There seems to be general consensus today that the anti-corruption outfit that goes by the acronym of EFCC (The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission) is bedeviled by a serious credibility problem. Of course, it goes without saying that the moral crisis confronting the EFCC is largely self-inflicted and has to do with a leadership under an individual that lacks the discipline and sobriety required of a public officer in his position. To compound matters, Nuhu Ribadu’s EFCC is still rightly perceived by Nigerians as essentially a partisan contraption in the service of the ex-tyrant from Ota and his confederates whose  desperation to hang on to power as well as protect their suspected expropriation of the nation’s collective assets is fueling the continued selective hounding mainly of figures opposed to the former dictator called Obasanjo.

 For those who thought that the formal end of the disastrous eight-year rule by Kabiyesi would lead to a semblance of transparency and consistency in the way the corruption-fighting body operates, they must be shocked to learn that what citizens have been treated to since the installation of the Yar’Adua regime are the same loud media-driven antics on the part of Nuhu Ribadu and his associates. The EFCC under Ribadu is still essentially a mischief-ridden entity that pays lip-service to due process and is inhabited by the demon of political partisanship that plays to the gallery in an insidious war that dares not declare itself . Nigeria and the rest of the world should be alert. We have for too long been taken for granted by the very forces whose reckless disregard for the rule of law and the common good has in no small measure led  to the profound sense of malaise the country is experiencing these days.

 The post-May 29, 2007 era has been one of acute societal anxiety. It is also a period of fear and trepidation on the part of those elements whose misrule between 1999 and 2007 in particular has inflicted so much suffering and misery on the average Nigerian. Precariously ensconced in their comfort zones, Obasanjo and his fellow riders on the Nigerian gravy train are increasingly feeling insecure and desperate. A case of post-Third Term blues, no doubt. On account of their sordid legacy, these revelers wrongly believe that a frontal attack on their political foes would ensure their stranglehold on our socio-economic spaces, hence the Ribadu/EFCC weapon of revanchist zealotry and impunity. That Yar’adua appears to have thrown his lot with the ex-tyrant and his foot-soldiers in the Ribadu mould in what is by all intents and purposes a continuation of the egregious war of attrition the Ota potentate and his acolytes have waged against much of Nigeria is a sad commentary on the former Katsina governor. Yar’Adua should dispel the impression that he is helping protect those politicians whose support – financial or otherwise – was partly responsible for his controversial emergence as president. The people must be prepared to fight Yar’Adua on this issue of critical national importance. He and his government should be made to realize that the anti-corruption struggle, for it to be credible, must be seen as above board, transparent and not tailored to cater to the whims and caprices of Nigeria’s scoundrels suffering from messianic delusions or their hangover.

The point needs to be reiterated that under the PDP-led Obasanjo tyranny, most of the well-documented corruption  in the nation’s public service was located at the presidency. The World Bank and the Auditor- General’s office under the former Acting Auditor-General, Azie, have remarkably added their voices to the chorus of damning testimonies regarding the rampant corruption and mismanagement under Nigeria ’s last ruler. A logical question then arises:  Why are the EFCC and Yar’Adua so obsessed with some governors while at the same time refusing to turn the searchlight on that altar of infamy called the presidency under Obasanjo?  For almost the entire duration of his profligacy, Obasanjo made himself the de facto oil minister. The oil sector in general was run like a primitive private enclave with neither transparent accounting nor the will to see to it that the great majority of citizens did benefit from a natural resource so strategic in their lives. Together with the oil domain, the so-called privatization scheme of the Obasanjo interregnum was reduced to something akin to a barbaric and wanton plunder of national gems in the likes of hotels, government houses, communications outfits, steel complexes and refineries, etc., to the extent that while lazy rent collectors and shylocks – friends or fronts of the regime’s main actors - of a decadent and convenient laisser-faire ploy indulged their gluttonous appetites and continue to make merry at the expense of the nation and its children, the country’s schools, hospitals, road infrastructure and industries, just to name but a few, have all but collapsed. Where then is the justice?

Those who have greatly contributed to the state of anomie in the country today are not just the governors Ribadu and his political master, Kabiyesi are gleefully persecuting cheered on by a largely complacent national media. The principal character that presided over perhaps the worst type of corruption – election rigging – in the history of the country coupled with the systematic looting of the nation’s collective patrimony must be made to face the music. And, as a parenthesis, Nigerians will make Obasanjo account for his terrible human rights record. More than any other individual, the ex-tyrant and his former ministers should be probed considering the compelling wealth of evidence pointing to the widespread and unprecedented corruption within the federal administration in the past eight years. Nigerians must not forget that under Obasanjo, the federal government alone reportedly retained about 58 % of funds shared amongst the various tiers of government. Instructively, one of the former governors arrested by the EFCC has reportedly stated through his aides that a big chunk of the money he is accused of stealing did go to fund the notorious Third Term scam of the Ota tin god. It is unacceptable for the EFCC to hide behind forlorn excuses by flippantly refusing to probe the allegations made by Senator Turaki. There is also the matter of the money smuggling scandal for which an Obasanjo adjunct named “Andy” Uba has been indicted by the American authorities as revealed by court records. Again, the EFCC under Ribadu has invoked rather spurious arguments in their hypocritical refusal to investigate this damning scandal with potentially far-reaching implications.

Where then is the justice?. “Andy” Uba, it should be remembered, it is who smuggled about one hundred thousand dollars ($170.000.00) on the presidential plane on which Obasanjo was a passenger. Court records show that a sum of forty-five thousand dollars of that amount was used for the purchase of equipment for the Obasanjo farms at Ota! Nigerians and the international community deserve to know the source of the money involved in the said scandal and to what extent it may constitute the tip of the iceberg in a suspected pillaging of the public treasury. And there is also the small matter of the over six billion naira swindle called the Presidential Library fund whereby highly questionable donations of suspected public money were made by corporate bodies and individuals. Surely, this scandal also deserves to be probed. The list is long but one must start somewhere.

If Yar’Adua truly wants to be taken seriously, he should be on the side of the people and begin without further hesitation the probe of Obasanjo, his former aides as well as ministers. Fighting corruption has to be seen as a holistic enterprise and not just one informed by the vagaries of partisanship and opportunism. It will involve all and sundry. The conduct of the media will be crucial here. A situation whereby an indolent  national media has due to its complacency and knee-jerk posturing contributed to the current bastardization of the necessary anti-corruption struggle in the land should be viewed with utmost concern. What has come to be derisively known as the Kabiyesi press because of its genuflecting and subservient mien vis-à-vis those in positions of authority has so far played a largely disheartening role. Merely echoing the partisan positions of agents of the EFCC obviously  beholden to the ex-dictator from Ota, the Lagos-Ibadan axis of the national media in particular has helped Ribadu in the pursuit of his unwholesome ways. These days, the favorite tactic has been the planting of unsubstantiated rumors in the media that anonymous powerful forces are out to get him because of his supposedly principled stand! The aim, as always, it seems, is to whip up uncritical support for the shenanigans of an operative apparently imbued with a credibility deficit and his discredited outfit. Under Ribadu, our collective determination to truly fight official sleaze has been bogged down – frittered away in a swamp of contradiction, inconsistency and a tendency to grandstand emanating from the man and his political allies as was recently demonstrated by the orchestrated and illegal overthrow of former governors in places like Anambra, Oyo, Ekiti and Plateau. The immediate challenge for the Yar’Adua administration is therefore to help in the national effort to have Ribadu fired without further delay. Or, better still, the current EFCC chairman should voluntarily hand in his resignation. He should also publicly declare his assets. One more thing: The EFCC should render a transparent account of all the money and other assets recovered from looters.

It is hoped that under a new and more credible leadership, the anti-corruption campaign will regain momentum and respectability which have been sorely lacking under Nuhu Ribadu and the previous Obasanjo regime.

Aonduna Tondu

New York

Robot  # 1 | 25.07.2007 17:43

Merely echoing the partisan positions of agents of the EFCC obviously ...Read the full article.

EyesWideOpen  # 2 | 25.07.2007 18:47

Dear Mr OneNaija I am only responding to your article to save you time so you can get on with the task of quoting your previous articles as you usually do, and save the rest of the villagers time. I hope all is well with you Goodluck EWO

Auspicious  # 3 | 25.07.2007 19:30

There seems to be general consensus today that the anti-corruption outfit that goes by the acronym of EFCC (The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission) is bedeviled by a serious credibility problem. Yeah whatever. "General Consesus" my skinny black butt! The EFCC still remains, wether you like it or not, the most effective and daring outfit to date in arresting the malaise of corruption in Nigeria. Of course, it goes without saying that the moral crisis confronting the EFCC is largely self-inflicted and has to do with a leadership under an individual that lacks the discipline and sobriety required of a public officer in his position. Oh please! Where you find lack of discipline and sobriety in Nuhu Ribadu, a good number of Nigerians find an aggressive and fearless character, whose greater abilities is hampered by forces much more powerful than him in the polity. To compound matters, Nuhu Ribadu’s EFCC is still rightly perceived by Nigerians as essentially a partisan contraption in the service of the ex-tyrant from Ota.. Oh, speak for yourself, Mr. Aoduna Tondu. Your perception is not equal to "Nigerian's" perception, so stop equation your perception to Nigerians'. You just one of a few, whose obsession with the former dictator-like President Obasanjo's execesses has blinded from seeing the tiny glimmer of hope that many people see in Nuhu Ribadu's efforts. For those who thought that the formal end of the disastrous eight-year rule by Kabiyesi would lead to a semblance of transparency and consistency in the way the corruption-fighting body operates, they must be shocked to learn that what citizens have been treated to since the installation of the Yar’Adua regime are the same loud media-driven antics on the part of Nuhu Ribadu and his associates. The EFCC under Ribadu is still essentially a mischief-ridden entity that pays lip-service to due process and is inhabited by the demon of political partisanship that plays to the gallery in an insidious war that dares not declare itself . BLAH-BLAH-BLAH... Sigh! I give up, on taking out your essay paragraph by paragraph. It's not worth it. Whatever, Dude! Even if Obasanjo is tried and arrested by EFCC today, I can bet my Third Ball you would still NOT be impressed. You will claim mischief - that it is all a smoke-screen to hide their mischief. Tondu, find something better TO DU! Auspicious.

Crisdels  # 4 | 25.07.2007 20:30

Yes, Mr. Tondu, Nuhu Ribadu gat to go. I mean disappear!! If the Government of Umaru Yar'Adua are serious about fighting crime, they should remove Ribadu ASAP to add to their pandering games meant to ingratiate the illegitimate regime that brought Yar'Adua into office to the eager ears and eyes of Nigerians.Like you suggested, Ribadu may wisely resign from his position as Chairman of EFCC if he is listening to the voice of the Nigerian public opinion. But, not everyone will see your vote of no confidence passed on Chairman Ribadu as reasonable, considering that Nigeria is filled with praise singers for half truths, mediocrity, and vain glories. The mere fact that Obasanjo used Ribadu to score lots of personal nefarious successes, as described by you in the 3rd Term saga; also used Ribadu to score successes in the detention of his opponents in the EFCC jail only to release those victims later without charges - disqualified the Malam from rolling over to the present regime no matter how we may percive him as experienced and hard working. Crooks always do lots of good things to make them appear good, look good. Even with Ribadu's so called recent successes that lend mediocre social critics in Nigeria impetus to elevate his Crime Wars as A and A+, this writer (me) does not see Ribadu as being sincere. We all heard from Ribadu that 26 Governors had been investigated and found wanting in one form of financial corrupt practice or other, but what we are seeing is a piecemeal selection in the arrest of a few corrupt Governors. How about the rest of them? Please for those yappy mouths and know - littles, it is improper to find 26 thieves, and arrest just 5, leaving the others for later. Hell no!! Even a rookie police officer will imagine what will happen during the course. If I am, or you are one of the unarrested thieves, of course, we will take the 11th Commandment ( "DO NOT GET CAUGHT" ) to the letters. AM I RIGHT OR WRONG? Malam Chairman Nuhu Ribadu is a punky grandstanding stooge. He is arresting those that are politically suitable to his Masters and the PDP. If Ribadu is the Nationalist he claims, the trained police crime fighter we think he is, he should have rounded up all the accused into JAIL, and let the courts free them on bail or refuse to bail them. AM I RIGHT OR WRONG? Ribadu's hands are tainted with blood, and, no matter the facade and glamour his recent showmanship may reflect, he has my "no confidence" vote.

Crisdels  # 5 | 25.07.2007 20:43

Yes, Mr. Tondu, Nuhu Ribadu gat to go. I mean disappear!! If the Government of Umaru Yar'Adua are serious about fighting crime, they should remove Ribadu ASAP to add to their pandering games meant to ingratiate the illegitimate regime that brought Yar'Adua into office to the eager ears and eyes of Nigerians.Like you suggested, Ribadu may wisely resign from his position as Chairman of EFCC if he is listening to the voice of the Nigerian public opinion. But, not everyone will see your vote of no confidence passed on Chairman Ribadu as reasonable, considering that Nigeria is filled with praise singers for half truths, mediocrity, and vain glories. The mere fact that Obasanjo used Ribadu to score lots of personal nefarious successes, as described by you in the 3rd Term saga; also used Ribadu to score successes in the detention of his opponents in the EFCC jail only to release those victims later without charges - disqualified the Malam from rolling over to the present regime no matter how we may percive him as experienced and hard working. Crooks always do lots of good things to make them appear good, look good. Even with Ribadu's so called recent successes that lend mediocre social critics in Nigeria impetus to elevate his Crime Wars as A and A+, this writer (me) does not see Ribadu as being sincere. We all heard from Ribadu that 26 Governors had been investigated and found wanting in one form of financial corrupt practice or other, but what we are seeing is a piecemeal selection in the arrest of a few corrupt Governors. How about the rest of them? Please for those yappy mouths and know - littles, it is improper to find 26 thieves, and arrest just 5, leaving the others for later. Hell no!! Even a rookie police officer will imagine what will happen during the course. If I am, or you are one of the unarrested thieves, of course, we will take the 11th Commandment ( "DO NOT GET CAUGHT" ) to the letters. AM I RIGHT OR WRONG? Malam Chairman Nuhu Ribadu is a punky grandstanding stooge. He is arresting those that are politically suitable to his Masters and the PDP. If Ribadu is the Nationalist he claims, the trained police crime fighter we think he is, he should have rounded up all the accused into JAIL, and let the courts free them on bail or refuse to bail them. AM I RIGHT OR WRONG? Ribadu's hands are tainted with blood, and, no matter the facade and glamour his recent showmanship may reflect, he has my "no confidence" vote.

techsista  # 6 | 25.07.2007 21:02

I suspect that whoever is brought up on charges by the EFCC, Nuhu or no Nuhu, will start to shout that the process is biased against him/her and is nothing but a political witch hunt. Interestingly, such people never declare their innocence or deny that they are big, fat, stinking thieves/embezzlers. They are savvy enough to play the ethnic card where necessary to confuse normally right-thinking people. Whoever takes on the EFCC job is in for a bumpy ride under any administration (OBJ, Yaradua, whoever comes after Yaradua). A corrupt person who steals a trillion naira has a trillion ways to pay to promote his/her own agenda and perform maximum mischief making in order to distract the Nigerian public from issues of guilt and innocence. Heck such a person can buy off almost all the media outlets in the country if s/he wishes. I admire Nuhu in spite of a misstep or two - it takes guts to do what he has done and that should be acknowledged. To me his is the exact opposite of the character aptly described by Fela: My people self dey fear too much Dem fear for the thing we no see Dem fear for the air around us We fear to fight for freedom We fear to fight for liberty We fear to fight for justice We fear to fight for happiness We always get reason to fear We no want die We no want quench Mama dey for house Papa dey for house I get one wife I get one car I get one house I just build house I wan enjoy

Auspicious  # 7 | 25.07.2007 22:00

Hehe! Techsista, tank yu o'jare! Accuser: "You are Thief" Defender: "This is a witch-hunt" (As opposed to responding to the issue of his Thievery) Auspicious.

felix  # 8 | 25.07.2007 23:44

Why some people , even with their Eyes Wide Open cant see the Auspicious fact that a corrupt mind can never fight corruption totally baffles me....., what could be the reason? "ethnic card"???...Lord have mercy! A man sheilds others from prosecution, and only prosecutes those in the bad books of his Ota deranged god and we are still talking of a fight against corruption?. and I ask what type of corruption??? what is corruption in the first place ??? When an officer constitutionally enthrusted with the duty of fighting corruption starts to be selective in his arrest and prosecution while introducing clannish, group or elitist interests in the process of combating this very crime , is it not crystal clear that the task at hand has already been tainted with corruption? And why is it that anybody that states this reality is forced into a corner where he has to defend the charge of "defending corrupt" men??? So can a corrupt mind like that of Nuhu(you are corrupt when your approach to dishing out justice is "corruptly"selective) do an honest job while taking orders from an Obasanjo who is most probably the most corrupt Nigerian, if not African of this century? Go figure... Yet our good friend here Mr Tondu will be served his own share of the "writers agony" here on NVS ; an unnecessary savage attack on his person for stating the facts all good men with their minds untainted with clannish solidarity know very well , and that is the fact that " Ribadus war on corruption" is slowly turning to "Obasanjos war on his enemies"! ..This writer as usual did a yeo mans job again...Somebody must make bold to state the truth since the media in Nigeria as usual have started pandering to sectional pulls , a devilish trait they have not been able to exorcise from their writings for ages and for which Nigeria has paid dearly.:cool:

Dragon  # 9 | 26.07.2007 06:02

SOMETHING IS FISHY I have my own comments on the EFCC’s actions in recent times. While I appreciate their renewed efforts at bringing former public officers to book for their pillaging of the treasury, some issues give cause for grave concern. First, in the course of recent arrests which have become a movie tale, it is clear that the EFCC has not learnt its lessons. Charges against former governors for instance were sent to the media before being discharged in court. Something is fishy… Secondly supposed sections of ‘confessional’ statements were deliberately leaked to the media prior to being discharged in a court of law. A case in trite is that of the ex-Benue state governor and a former commissioner in the Orji Uzor Kalu regime. Something is fishy…. Thirdly, and suspiciously noticeably, while the EFCC has tactically used the media to damage whatever reputations these ‘presumably-innocent-until-proven-guilty’ suspects have left, the same EFCC has chosen to ‘block’ the media from having access to these suspects to give them the same opportunity to engage in the media ‘kiss-and-tell’ war. Something is fishy… Fourth, coming down to the little we have heard, Turaki was able to exclaim that his supposed ‘loot’ went to fund the 3rd term and pointed fingers to an Obasanjo acolyte. The media instantly gave this acolyte’s assistant instant coverage to absolve his master. Turaki was shut off thereafter and the little we get to hear of him is ‘he is a weeping governor’. Something is fishy….. Fifth, the EFCC leaked confidential investigative reports (confessions) to the public through the media indicating that an aide of Kalu confessed to having being part of an investment spree. But surreptitiously examining his statement, he indicated that the companies were registered in 1998, a clear year before the elections took place. While the EFCC has not gone further to ask what month the registrations took place, one may for the benefit of this argument assume a year. It is known that Mr Kalu threw his hat in the election ring at the last minute and I don’t know if a year prior to this he had plans to empty the treasury into his accounts. I am sure during the course of court sessions, questions will be asked and we will know…. Something is fishy…. Sixth, the EFCC has proceeded to secure a freeze order on Kalu’s assets – quite interesting story indeed. The Police have said they cannot discharge the freeze order and this should be carried out by the agency which presses charges (in other words, the EFCC). Something here suggests the police are aware of something we are not aware of… Something is fishy…. Seventh, Mr Kalu was known to be a businessman prior to his foray into public office. Whether successful or not, I cannot tell. He was also known to be semi-illiterate, but in his illiteracy, he had immense goodwill with banks and financial institutions. He was also into manufacturing, heavy industry, shipping, and banking. During the eight years in government, it is possible (my emphasis) that his business flourished better that before he entered public office. It could be otherwise. I think in arranging 107 counts against one man which amounts to N3b way less than Turaki’s N20b or so on about 47 counts, the EFCC owes the public an explanation in court of how these 107-counts were arrived at (plus Turaki’s 47 counts). So far they have done a shallow PR job in leaking out confessional statements which have the desired effect of destroying ‘character’. They ought to have used the same medium to ‘leak out’ each of the 107 or 47 counts as well. All that is still grounded in secrecy. Now they have released another ‘news flash’ indicating that Mr Kalu had 59 accounts. So? If every business has an account, probably two as most businesses do, Mr Kalu ought to have about 118 accounts. Something is fishy…. Eight. The EFCC in its leaked ‘press release’ claim Mr Kalu operating his business is in direct contravention of the oath he swore to when he assumed office. Nice point! That’s about the most intelligent statement I have heard from Nuhu’s department lately. Now I hope this same logic (by extension) is applicable to Mr Obasanjo who by my last count ran at least a dozen businesses including his Presidential library which I am told is not owned by the Federal Government as we were made to believe, but is his private project. State funds were diverted to fund that project. Somebody tell me I am wrong please. Something is fishy…. Need I say more? Something is fishy indeed! The Dragon speaks....

ikechiji  # 10 | 26.07.2007 06:27

=Dragon;194930> The EFCC in its leaked ‘press release’ claim Mr Kalu operating his business is in direct contravention of the oath he swore to when he assumed office. Nice point! That’s about the most intelligent statement I have heard from Nuhu’s department lately. Now I hope this same logic (by extension) is applicable to Mr Obasanjo who by my last count ran at least a dozen businesses including his Presidential library which I am told is not owned by the Federal Government as we were made to believe, but is his private project. State funds were diverted to fund that project. Somebody tell me I am wrong please. Something is fishy…. Direct evidence - Andy Uba, a public servant on the payroll of the Nigerian government using undeclared money transported aboard the presidential jet to purchase equipment for OBJ farm, a privately-held farm. Was OBJ still running the farm in direct contravention of his oath of office? Who told Andy Uba what equipment to purchase? Why is a public servant being used for a private business?

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