the corruption-drenched waivers and exemptions goes. In yet another desperate attempt to defend the misuse and abuse of import duty waivers, exemptions and concessions, she pointedly singled out The PUNCH for attack, accusing this newspaper of “trivializing corruption” at the TEDxEuston forum in faraway London.

In her latest blunder, she once again faulted our insistence that import duty waivers have become, in the hands of successive Nigerian governments, instruments of massive corruption and not of economic stimulation as she claims. After “entertaining” her audience with what she called “a whole series of newspapers with their negative reports,” the minister went on, “I had an example recently of this trivialization from one of our national newspapers, ‘The PUNCH newspaper’; they claimed that a government policy where we give incentives to industries or business people to spur them to invest in the economy was a bunch of corruption.”

But if you accuse someone of lying, you must be prepared to prove it. If you are a government minister, backed by all the power and integrity that should go with the position, that onus of proof becomes double. Not our eminent minister. As she was grandstanding in London, fresh revelations were being made back home of the magnitude of the loss to the economy of the fraudulent waivers.

The minister, in her response to a 50-point query from the House of Representatives, had claimed that only N170.73 billion worth of waivers and exemptions were granted in three years. She said waivers and exemptions worth N55.96 billion were granted in 2011, N55.34 billion in 2012 and N59.42 billion in 2013.

But her figures contrast sharply with the document from the Nigerian Customs Service. The NCS had said N603 billion was lost in duties that should have been collected between January and September last year alone.  She will also need to convince Nigerians that the Daily Trust report of January 22, 2014, How Nigeria lost N1.4 trillion to waivers between 2011 and 2013, is wrong and hers right.  The report alleged that N480 billion was lost in 2011 and a similar figure in 2012. Though the NCS denied “making any accusation of corruption in the implementation of the waivers” in a newspaper advertorial, it nevertheless confirmed that “the document credited to it was presented to the National Assembly in November 2013 upon invitation of the latter to explain shortfalls in projected revenue collection.”

Significantly, her false declaration that The PUNCH “did not even look” at her published list of waiver beneficiaries is proving to be in character. Her fighting words:  “So, when the newspaper wrote an editorial and said this was corruption. We pointed out that, ‘Yes, in the past, it wasn’t good but now we have been running a different system for two years.’ They dared us to publish those who got these waivers; and guess what? Last week, we sent it to them; yes we did. But you know what? They refused to even look at it. And they continued to insist that this was excess bite of corruption.”

This is unfair and patently false. We duly reported her claims in a story, “Nigeria lost N65.23bn to waivers in 24 months,” on December 2, 2013. Yes, we insist that, in spite of her celebrated reform, the waiver regime, even under her watch, is still dogged by corruption because her flaunted list further reinforced our position. We found waivers granted to the Gombe Central Mosque in 2011 to import 13 cartons of the Koran and carpets, and waiver to the Catholic Church, Makurdi to import children’s Bibles. What is the economic trade-off in these? In 2012, the Akwa Ibom State Government got a waiver of N271.2 million for a private aircraft, while Taraba got N13.06 million for a helicopter. In 2013, Rivers State got waivers worth N2.18 billion for a Bombardier aircraft and two Bell 412 helicopters.

The minister’s propensity to defend scandals and question even credible findings is distressing. How do waivers for aircraft to accommodate the luxurious lifestyles of state governors boost the economy or create jobs? How many jobs were created by the N450.7 million waivers to massage the First Lady’s ego to host the African Women Peace Mission, an NGO? How about the waivers given to the National Sports Commission for “motor spare parts”? Or the N141.2 million to the Delta State Government in 2013 for furniture? Nigerians need explanations also for the waiver of the N5.9 million to the Maiduguri Central Mosque in 2012 and N14 million for the “Watchtower Society of Jehovah’s Witnesses” to import “building materials and cabinet parts for kitchen door drawers.”

This is not all. The Customs were also cited to have reported how under “other goods,” as listed in the categories for concessions, goods such as fish, bulletproof vehicles and kola nuts were imported. How do these create jobs in Nigeria or stimulate local production? The Chairman of the Senate Committee on Finance, Mohammed Makarfi, said the upper chamber had found that waivers were being granted for goods that had no benefit to Nigerians. He deplored the revenue shortfall of the NCS amounting to N243.69 billion in 2013 due to factors that included questionable waivers, concessions and exemptions. The PUNCH did not make up any of these allegations.

Sadly, under Okonjo-Iweala’s watch, the abuse of waivers by beneficiaries is still rampant. No one can discountenance the testimonies of the business community that has unanimously condemned the misuse and abuse of the system.

Just how deep is this cesspool? N603 billion in nine months or N1.4 trillion in three years, or N65 billion in two years or N171 billion in three years as she claims? Only our all-knowing coordinating minister has the answer. One sure clue is that she had not convincingly faulted the perverse results of the policy. But her arrogance will not allow her to admit publicly what everyone knows, including the audience of young people she addressed in the United Kingdom. The National Assembly should probe this economic rip-off.

The waiver issue will not vanish as she appears to wish. Highlighting it in the mass media does not distract from the destructive issue of corruption that has laid Nigeria low, rather, it places it on the front burner of public discourse. She does her reputation no good by continuing to defend a corrupt system and talking down at critics and stakeholders. The use of waivers here is corruption-driven and it is the responsibility of every Nigerian to put a halt to this abuse. Okonjo-Iweala cannot solve the problem as long as she continues to live in denial or to take every criticism personal. Safeguarding public finance is not about personal ego or intolerance for public scrutiny by public officials.

The grave flaw in Okonjo-Iweala’s temperament is the arrogance that makes her believe her own myth. She really thinks she is performing an economic miracle when she has done nothing of the sort as the economy is still in trouble. It is such a letdown that we are not even sure if she has any intention of getting off her high horse. Her hectoring as if she is the only one that understands the strategic economic use of waivers and concessions is rather odd and amusing.

Our waiver policy is set on the wrong course. Rather than us, it is Okonjo-Iweala that is trivialising corruption the same way she failed to confront the massive fuel subsidy fraud of 2011 before the January 2012 mass protests across the country silenced her and her specious experts.  She is up to the same bullying tactics rather than investigate the complaints of Customs, business operators, lawmakers and the media that beneficiaries routinely abuse and misapply the waivers. It is still a system driven by corruption and patronage.

As for The PUNCH, our long-standing reputation for objectivity and as champions of the anti-corruption war cannot be assailed by a temporary occupant of public office. This is our stand.

The national-conference-is waste-time-prof-nwabueze

*‘How Jonathan got it wrong’
*On 1979 Constitution: We were misguided
*Speaks on the new political order Nigeria needs and Ohanaeze crisis

We are in the process of another constitution making.  If you agree, what’s your take on the arrangement?
Let me correct the impression that we are in the process of another constitution making. The National Conference, as constituted by the President, lacks the capacity to draft a constitution to be submitted to the people for approval through a referendum. It doesn’t have the capacity, so it does not entail a constitution making at all. That is something we have to realise, arising from the nature and type of the conference as constituted or established by the President.

The reason for this is that the conference is not established by virtue of any law enacted by the National Assembly. The convocation, its composition, its functions, its modus operandi are not catered for by  law. It is established entirely by virtue of the inherent powers of the President under Section 5 of the constitution. With its limited functions, its establishment is within the immediate powers of the President. The conference not established  under a law enacted by the legislative authorities of the country cannot adopt a constitution. It lacks the capacity to draft a constitution that will be binding on everybody as law.

Jonathan, Nwabueze

At best,  what do you think would come out of this exercise?
Nothing, it’s just a talk-shop. We must realise that it’s a talk-shop. It’s functions are merely deliberative and advisory. So, there is no harm in talking. If they talk for three months, something good may come out of it but, certainly, not the adoption of a new constitution.

As it is, how can we make the best out of the present arrangement for the good of the country?
We have to decide first: what do you want as a country? What we want is a new, better and united Nigeria. That is what we want. There is no way you can get it from this conference. Even if you talk for one year, there is no way you can get it in this conference, we must all realise this. You can get something, but not a new and united Nigeria. You can’t because of the limitations of this conference. It has no powers, it has only functions.

There is a difference in law between powers and functions. This conference doesn’t have the powers to bind you and me, to affect the legal relations of you and me, or the legal rights of you and me. It doesn’t have the powers, that is what powers entail. It has only functions, deliberations, talking. You can talk for one year but what can come out of the talking is another matter.

You are one of those who convinced President Jonathan to go for National Conference.  But the way you sound, it’s as if you are disappointed with the turn of things…
That is correct. I led the delegation of The Patriots to the President on August 29, 2013, and I think we were able to persuade him. The so-called u-turn made by the President is as a result of that meeting. But the conference we asked him to convene is totally different from what he has now established. There are totally two different things.

We were looking for a conference that will have the power to adopt a new constitution for Nigeria, that will be submitted to the people at a referendum for approval. That was what we were asking for, and we were asking for a conference of ethnic nationalities. I will come to that later.

On the first aspect, what we have now that the President has given us is a conference that lacks power to adopt a new constitution that will be submitted to the people at a referendum for approval. What the President said, in his speech at the inauguration about referendum is so confusing. I don’t know what the President means.

He said:  “Let me, at this point, thank the National Assembly for introducing the provision for a referendum in the proposed amendment of the constitution. This should be relevant for the conference if, at the end of the deliberations, the need for a referendum arises. I therefore urge the National Assembly and state Houses of Assembly to speed up the constitutional amendment process especially with regard to the subject of referendum.”

What does this mean? How can the need for a referendum arise when the conference does not have as its purpose the adoption of a constitution? So, what are you subjecting to a referendum? When we talk about referendum, it’s in relation to a constitution. So, how can the need arise when the purpose of the conference is not the adoption of a constitution and when the conference lacks competence to adopt a constitution?

The President, at a time, was talking about subjecting the outcome of the conference to the consideration of the National Assembly…
You mean for the National Assembly to subject it to a referendum? No, that’s not what this conference states. When you critically examine that statement by the President, it is deliberately intended to confuse.

Some people have said that the President based the conference on modalities or template established by the Senator Femi Okuronmu Presidential Advisory Committee on National Conference.  Do you agree?
Yes, to a large extent. If you read the report, it was the Okuronmu committee that recommended that there are two alternatives that the conference should be based on. One, is to establish a conference that will be authorized by an enabling law of the National Assembly and that the alternative is to establish a conference by virtue of the President’s inherent powers. But the President went for the alternative to constitute a conference based on his inherent powers. On this regard, The Patriots had written a letter to him to say ‘please, don’t go for this inherent powers because that will not meet the demands of the country.’

Our demand is for a conference that has the capacity to adopt a constitution. But the President went for the alternative put to him by the Presidential Advisory Committee (PAC). So, to some extent,  PAC is responsible for this because they put the alternative to him and he grabbed it and landed us in this situation that we are now.
Your critics say that you are responsible for all these problems we have.

What problems?

They said the President acknowledged your immense capacity to turn things around and nominated you into the Okuronmu committee but you didn’t take up the appointment. They said that if you had taken up the appointment, your input would have helped to make the modalities better. How do you react to this?
That position is misconceived as I said in my press statement on this issue of my appointment. At the time we met with the President, he promised he was going to do something. I never anticipated that I will be made a member of the committee, not to talk of being the Chairman.

And the reason I gave was that, one, I am 83, and in very bad health and cannot go across the country. I have prostrate cancer, which I have been fighting for the past couple of years. Every year, I go to Britain twice to consult with my oncologist. As you are aware, cancer is stubborn. So, I am surviving on injections. I said I couldn’t, given my age and my state of health.

Nwabueze: Demands a national conference

I explained that I couldn’t afford to go round the country with the committee. From Bayelsa to Sokoto, Sokoto to Maiduguri,  Maiduguri to Enugu, Enugu to Benin,  Benin to Lagos… I said I couldn’t. I gave that as a reason, that in any case, I think there is an option for a younger person. These are the reasons I gave and I then nominated Chief Solomon Asemota (SAN). They initially rejected him but eventually appointed him.

They have a reason for choosing Okuronmu. They wanted the type of conference that they have now established. They were looking for somebody who will go along with them. Then Okuronmu was good choice for them. Asemota refused to go along with their plan. That is what I would have done if I were there. He submitted a minority report which was suppressed. Asemota was denied the right to present the minority report.

The fact that Asemota submitted a minority report was acknowledged by the appropriate authorities. And the Asemota minority report contains exactly what I wanted, what The Patriots wanted. And attached to it is a bill- The National Conference and Referendum Bill – prepared by The Patriots and submitted to the presidency, two years ago, but they refused to look at it. Instead, they have continued to deny that there was a minority report, when the fact is, there was. So, you can see, it’s not my fault.

I couldn’t serve, and I nominated somebody to be there, who presented the views that I would have presented if I was there but they suppressed it. They denied Asemota the right to present it, which is a terrible thing. That is a sign that would have destroyed the whole thing if we had wanted to press on with it. A minority report submitted, you acknowledged receipt of it and you came out publicly that it never existed, that it was not submitted.

Everyone denied it; from Okuronmu to Reuben Abati presidential spokesman. They castigated the Chairman of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) for saying that there was a minority report. They said there was none. So, anybody who is blaming me for that is being unfair.

Nigerians were aware you travelled to London for medication but after you came back you appeared very  strong, holding meetings with Igbo Leaders of Thought. So the impression was that you are strong, that, at least, you could have managed to serve, that if you presented the issue instead of Asemota, it would have carried more weight.
When government had already made up its mind on what it wanted? It would amount to fighting in vain. You see, government had already made up its mind on what it wanted. It was just looking for somebody who would go along with it. They found that man in Okuronmu. Why didn’t they make me Chairman? Although, I would also have refused, why didn’t they make me Chairman?

They knew that I wouldn’t have gone along with the plan. I would have said, no, that’s not the kind of national conference that will thrust this country forward. It’s even obvious from the terms of reference what they wanted.

You seem to be calling for conference of ethnic nationalities. Don’t you think it is cumbersome? How do you think what you are advocating for would go without causing problem in the country?
Without causing problem? That’s where we run away from our problems. We are always running away from our problems. When we talk about unity, why is unity a predominating and hunting problem in Nigeria? Why is it, when it is not? In a place like England, Scotland, Wales, Ireland and even in the United States, why is it not a problem there? Would it have been a problem, if Nigeria is a country composed of one people like say the Yoruba, Igbo, Hausa, Ijaw, instead of a country composed of over 380 ethnic nations? Is that not the crux of the problem? Why do you want to run away from that fact?

You know as a fact that Nigeria is not one nation. It hasn’t become a nation even though that is the hope of all of us. When it will become a nation we don’t know. We are pretending that Nigeria is a nation. You read the President’s speech at the inauguration, he was running right through that Nigeria is a nation. Nigeria is not a nation yet. Chief Obafemi Awolowo described Nigeria in 1947, in his book, ‘The Path to Nigeria’s Freedom that “Nigeria is a mere geographical expression.” Yes, that was what it was, and that  is what it is up till today.

So, the President saying that Nigeria is a nation from the time of its birth in1914, by the amalgamation of two colonial entities into one big colonial entity called the colony and protectorate of Nigeria, means he has no idea at all of what a nation means. This is not a nation. But the reason the quest of making it a nation is a problem is because it is not composed of one people.

If it had been only made up of the Yoruba, Igbo, Hausa, Efik, Ijaw, we won’t have these problems. Because these are already nations. They are made up of one people. So, you see, we have in Nigeria over 350 nations, and the problem is to coalesce them into one; and you don’t want to agree to that, you think you can get over it by calling Nigeria a nation, when it is not.

The fact remains that Nigeria’s problem has been to coalesce the over 380 nations into one. It’s not an easy problem. It has a number of problems, difficulties. One is the uncertainty about the character, number and identity of the people in the country. Two is the difficulty of devising a way to demand the equality of representations. How can you say that an ethnic nation comprising of 10,000 people should have equal representation with an ethnic nation comprising of 40 million people? It’s not equitable.

Then you have the problem of rancour. The fact is that if you conceive the conference on the basis of ethnic nationalities, that will throw up the number of delegates to maybe 1,000 or more. There is also the problem of the rancorous conflict among the ethnic nations, between the  small and big ones. And there is another problem harped on by the President, an issue-based representation at the conference by the ethnic nationalities.

You run the risk, that the country might break up, that it might splinter into all the various ethnic nations. I don’t think that fear is founded because the problem of unity in Nigeria is not insoluble. If not attended to, it’s insoluble because the problem will be there. And the fear that this problem if attended to will make the country disintegrate is not enough. Then what we are saying is that the problem is insoluble.

So, these are the main problems. And I don’t think that these problems are not amenable to rational solutions. Come to terms with it, you will find out that there is no problem in this world that is insoluble. There is none. So, there is no reason running away from the problems. Come to terms with it, apply your mind to it, this has always been my philosophy. There must be an answer to every problem.

The more problems you have, the more it challenges you, your mind, your intellect. Apply your mind, apply your intellect and you will find the answer. Therefore, Nigeria must come to terms with how to coalesce the over 380 ethnic nations into one. We must have to, not by running away.

So, how do we coalesce the ethnic nations into one nation?
By recognising the existence of these ethnic nations and bringing them together, and trying to foster mutual understanding and mutual cooperation among them. That is something that is beyond the resources of private individuals. The Ethnic Nationalities Movement and The Patriots have tried to organize the ethnic nationalities conference, which was held February on 11 and 12, 2014 in Abuja.

We tried bringing all the ethnic nationalities together but the cost involved was beyond our resources. We needed a lot of money to bring together 387 ethnic nationalities. That is a job for government, if it believes there lies the key to the problems of this country. So, there is no need pretending. Why are we running away?

You played an active role in the drafting of the 1979 Constitution that entrenched the present unitary system of government which destroyed the 1960 and 1963 Constitutions. So, why did your team supplant true federalism with the unitary system of government, which many Nigerians now see as the problem of the country?
I have explained this several times at public fora that we went for the unitary system of government at that time, largely because the federal system presupposes separate constitutions for the federal and the  constituent governments. That’s the idea of federalism which was observed in the 1960 and 1963 constitutions. We abandoned it in 1979 and went for a unitary constitution, one constitution for the Federal Government and none for the  state governments. That was a fundamental departure from the principles of federalism.

It is a unitary constitution more or less in the devolution of powers. The Federal Government is all powerful. Its powers are all-encompassing. We took 50 per cent from the concurrent list of matters and merged them to the exclusive list. We also went to residual matters, took almost 50 per cent and put it in the exclusive list. We took so many other things.

And why did we do that? We must take into consideration the circumstances in the country at that time. In 1976, ’77, ’78, everybody was talking about unity. So, we thought the best way to achieve that unity was to create a powerful centre, and we thought that once you have a powerful centre with so much power, you will achieve unity. That was the situation at the time. You don’t blame us because you must take into account the circumstances at that time.

The feeling that people had was that unity was overriding and that you could achieve it by putting so much power in the centre. We were misguided and that’s the truth.  At a number of public statements, I have frankly admitted that we were misguided, that we were guided by the feelings at the time in the country. It turned out that putting too much power at the centre was an invitation for disunity. Yes, that was what happened, disunity. Struggle for control at the centre  with all that power led to disunity, and that is what landed us to where we are today.

Over time now, there seem to be a disagreement between the Igbo Leaders of Thought which you lead and the Ohanaeze over this National Conference. What is the meat of the issue?
You must take into account how the Igbo Leaders of Thought originated. There was division within Ohanaeze following the Ohanaeze election of January 12, 2012. And the matter is still in court. When the Okuronmu committee was set-up, the Ohanaeze distributed a memo to the committee at Enugu and Umuahia, and demanded that the two people claiming to be President-General and Secretary-General on the basis of the election, that their mandate was protected.

We are saying, ‘you are not the President, we don’t accept you because we believe that the election was invalid’. And it was in that circumstance that various appeals were made to me that I should step in, that what the so-called Ohanaeze submitted to the Okuronmu committee does not represent the views of the people.

Chairman of National Conference, Hon. Justice Idris Legbo Kutigi with his gavel at Conference on Monday in Abuja. Photo by Gbemiga Olamikan.

So, to step in, I wasn’t calling a meeting of the entire Igbo, I was calling a meeting of leaders of thought, the think-tanks. So, the meeting was of people who could sit together and put together the ideas of Ndigbo on a new constitution for Nigeria. And I made it very clear from the beginning, that I would like us to operate this as The Igbo Leaders of Thought under the auspices of Ohanaeze and the President-General was invited to the initial meetings of the Igbo Leaders of Thought.

Specifically, the meeting decided to write a letter to President Jonathan protesting the Okuronmu committee’s report, which had not been released at the time, but we had a copy. Asemota was not even given a copy because of his disagreement with the others over the minority report. But he managed to get a copy from one of their members. And that was how we got a copy. Immediately, The Patriots wrote a letter of protest to the President and The Igbo Leaders of Thought also decided that the letter be written to the  President, in protest of the recommendations of PAC.

So, the letter was prepared in the name of Ohanaeze Ndigbo with the Park Avenue address, Enugu and the President-General was there. I invited him to my house in Enugu, we discussed, and he was also present at the meeting of The Igbo Leaders of Thought. And he suddenly said that he would not sign, because the letter was to be signed by himself and myself.

He said he won’t sign the letter written in the name of Ohanaeze Ndigbo. He said he would need two days to consult with his executives. We said, ‘why do you have to consult? This thing is so clear.’ But he insisted on consulting, which provoked a lot of criticisms, opposition from the meeting. After that, I said, `look, the man is asking for just two days, just give him two days. `So, he was given two days to consult.

Several days later, he came back to say he won’t sign. So, we had to change the letter from Ohanaeze Ndigbo to Ndigbo. We didn’t use the Igbo Leaders of Thought. So, that’s point number one that it was the President-General that refused to sign. I have said that what we are doing is under the auspices of the Ohanaeze and that our meeting will be transferred from Zodiac Hotel venue to Ohanaeze secretariat.

At the meeting I had with him in my house in Enugu, I said to him that it’s my intention to ask, you the  President-General to convene a peace and reconciliation meeting of Ohanaeze. I want you to bring unity to Ohanaeze, instead of all these divisions and factions’. When I put this to the notice of the Igbo Leaders of Thought, the leaders of the other factions said they will not accept such peace and reconciliation meeting, if the notice for the meeting was signed by Chief Gary Igariwey, the President-General.

Emeka Onyeso, the leader of the other faction, said the same thing, Prof. Elo Amucheazi said the same thing and the consensus was that the letter be signed by leaders of all the various factions- Igariwey, Onyeso, Amucheazi and myself. That was what was agreed. Then, when I met Igariwey in my house, initially, he objected, but later he agreed that the notice calling for the meeting should be signed by all.

I on my own eventually decided to add two people – Archbishop Obinna and Archbishop Elekwanwa. So, I prepared the notice calling for the meeting with all these signatories. When I gave it to Igariwey, he objected again. But these other people due to their magnanimity, said they didn’t mind, they didn’t want to sign anymore, but that it will be alright if the notice was signed by me and Igariwey.

So that was what was agreed and Igariwey was there. So, I passed on the notice and said ‘go and amend it’, but till today, Igariwey has not returned the letter, the meeting we have never had.
When people talk about the Igbo Leaders of Thought and the Ohanaeze, this is exactly what happened. At the meeting, the peace and reconciliation meeting was discussed, I said I didn’t want to go into the reasons for the demand for the election to be invalid, let us put it aside.

The five Eastern governors said they have set up a committee under Senator Ben Obi to look into this, and Ben Obi’s committee recommended that these two individuals, that’s the President-General and the Secretary-General should  stay in office for six months and after that election should be held. We said no, let them stay on for the two-year term prescribed by the constitution, after that, election should be held.

And at that meeting Dr. Uma Eliazu said, no, that everything should not be swept under the carpet. That a committee should probe it to find out whether the election is valid or invalid. But I said, let’s not go into all that again but they insisted that it be put to the vote. An overwhelming majority supported their view. So, that was what was decided. But like I said, the peace and reconciliation meeting was never held.

So, are you saying that the peace and reconciliation meeting should be convened as a matter of urgency?
No, that has been overtaken by events. It’s overtaken. Igariwey and his executive rejected it.

How do we make the 2015 elections free and fair?
I hope it will be. The problem about free and fair election is that in Nigeria, we attach too much importance to the stakes. National elections have become a matter of life and death, a do-or-die affair because the stakes are so much. May be if we have a new constitution that will reduce the powers of the President, it will be less a do-or-die affair.

At the moment, the stakes are too high, which makes free and fair elections almost impossible. As long as the present constitution stays, I am not optimistic that any election in this country will be free and fair. The 2011 election was said to be free and fair to some extent but the fact remains that to do away with rigging in this country is very difficult.

What do you make of the Boko Haram insurgency and the rising wave of insecurity in the country?
It’s a tragedy. I believe that Boko Haram is a subject of politics. Some northern political and religious leaders are definitely behind it. I have tried to explain in various newspaper articles the difference between militancy and insurgency. Boko Haram is a clear case of insurgency, it’s not just a militancy like the Niger Delta thing. In Niger Delta, it was a case of militancy for good reasons.

They had good reasons for their uprising because of what was done to them by the regime of President Obasanjo. They were not taking arms against their country, which is insurgency. Boko Haram is a clear case of insurgency. They said they want the Nigerian constitution based on Islamic laws. They don’t want democracy, they want theocracy, that’s what they are fighting for.

How do you think government can win the war?
My attitude is fight them and try to subdue them. I supported the emergency declared in the three North-east states as a way of subduing them. Unfortunately, it hasn’t proved successful because of the support they have. It’s an international ring or network of terrorism. That is what is happening in Nigeria today. You think you are fighting only local Boko Haram? No! There is an international network organization behind them, and, of course, with the support of local politicians and religious leaders.

The government has solicited the support of the European Union, which agreed to support with a tune of $10 billion.  How far do you think that will go?
I don’t know. I am not sure, I don’t think it’s a question of money.

What about intelligence?
Yes, intelligence is very important. You need to improve your intelligence to be able to effectively counter the sources behind them. I don’t think the intelligence we have presently in the country is enough to counter the Boko Haram insurgency. So, if the money from the EU is to boost our intelligence in the fight, then, that is good. I think the United States has also promised something.

What’s the way forward for Nigeria?
The way forward is that the new, better and united Nigeria presupposes a new constitution anchored on the people. That’s is why I don’t think the National Conference, as presently constituted, will lead us there. I say it very clearly that the way forward is to make a new beginning under a new constitution anchored on the people. That’s the way forward. We need to establish a new political order in place of the existing order.

That is the way forward. There is no other way. Not this conference, you stay there for three months talking, talking about what? About every subject under the sun? Again, the complication is unity. Why did you exclude unity?. The conference is supposed to renegotiate the terms of our unity, that is what it is, so why did you exclude unity? Again, unity has so many ramifications. Let them talk, if you want to talk, and that is what they are doing.

The true-face-horror-ibadan-bow-knife-expose-herdsmen-suspects

Everybody who got to the ‘evil forest’ in Ibadan, Oyo State capital where hundreds of people have been killed by kidnappers was stunned to speechlessness seeing the number of decomposed bodies of victims.

Call the place the Soka house of horror, a den of killers, the place of skull, the evil shrine, the valley of dry bones, killers’ hideouts, you will not be wrong. No adjective or description is too much to express the horror there. In the isolated bush, life is hellish, brutish, loutish and nasty. It is distasteful, barbaric and fetish. It is better read and heard than seen.

If you go there once, you could find it difficult to have your meal. Flies of different sizes and colours were feasting on the bodies. The bodies were in different positions. The odour was unbearable. The land brings to mind David’s statement when he heard about the death of his bosom friend, Jonathan, “Tell it not in Gath or publish it in the streets of Ashkelon; lest the daughters of the Philistines rejoice, lest the daughters of the uncircumcised triumph”.

*Survivors

Chief Isiaka Bello Olupoju, a community leader in the area who was not sure of the exact number of people killed, put the figure at about 120 persons.

Apart from the atrocities committed in the den, the incident raises a serious security concern.

Alleged connivance

It is indefensible for residents in the area to claim ignorance of the activities of the kidnappers. The stench oozing from the decomposed bodies was a strong indication that nobody in the area could claim ignorance.

A woman, who spoke in the presence of Governor Abiola Ajimobi, said the matter had been reported at Sanyo Police Station several times. She said some policemen either said the place had been set aside to take care of the destitute who had become a nuisance in the city or it didn’t fall under their jurisdiction.

Another source said they always saw some people moving up and down particularly herdsmen. He said the police should investigate the herdsmen. To fuel suspicion that the herdsmen might know something about the  killings there, a knife and a bow commonly used by cattle rearers were found close to one of the decomposed bodies. The knife was still looking fresh as at Tuesday indicating it was just dropped there.

Besides, a company populated by foreigners where the vehicles or motorcycles conveying the victims always pass should know something about the isolated bush. The building of the company is tall and so should afford the persons staying inside to have a glimpse of what is going on in the bush.

Arbitrary arrests and shooting

Sunday Vanguard saw the body of a woman identified simply as Kafayat, pregnant and said to be a mother of three, who was allegedly killed by an overzealous security man during the protest that followed the uncovering of the bush. She was said to have left her wares at Agodi Gate where she operated a shop to have a glimpse of the horror when she was felled by stray bullet.

Apart from seven suspects earlier arrested as confirmed by the Oyo State Police Public Relations Officer, SP Olabisi Ilobanafor, three other suspects were rounded up in the area.  Sunday Vanguard gathered from a security man that a mob made up of youths, angered that the police failed to uncover the bush of horror, was coming to set the Sanyo Police Station ablaze.

This prompted policemen to guard the station. Anybody coming from the Lagos end of the expressway towards Iwo Road without an Identity card was picked up as a suspect. An Okada man, who proved difficult for two policemen trying to pin him down, was beaten blue and black as about eight policemen descended on him with gun butts and boots.

He was thereafter arrested. Before Ajimobi got to the scene, it was gathered that five more bodies had been taken away and also a boy who was trying to dig the hall to locate some of his missing relatives was reportedly shot by security men guarding the place. When arraigned in court one day after, the court could not find any cogent reason why the suspects should be remanded in custody. They were released on bail in the sum of N100, 000 each.

How the den was discovered

After several failed attempts to find their missing ones, commercial motorcyclists, popularly called Okada riders, mobilized in hundreds and stormed the kidnappers’ den. On getting there, they raised the alarm seeing numerous bodies of victims.

Ajimobi revokes right to land

When Governor Ajimobi got to the scene, the crowd was unruly. He had to talk tough to get the people to listen to him. He said, “As from today, the state government has revoked the land from its owners. We would dig all the land and expose any victims hidden in the ground. God would expose them. We, into whose hands you have entrusted the governance of this state through your votes, God will use us to punish the culprits”.

The State Commissioner of Police, Mr. Mohammed Indabawa, assured the crowd that he would do everything to get all the suspects.

Survivors in hospital

Doctors at Adeoyo State Hospital, Ibadan, where victims who survived the ‘evil forest’ horror were admitted for treatment, did not allow journalists’ access to the survivors. After much pressure, the hospital officials and security men there, however, allowed some newsmen to have a brief chat with the survivors but they did not allow anybody to take pictures.

The survivors, who identified themselves as Nafiu Shittu, Michael Ola, Mrs. Titi Adeniyi, nee Dokpesi and Wale Atoyebi, gave indications that the kidnappers, who operated in the bush, capitalized on the urban renewal initiative of the Oyo government to arrest some hawkers under the pretext that they violated the state environmental law even though they did not have the authority of government to do it. Shittu recalled how he was kidnapped. He said he was selling concoction at Agodi Gate when he was accosted by some men who forced him into a waiting car.

Titi Adeniyi-nee Dokpesi said she was forced into a vehicle in front of her house and later found herself in the den.

She said, “I am from the compound of the late Baba Awolowo located in Oke Bola area of Ibadan. Some people kidnapped me while I was sitting in front of our house. Nobody was around then. My people were in Lagos. They said I was wanted somewhere and that they came to arrest me. They then took me away in their vehicle. Later, I found myself in that forest”. The survivor said she could not tell if people were being killed in the forest by the kidnappers.  ”I don’t know whether people were being killed or women giving birth. Where they kept us was where I used to be. Once I covered my head with my dress, I would sleep off”.

As if that was not enough, three human tongues were allegedly found on three men at Oni and Sons Hospital area of Ibadan in a cellophane bag. After being mobbed, the men were handed over to the police.

Can-10-million-jobs-created-economy-12-months

The pronouncement by the Minister of Finance and the Coordinating Minister for the Economy, Dr (Mrs) Ngozi Okonjoi Iweala that 10million jobs  would be created, in the economy in 2014 has generated divergent views.

While some economic experts said that the time-line is not realistic, others expressed optimism that government can achieve the target, if the economy is diversified into non-oil export sectors  like agriculture, manufacturing, industry as well as Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs). The experts opinions:
Government needs creative and dynamic entrepreneurship to create jobs-Registrar, International Logistics and Administration, Mr. Mark Iloh:

Unemployment and poverty are among the major challenges facing Nigeria and other developing economies today. We need creative and dynamic entrepreneurship techniques to tackle poverty and create jobs. Dynamic entrepreneurs who can take risk in productive industries rather than commerce will play a major role in promoting economic growth and sustainable development now and in the long-run.

For a country to develop,, there must be high-risk takers who can make large scale investments in industries to bring direct impact on the growth rate of the economy, and not only engaging in economic activities that can multiply wealth within the short-run, without actually registering its effect on growth and job creation.

“In developing countries for instance, investors are mostly found in commerce, buying, selling and importing products to make fast money, without taking the risk to build factories and invest in manufacturing industries, which are economic activities capable of creating jobs for the masses. This is as a result of poor attitude to high risk taking and innovation.

Today, few industries in the developing countries are owned by foreigners. The economic implication is that the expected benefits of these foreign firms can not be registered in the economies where they operate, as owners interest are at variance with the host country and profits are repatriated back to their countries of origin.

The vicious cycle of poverty is another challenge that must be addressed pragmatically. Poverty is another major factor hindering growth in developing countries. The less developed countries are caught up in the web of poverty. This is due to low per capita income, which leads to low demands, low savings, which leads to low investments and in turn low capital formation, which paves the way for low productivity.

The resultant effect of low productivity is low income and this runs continuously, except there is a conscious effort to break this cycle, development will continue to be a mirage. For us to achieve relative full employment, the issue of human capital must also be addressed. For example. we need good education and skill-training necessary to make the youths more productive.

Government should diversify the economy into non-oil export sectors – a former Chairman, Agriculture, Non-oil Export Trade Group, Lagos Chambers of Commerce, Industry, Mines and Agriculture (LACCIMA), Dr. Godwin Oyedele Oyediji: Today, over 50 per cent of our population engage in small scale agriculture across the country. We need modern and large scale agriculture like what obtains in advanced economies to create jobs.

As such, government needs to diversify the economy into agriculture, manufacturing and non-oil export sectors to enhance capacity utilisation. This is imperative because resources in non-oil sectors, particularly agriculture can boost sustainable growth, if they are adequately harnessed. Also, various economic activities in agriculture, which include planting, harvesting and transportation of farm produce among other activities can create jobs, not only for the youths, but for other people in Nigeria.

For us to create sufficient jobs, other issues like human capital development, trade and investments in the real sector must be addressed to enhance optimum growth. These are important issues that are relevant to economic transformation agenda of the Federal Government.

Aside from job creation, agriculture must be given the desired attention to ensure food security for the country. All over the world, agriculture is an important sector because it allows sustainable growth of the economy. We can also achieve that in Nigeria, if the sector is well funded. We will derive numerous economic benefits in turning attention to agriculture, because it will discourage the budgetary system that centers on revenue from crude oil, which we do no have control over the price and demand from the international market.

I have said this before and will still repeat that, If adequately funded, the sector can create about 500.000 jobs annually. The reason being that agriculture has short and long term economic benefits, which are needed in the rural and urban areas. Looking at the aggregate economic analysis, about 70 million Nigerians are into agriculture currently. These figures include direct and indirect labour work-force in the sector. T

his is because employment generation in this sector is often classified under skilled, semi-skilled and unskilled labour. This implies that with the population of over 160million people, agriculture can take 50 per cent of the entire work-force of Nigeria, noting fully well that 50 per cent of Nigeria’s population are youths from 15 years and above. Agriculture can also generate revenue as additional source of income-flow in the economy”.

Government should boost industrial growth to create jobs –  Mrs. Gloria Joseph, operator of small enterprise at Oshodi Market, Lagos: Creation of jobs in a developing economy like Nigeria with a population of over 160million requires massive industrial growth. The truth is that government alone does not have to capacity to create jobs for every citizen, but if an enabling business environment is provided for industries to spring up, the unemployment rate, which currently stands at about 24 per cent can reduce drastically.

Recently, the Federal Government launched the Nigeria Industrial Revolution Plan (NIRP) and the National Enterprise Development Programme (NEDEP), aimed at boosting the annual revenue for Nigerian manufacturers up to N5 trillion. Government must ensure effective implementation of this Plan and close monitoring in order to stimulate industrial development and job creation for the masses.

President Goodluck Jonathan, explained during the launch that NEDEP is a comprehensive industrialisation programme based on key areas where our economy has competitive advantage in agriculture, solid minerals, oil and gas among other areas, where Nigeria can be the number one in Africa and top 10 globally. For me, this is a good Plan, capable of creating thousands of jobs, if adequately implemented to achieve the intended purpose.

Armed soldiers raid Al-Mustapha’s residence

Armed men, believed to be soldiers, Friday evening, raided one of the residences of Major Hamza Al Mustapha (rtd), former Chief Security Officer to the late Head of State, General Sani Abacha,  located at Durbin Katsina, Kano metropolis, leaving in its wake sordid tales of rights violation and molestation.

The heavily armed men, who reportedly came in trucks and  tanks,  allegedly cordoned  several streets leading to the house and seized the occupants who were mostly women and children in an operation that lasted 60 minutes.

*Al-Mustapha

Al-Mustapha’s younger brother, identified as Hadi, is also said to be a resident of the house.

Eyewitnesss said the ‘soldiers’ came in trucks and tanks and, immediately they gained entrance into the building, ordered everyone around to lie face flat on ground and, at gunpoint, conducted a thorough search of the building.

“One Abubakar, reportedly  a cousin to Major Al-Mustapha, was maltreated by the troops. He is recuperating at a private hospital, a  witness  recounted.

The eyewitness revealed that  the wife of Hadi, Al Mustapha’s  brother, was  forced, at gunpoint, to conduct the armed men round the expansive building, adding that “the traumatized housewife was immediately taken to a hospital shortly after they left”.

Another source stated: “The invading forces were not friendly, not even the children were spared as the house  was ransacked inside out all in the name of searching for an imaginary cache of arms”.

The source added, “The same treatment was meted to those outside. I heard their leader, a colonel, during a telephone conversation, telling the person at the other end that they had  not found anything incriminating  and  that it seemed  the information (they had) was not accurate”.

Speaking on the development, Hadi disclosed that the family was evaluating the damages done by the men, stressing: “We intend to come up with details of what happened and the action to follow in due course.”

The outgoing military spokesman in Kano State, Captain Ikediche Iweha, while reacting to the story, declared: “ Haba, we don’t  invade houses. If  the story you are telling is correct, then it must be the usual routine checks.
“In any case, give me time to verify the matter and get back to you”.
As at press time the spokesman did not call back. He is on transfer to 3rd Armoured Brigade, Jos.

Nigeria's Secret Police Headquarters In Abuja Held To Ransom By Boko Haram Detainees

Boko Haram militants detained at the State Security Services facility in Abuja took over the complex for over six hours after disarming SSS agents guarding the facility.

The audacious action of the detainees led to  prolonged negotiations that later  resulted to shootings at the complex for over 4 hours, an SSS sources told NF Reporters .

 The gunfight at the complex known as “Yellow House” caused panic in Abuja as the complex sits close to the Presidential Villa and one of the most fortified area in the national capital.
 Soldiers and the air force counterparts were drafted in some few hours later to bring the insurrection under control. Our source did not reveal how many SSS agents or detainees were killed or injured in the process what the SSS later described as an  "attempted jailbreak.". However, helicopter gunships hovers over the affected area as at the time of publishing this report.

Insecurity: Jonathan Indicts North-East Governors

President Goodluck Jonathan today indicted governors from Nigeria’s North-Eastern states of inaction in the face of growing attacks by Boko Haram, an extremist Islamist group. Mr. Jonathan added that he should not be blamed for the insecurity ravaging the geo-political zone.

Mr. Jonathan made the comments during a political rally held in Bauchi, the capital of Bauchi State which is part of Nigeria’s violence-plagued Northeast zone. He said it was ironic that the governors from the zone could complain of lack of leadership at the national level when they had refused to provide leadership at the various state levels.

Mr. Jonathan’s comments came in the wake of a controversy generated at a meeting in Washington, DC between US security officials and governors from the zone. At the DC meeting, anchored by National Security Adviser Susan Rice, some of the governors accused officials of Mr. Jonathan’s administration of encouraging the continuation of Boko Haram’s terrorist activities, adding that the administration’s aim is to ensure that the people of the region do not participate in the 2015 general elections. President Jonathan’s remarks were seen as a push back to the governors’ allegation about the continued killings by members of the dreaded Boko Haram sect in the zone. He added that, as a former deputy governor and later governor of Bayelsa State, he was aware that governors are “semi autonomous,” implying that each governor should lead the fight against religious terrorism in his own state. Mr. Jonathan promised to expose some of the delinquent governors at the right time.

“The Federal Government is not in charge of primary and secondary schools,” said the president. He then added: “Yet, these boys carrying expensive guns and bullets wear clothes that [don’t cost] more than N10. Where do they get money to buy those guns?”

Continuing, Mr. Jonathan stated, “These are boys who have never been to schools. The Federal Government is not in charge of primary and secondary schools, yet these governors complain of lack of leadership. Leadership at what level?”
 

President Jonathan had declared a state of emergency in Borno, Yobe and Adamawa States in a bid to stem murderous attacks by Boko Haram. The three states are controlled by the opposition All Progressives Congress (APC).

Mr. Jonathan predicted that the three states would fall to the ruling PDP in the 2015 elections.

Why The South-West Did Not Vote For Me In 2011- Ribadu

 “…if I was doing Obasanjo’s bidding, how comes those opposed to him are the ones who asked me to come and run under their platform?”

Nuhu Ribadu worked in the Nigerian Police Force where he rose to become the Chief prosecutor and Head of Legal Unit of the Force. In 2003, he was appointed the pioneer head of the newly formed anti-graft agency, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC. He was forced out of the agency in 2007 for failing to do the biddings of the then President Musa Yar’Adua.

In 2010, the Action Congress of Nigeria, ACN, selected him as its presidential candidate for the 2011 election. He lost the election, but continued to be a member of the ACN which has now merged with three other political parties to form the All Progressives Congress, APC.
In this chat with Ashafa Barkiya, editor of the well-regarded Hausa newspaper, RARIYA, Mr. Ribadu speaks about his life, career, politics and why he accepted to serve as Chairman of the Petroleum Revenue Special Task Force. The interview was translated to English by PREMIUM TIMES’ Sani Tukur.

Excerpt:

You were not well known prior to your appointment as Chairman of the EFCC. How did you join the Police, and why?

Thanks to Allah, I joined the Police after I completed my first degree in 1984.  I also went to law school and qualified as a Barrister. We were some of the earliest to join the Police after qualifying as lawyers from the North.
Certainly, there were reasons why I decided to join the police, even though I was offered direct employment by the NNPC, UBA, PZ and Corporate Affairs Commission after I completed my youth service. Many people were surprised at my decision to join the police. They thought my lean frame disqualified me from being a police officer. Secondly, no one in my family had ever worked with the police. Thirdly, people thought the police was not for the well-educated.
In fact, even in terms of pay, I was relegating myself because what I would have earned from all the other organisations that offered me employment was twice what I got as police officer. But I felt it was important to work where I would get fulfillment from the job, achieve some aims like helping the people, and shape my own philosophy of life.
Honestly, I grew up passionate about protecting people’s rights, to help the weak and helpless. I want to see the truth upheld. I always want fairness to prevail all the time. So I felt I could only achieve those goals in the police more than any other place.

Were you always been like that or were you ‘radicalised’ at the University?

I am not sure it’s about ‘radicalism’. I think it has to do with wanting to see things done right and with the fear of God. I can say that I grew up seeing it practiced in my family home. Our father, Alhaji Ahmadu Ribadu, was well known in Yola, and people attest to the kind of life he lived. He was a politician and always stood by the truth.
Well, I can tell you that I shared the ‘radical’ philosophy at school, but what really is the radicalism? It is just about knowing your right and standing up for it as allowed by the laws. In the university I was a member of the Peoples Redemption Party. I was part of those who demonstrated against the impeachment of former Governor Balarabe Musa in Kaduna state. We were the ones who went to Kaduna House of Assembly to protest and they kept sending us away, with the police beating us. We were the boys of Dr. Yusuf Bala Usman. Don’t also forget that my family members were in the National Party of Nigeria then.

What was your first posting as a policeman, and what were the challenges you faced?

The first place I worked was Mushin Police Station in Lagos in 1986. From there, I was posted to Apapa Area Command and Police Station. From there, I worked at Ajegunle as Crimes Investigations Officer.

So what were the challenges you faced, since there were frequent robbery incidents then?

I also remember that was when the police faced the challenge of the renowned armed robber, Lawrence Anini.
Certainly there were lots of confrontations with armed robbers at Ajegunle, Apapa and Mushin. I personally used to carry my gun and engage the robbers in exchange of fire. It’s really a long story.

After all the confrontations; did you regret joining the police?

It happened once shortly after I joined the force and it happened at the first place I was posted to. When I reported for duty at Mushin Police station, the DPO asked me to lead an operation to a place we received a report about. I took three policemen with me and when we got there we saw someone who was killed by armed robbers and they took away his car.
As soon as we alighted from our car, the policemen that came with me began to search the dead man’s pocket and were removing money to stuff in their pocket. One of them removed his wristwatch and put it in his pocket.
So, I processed the corpse and we took it to Ikeja Hospital. I also found out where he was staying and how to contact his family. When we returned to the office, I noticed that these policemen did not submit all the stuff they took from the dead man, and I asked them why. They simply said I should ‘just forget there is no problem’. I was so angry because I saw them steal from a dead man.
That incident disturbed me a lot. I just left for home and refused to come the following day and the day after. There was a policeman called Musa Dan Gombe, he was also a Fulani man like me, who came looking for me at home. He sought to know why I did not go to work for two days and I told him that I honestly can’t do this work because it was contrary to my objectives. What I saw really demoralised me, and I just couldn’t do it.
But Musa told me that the force needed people like me because without people like me change will not come. His advice strengthened me and that was why I stayed and resolved to fight these types of ugly behaviour. I resolved and pledged to God since that moment to fight decay in the police force. I began the crusade since then and as God would have it I was getting successful such that I even arrested a sitting Inspector General of Police for graft.
Throughout my service in the police, I just concentrated on upholding what is right. A lot has happened that often made me contemplate leaving the force, but with God’s help I withstood the challenges and continued my work. Some of them I don’t even want to recall. But you also know that we have some very good people in the police, and I worked with a lot of them.

Where were you when Anini was arrested?

I was in Apapa. I was the one who first set up the road block at Tin Can Island. That was when the order came for senior officers to also man roadblocks.

In your position as police prosecutor, how did you feel when a judge released a hardened criminal on bail two days after his arraignment and the case died thereafter?

That is actually what spoils our work and bastardises the constitution and rule of law. It comes about because of corruption, which usually happens either during investigations or prosecution. But I don’t accept bribe and my lieutenants also dare not accept bribe. If you are prosecuting my case, even if you are mad you will not collect money. It so happens that apart from being a policeman, I am also a lawyer. So, I know how everything works. Both the policeman prosecuting the case I investigated and the judge cannot therefore accept money to bastardise the case. That is the reason why we had the highest number of prosecutions when we were at Alagbon.
Releasing criminals, especially armed robbers, is very dangerous especially to the policemen prosecuting the case. When we were working, there were several cases of policemen who were killed by the armed robbers they arrested earlier. So the judges demoralise police prosecutors by releasing hardened criminals.

You made history in the EFCC especially with the arrest of Tafa Balogun, your boss, James Ibori, as well as some governors and highly placed individuals. But did you ever face threats or attacks while you held sway as chairman of the agency, like your successor, Farida Waziri, said she faced?

A. Is this anything worth recalling? It would seem as if I don’t know the job if I go back to recounting all these stories. Whoever does what is right and fight the bad eggs in the society knows that he would face a lot of challenges. There was no kind of plot that was not hatched against me while I was in both the EFCC and the Police, but I feel it would be demeaning for me to start talking about them now.

The Federal Government appeared to have confidence in you and appointed you to head the Committee on Petroleum Revenue. Your committee completed its task and submitted a report to government, however, nothing appears to be have been done about it. How do you feel?

I am unhappy about it especially because I worked tirelessly with the fear of God, for the good of your country. I suffered for eight months doing that work without receiving a kobo. And I left my job in Afghanistan where I was heavily paid. They asked me to come back for the job and I told them I would not receive a dime. I said I would do it as service to my fatherland.

Were you offered compensation and you refused?

I refused the money I was offered. I told them I did not need money to do that kind of service for my fatherland. When I accepted to do the work, some people were saying why should I accept to work for a PDP government since I was in the opposition. I said then that I was working for the Nigerian people, not the PDP government. If I could work for Afghanistan to shape up things, I see nothing wrong in my coming back to work for my country.
I accepted to do it because I knew I could bring out facts that someone else may not be able to. In our report of eight months, we brought out the damages being done in the Oil and Gas industry, the kind of money being stolen and ways to block the theft and strengthen the sector.
We submitted our report, but there was an attempt to sabotage us even while we worked because surprisingly, some members of my committee were appointed into the board of the NNPC, a parastatal we were investigating. They tried to sabotage the work we did.
But thank God, all Nigerians have seen what we did. God exposed them, and the president received the report and promised to work on it. But over a year later, he has not uttered a word to me, not to talk about implementing the report.

You have been facing the challenge of refusing to accept bribe or gratification since you started your working life. Seeing how people get rich while in government; people ask what is wrong with Ribadu, doesn’t he like money? Do you abhor or fear money?

I thank God for the way I live my life. I was properly brought up in a way that shaped my life. I am naturally not materialistic. For instance, I have never worn a wristwatch.
Even those small….
Any type at all. That is how I am. I leave a simple life. Go into my house and see how I live.

May be you find it heavy…?

No. I even noticed that it is used for fashion these days

Or you put it inside your pocket?

What will I do with a watch inside my pocket? There is a clock inside the car, office, at home, cell phone, why should I worry myself tying it around. In fact I just hate all these bling bling lifestyle.
I have one wife, my kids are here, six of them, I am satisfied with whatever God has given me. I can take care of my needs you know?
It’s not as if I don’t like money, but I am just afraid of taking what is not mine, forbidden ones. If you cling to this life style, God will give you your own. I love seeing rich men, so it’s not as if I hate the rich. I like to see people make progress. But as for me, I never consider making so much money a priority in life.

The Federal Government recently entered into a pact with the British Government to exchange prisoners, and already some people are speculating that the pact was simply aimed at returning James Ibori back to the country. What do you have to say about it, since you were the first to arrest him?

Well, I really don’t know what to say. It is really confusing since they said it was prisoner exchange. The question is how many Britons do we have in our jails here? None! But we have so many out there; so with whom are we going to exchange?  I understand that Britain will even give us money to build prisons. In fact, I am not going to say anything on this matter yet. In my opinion it is a wrong arrangement since no prisoner will be transferred back to England.
 

Ibori offered you a bribe of $15million, which is over N2.5 Billion, which you received and handed over to the CBN. Why didn’t you have a second thought and pocket the money since no one knew you were offered that money?

But it is not my money, it was ill-gotten and I do not see myself benefitting from ill-gotten wealth. The God I serve forbids that. I can’t take stolen money.  In fact, apart from the $15 million dollars, I was offered much higher amount as bribe while I was in the Police, but I refused to accept. I have jailed many lawyers who collected large sums of money from their clients to bring to me. It is not as if I don’t need those monies, but, but I cannot be the one to benefit from stolen funds, when I was given the mandate of fighting such crimes, God forbid.
Let me tell you something, life is very easy.  God has been faithful to me, because without searching, job opportunities kept coming from many countries that help me to keep body and soul together. I also have many rich friends. Even when I decided to join politics, these friends from all over Nigeria gave me maximum support by contributing enough funds to help me run my campaign.
This house was my official quarters and the government decided to sell most of its houses at subsidised rates. They said occupants could pay for the house in installments. Should I have said I don’t need it? Isn’t that a way of acquiring wealth legally without recourse to dubious means?
Apart from this house, the only other one I have is my home in Yola.

Because of your anti-corruption stance and your sojourn in the EFCC, it is believed you know many corrupt people; so, many people thought that your political aspiration in 2011 will improve our politics. Things did not go as planned; what do you have to say about your experience in politics and the 2011 defeat?

Firstly, it is wrong to assume that I know more thieves than anyone in this country. I just worked to fight bribery and corruption. May be it was because of what we did, which people saw, that was why they keep making such assertions. It may also be because I was the first person to head the EFCC and our efforts were simply aimed at making things right in all aspects of our country’s development.
It was because of our efforts that the international community agreed to start having financial dealings with Nigerians via the internet. They used to fear transacting with us through that channel. We have also helped in getting respite and respect for the country in many aspects, especially as it relates to reducing to the barest the scourge of 419 and money laundering.
We also almost stopped oil theft in the Niger Delta and it only resumed with higher intensity after we left office. All these were aimed at returning our country to the right pedestal and economic prosperity.
As for politics, I never imagined myself being a politician, it was simply meant to happen.
I actually belong to a political family. When I was about to come back to Nigeria, I was persuaded by not just the ACN, but many others, including the government. But I was more convinced with the party I eventually joined, because I had a dream of uniting all opposition parties under one roof. I am a Northerner, yet the strongest party in the South decided to trust me. Like you rightly pointed out, in less than ten months after I joined politics, I ran for the presidential election. It has never happened before. Here I am, not rich and just returning from exile, yet people said they trust me to be their
presidential candidate. All these happened within a short time; but I saw a lot.
Although I withdrew for General Muhammadu Buhari on the eve of the election, when all of us were called to a meeting with General Ibrahim Babangida, General Aliyu Gusau, Buhari himself and Atiku Abubakar, as well as Tinubu and Akande. The meeting was aimed at finding a consensus, and I promptly told them I will withdraw for Buhari. It was actually from that moment that a form of alliance and understanding was reached among opposition parties. After the talks, I did run under ACN, but merger talks had already kick started.

But what many in the North said at the time was that the ACN drafted you to run, but refused to vote for you; what do you say to that? You have said so before, that you are still in this merged party, don’t you think what happened before can be repeated?

As far as I know, they did not abandon me. What happened was that before Election Day, I had told them that I withdrew from the race and they agreed. There were witnesses also, such as General Babangida, Aliyu Gusau, Buhari, Atiku, Sule Yahaya Hamma, Bashir Yusuf Ibrahim, and the rest.
But there was misunderstanding between the CPC and ACN, even though I had withdrawn. The two parties failed to agree. That incident discouraged a lot of people especially in the South West because as far they were concerned, they had no candidate. Since they had no candidate, they did not even appoint agents to polling units, and so did not spend a kobo at the time. So people were allowed to freely elect who they wanted. You cannot blame them since they failed to reach an agreement with CPC.

But many were already of the view that you came to divide Northern votes?

It’s not true. I pray to God not to let me live that kind of life. I will never do anything that will shortchange the people of this country, because whatever I do, I put the fear of God first. And as God would have it, what I had set out to achieve is what eventually happened because the opposition parties have now come together.

It can be argued that the APC stands a good chance of forming the next government, but there appears to be internal crisis in the party, especially between PDP governors who joined the party, and ex-governors who were original members. Recently also, we understand that Governor Fashola of Lagos said he is supporting Adams Oshiomhole of Edo to run for president. What is your view about these hiccups?

As for me, I know that we all have to be patient with each other. You should expect these sorts of things in a mega party such as ours. But with God on our side, all will be sorted in due course, all those who are in the party, and those willing to join, should know that PDP is our problem in this country. So we must all keep our prejudices aside.
I ran for the office of the president, right? But, did you ever hear me say anything in Adamawa? Did you hear me fight anyone? So why should anyone do it? We should all be patient; if God said something is yours, no one has the power to deny you. If we know that we are doing this for the good of the land and our people, we should know that selfishness cannot take us to the Promised Land.
If we are all patient with each other, everyone will know their position in due course. I think people tend to misunderstand the situation, I just urge us all to be patient and build the party first.
If everyone insists on getting his way, we cannot go anywhere; it means PDP will continue to hold sway and misgovern the country. As for Adams Oshiomhole, I guess everyone has the right to run for anyone office, right?

In a situation where everyone who wants to run comes out, but a consensus was reached because politicians look at certain things, and for instance say General Buhari is getting old and has run three times, and it is observed that Buhari has a successor in one of the states, and they consider that he had been a loyal member of the ACN in spite of everything and they choose you; will you accept?

This question is too strong for me to and I don’t know how to answer it. My prayer is that God should decide what is right for us, and I am sure he will decide on the best for us. When we get to the bridge, we shall cross it Insha Allah.

What is your ambition in 2015?

Today I am a member of the APC, I have the hope that we will build a party that will salvage our people and I am just focussed on ensuring that we build it to achieve that purpose, especially in Adamawa state, North East, the North in general and Nigeria as a whole. I pray that we produce the right leaders that will take this country to the next level.
I am a contented person and I am grateful to God for what I have achieved in life. All I can tell you is that I will work assiduously as I used to anywhere I find myself.

Those of you who worked in PDP government and find yourself in opposition afterwards really know that the party is in shambles. What can you tell Nigerians you are trying to do?

Firstly, I have never been a member of the PDP. After I left the EFCC, I decided to join the opposition. I do not agree with what the PDP has done in Nigeria. I saw the way the PDP operates and they even nearly sacked me while I worked in the EFCC. I did not leave the job on my own volition.
It means your achievements in the EFCC were not appreciated?
The truth is I feel the PDP has not kept its promise to the Nigerian people. The country has witnessed underdevelopment since the PDP assumed the mantle of leadership. The country made more than expected in terms of revenue, which if handled well would have ensured that we have stable power supply, good roads and the rest.
We should have no business going outside the country for medical attention; our schools are depreciating. We should be living in peace, with an effective police force and a strong army. There should be harmony among us beyond what prevails now, but the PDP has failed to achieve all these. The country’s wealth is in the hands of a few people, we have rich people all over, but the country is struggling. So in essence, I do not like the way they are handling things, that is why when I decided to join politics, I refused to join them.  I have never joined it; never supported it and never liked it for once.
I joined politics with the philosophy that this country requires change because those given the mandate in the past have abused it.

Some are also of the view that you only went after the opponents of President Obasanjo when you were at the EFCC, what do you have to say?

That is also not true, because I have never done anything just to make the president or the PDP government happy. If you check well, most of the people we arrested were PDP members, and were mostly close to the president.
A minister cannot be arrested and you will say it was because he was fighting with the president because he was his minister working under him. Police IG was also his own. These are just mere accusations since they lacked any basis. It was not the case at all. And no one can say we lied against him because it was very open for all to see.
Up till today, no court has quashed any of the cases we prosecuted while I was at the EFCC. No one has ever taken me to court for wrongfully accusing him and the court agreed. We were successful in all appeal cases against us. There was no single case in which I was found wanting. Besides, we recovered billions of people’s money and the country was on the way to getting things right, things were changing for the better.

I am sure you now interact with some of the people you arrested in the past. Do you exchange pleasantries, or do you just shun them?

There is no disharmony between us. Some of them have said to me that they know I just did my job with the fear of God. I am surprised when I get these comments. I am in perfect relationship with most of the people I arrested because they know it was not personal.
I am still waiting for someone to come out and say I did something to him because of politics, or abuse of power; I have been saying this for quite a while now, and I am repeating it, if there is anyone who felt I wrongfully arrested him, he should narrate his own side of the story.
Incidentally, those who thought I was arresting people because of them are the ones now fighting me. Also those ones I arrested or their allies are the ones who supported me while I ran for office. And if I was doing Obasanjo’s bidding, how comes those opposed to him are the ones who asked me to come and run under their platform?
My advice is that everyone should just do everything according to their conscience and with the fear of God. If you do that, no matter how long, the truth will bail you out.

PREMIUM TIMES got the permission of the Hausa newspaper, Rariya, to translate and republish this interview in English.