09 Nov 2006 |
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THE SCANDAL OF MONEY SMUGGLING ON A PRESIDENTIAL PLANE: MATTERS ARISING Obviously rattled by the revelations in the media that the American justice system has found an aide and political ally of Nigeria’s dictator guilty of cash smuggling bordering on money laundering, the Aso Rock tyrant and his associates are reacting in a manner that is suggestive of a willingness on their part to hedge and basically play their usual inane pranks that are indicative of a refusal to own up to their failings. Yet, the more they struggle to embellish the truth surrounding this scandal involving the illegal shipment of money by Andy Uba on a presidential plane in which his boss was a passenger, the more one realizes that the Obasanjo aide may have through his misconduct opened a Pandora’s box in our difficult world of political leadership and the common good. It is conceivable that what has been revealed so far is the tip of the iceberg. A thorough investigation initiated by the National Assembly into the matter should, amongst other things, determine to what extent that otherwise hallowed symbol of Nigerian sovereignty and constitutional order, namely, the presidency, has been used and abused for mostly selfish purposes by those charged with preserving its sanctity. There are those who make the compelling point that the cash smuggling scandal, or simply ‘Ubagate’, has thrown up a lot of critical issues one of which is the continuing and unprecedented desecration of the Nigerian presidency and its implication for Nigeria and Nigerians. For example, the perception of Nigeria's presidential planes being used for smuggling runs around the globe is at best worrisome. It should be considered as very bad publicity for our collective image. Also, this scandal involving an Obasanjo confidant – one that is said to be very close to Kabiyesi – and the reaction to it by another sidekick of the tyrant, Nuhu Ribadu of the EFCC have once more called into question the purported anti-corruption campaign of the regime. In its indictment, American justice has stated that prior to the time Andy Uba was caught illegally transporting money into the USA, the former aide to Obasanjo ‘on Domestic Matters’ was reportedly under surveillance. He was suspected of involvement in money-related fraudulent activities that are not clearly spelt out, although it is insinuated that it may have to do with suspicious transfers of money into bank accounts in America. And for EFCC’s Ribadu to refuse to investigate Uba and his suspicious transactions by hiding behind the flimsy excuse that he has not been formally informed by the American authorities speaks volumes. Importantly, the fact that the Americans are basically saying that they doubt the legality of the source of the money smuggled into their country on a presidential plane used by Obasanjo is enough reason for any relevant government agency in Nigeria to want to get to the bottom of the case, so to speak. Incidentally, the indictment of Andy Uba contains, amongst other items, a direct reference to a substantial part of the smuggled funds having been used for the purchase of equipment for Obasanjo’s commercial farms. This critical dimension may in fact explain, at least in part, the cowardly and nauseating refusal by Nuhu Ribadu to investigate the matter. Deep-down in his heart, Ribadu probably knows that he and his political master have no credibility whatsoever as far as fighting corruption is concerned. Nevertheless, Nigerians must refuse to be taken for granted by insisting that symmetry be adopted in the so-called anti-corruption crusade. In the meantime, we should canvass for the determination by all well-meaning citizens and Nigeria’s friends around the world to double their efforts at exposing and shaming any robbers of the commonweal. Adding insult to injury, Obasanjo’s mouthpieces are vacuously accusing the Atiku Abubakar camp of being responsible for the travails of Andy Uba and by extension his boss, Baba Aremu at the hands of the American legal authorities. These people don’t seem to get it. They are so consumed with pettiness that they conveniently ignore the reality that the cash smuggling saga is an issue that is in the public domain, that is to say that every Tom, Dick and Harry can access the information related to the case. Let us pause here and just marvel at the speed with which Obasanjo who has usually resisted any pressure to get rid of under-performing or incompetent hands or associates has moved to temporarily withdraw Andy Uba from the glare of adverse publicity without any apparent form of hesitation whatsoever. I use the term “withdraw” advisedly for a probable conclusion is that Andy Uba agreed with his master who was reportedly in far-away Asia at the time this sordid tale started to feature prominently in the media that in order to limit the damage, it is tactically wiser for the disgraced aide to lie low for the time being. But let nobody be fooled. Sooner or later, Andy Uba and his boss will be called upon to render accounts. And indeed for Uba, the time for reckoning may come sooner than expected. This leads us to the next matter, namely, that of the suitability of Andy Uba’s candidacy for the governorship of Anambra state in the 2007 elections. In what should be deemed an insidious attempt at the rehabilitation of Obasanjo’s alter-ego, one has of late witnessed what is tantamount to a media campaign to sell Andy Uba as the anointed – meaning imposed – governor of Anambra, come 2007. The business man, Alhaji Dangote, for instance, has reportedly called on the Anambra people to consider the Obasanjo acolyte as the best material for them next year. When I talk of rehabilitation in relation to Andy Uba, I am referring to his role – that is his action or inaction – in almost seven years of the systematic, primitive and criminal orchestration of mayhem inflicted on the state and Nigeria in general by forces that share kinship, political or otherwise, with the likes of Andy Uba and his ally, the ‘big oga’ of Aso Rock. As I have mentioned elsewhere, it is futile to want to draw a distinction between the Uba siblings - Andy and Chris - regarding their respective roles in the violence and general depravity which have been on display in Anambra since 1999. In many key respects, Andy Uba can be said to be more sinister than his younger brother. While the latter may be considered a tough-talking tout willing to take to the mean streets of Nigeria's thuggery-infested politics, Dr. Andy Uba, for his part, is seen as the one offering the intellectual/moral(?) prop or lack of dissuasive caution that has been the sustaining fabric of much of the destruction one has witnessed in Anambra and probably in other parts of Nigeria today. How then does one legitimately imagine that the aspirations of the people of Anambra in the next eight or so years should be tied to the perverse ambition of an individual in the mould of Andy Uba? If the Uba clan had really been interested in the development of Anambra, they would have opted for peace and tranquility. They would have favoured the rule of law over gangsterism and the brutal desecration of democracy. In the past seven years, havoc, mischief and impunity have been synonymous with the Ubas and their sponsor at Aso Rock. Those telling Anambrarians that there is no alternative to Andy Uba for the 2007 elections are invariably showing their disdain for the electorate. They are saying that there is no viable alternative in Anambra and perhaps elsewhere to the behemoth so erroneously referred to as the People's Democratic Party (PDP). This reminds one of the pro-regime propaganda which claims that all the other political parties are in a "comatose" state and that those seeking elective offices outside the confines of the PDP's corrupt framework do not stand a chance. Well, at least in Anambra, APGA proved the poll-rigging PDP machinery wrong in 2003. It seems to me that in Anambra, in short in Nigeria, what we should rightly be concerned with is not a rehabilitation of the very individuals that have ruined their respective states and by extension the country in the last seven years. We should instead work toward the respect of the will of the people in future elections by not giving the impression that those who rig, cheat, organize mayhem against the citizenry can be allowed another decade or thereabouts in the vain hope that they will turn our collective fortunes around despite their terrible track record. And part of working toward the respect of the will of the people at all times should involve the pledge by Nigerians wherever they may be to undertake a purposeful and sustained demystification of those bent on causing our collective perdition. One way we can do that is through the repudiation of anointed successors whether in Anambra or in other parts of the country. Importantly also, we must undertake the denunciation as well as the exposure in the media of the misdeeds of Nigeria’s reckless tin gods. Those who have exposed the latest failing of the scandal-plagued Obasanjo regime do indeed deserve accolades from fellow citizens. As for the tyrant and his foot-soldiers, their puerile attempts to intimidate or gag journalists through the dictator’s so-called “personal legal counsel on international matters” should be condemned as a needless waste of the Nigerian tax payer's money. It is pathetic and irresponsible. As for Saharareporters.com, they deserve special mention and commendation. Together with the rest of the press in the diaspora much of which is Internet-based, they are breaking new grounds and in the process helping sustain the morally-conscious dimension of the Nigeria-related media. When the history of the struggle for the enthronement of Nigerian democracy is written, a prominent place will be reserved for the courageous role of the overseas axis of that media. But we cannot afford to be complacent. Vigilance is de rigueur. The tyranny which is currently exerting a vicious stranglehold on the Nigerian polity is desperate. As the crimes and atrocities of its main actors come back to haunt them, we as citizens must insist that there be consequences. The demystification of Obasanjo and his allies should be pursued to its logical conclusion. The likes of the Ubas, Obasanjo, Bode George, El-Rufai, Nuhu Ribadu, Anenih, Mantu and their supporters cannot be allowed to continue with their ruination of Nigeria's constitutional order.
Aonduna Tondu New York.
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