 At the recently concluded 16th International AIDS Conference held in Toronto, Canada, I met, for the first time, as part of a working group, the richest man in the world, Bill Gates. Convivial he was, when he commanded the stage, it was an exercise to behold, reeked in unpretentiousness and mystifying modesty. There were no visible security agents looming zealously, no retinue of aides, adjutants and auxiliaries tripping all over themselves and certainly no fleet of cars waiting copiously outside the conference venue. The world's richest man was unadorned and unvarnished in appearance with a plain clear-cut manifest that delivered him in a run-of-the-mill disposition. Unaware that the man was already in the meeting hall, I was expecting his arrival to be decked in the usual rumpus that accompany such rich personalities when I was kindly informed that he arrived in simplicity and was already seated waiting for the moderator to begin the meeting. When I looked in his direction, there he was; all $46.5 billion of him soaked in modesty, purpose and buoyant in a measured countenance. When he addressed the twenty thousand plus attendees, his speech was freighted with hope, inspiration and comfort to the world's destitute and those ravaged by the cadaverous infirmity. There was a flounce about him that struck a sanguine cord.
At the end of his speech, the retiring Microsoft Chairman pledged a whopping $500 million to combat the disease to a rousing and consummate applause. And it was well deserved. Gates and his wife Melinda have been the most ardent philanthropists in the world. Their efforts at poverty alleviation, education and the fight against AIDS in Africa and beyond have endeared many to this couple. His endeavor is borne out of an indubitable and an unfeigned concupiscence to ennoble and apotheosize humanity, to leave these earthly prisms in a better and saner condition. Recently, the media reported his involvement in the green laptop project invented by Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) Math professor to enable children in developing countries gain an early acquaintance of computer technology. It's a dexterous and adroit endeavor reeking of meritorious mention for the Gates to be personally involved in many humanitarian efforts. This meeting stirred me in thought to Nigerian (and African) billionaires who, by contrast, are in a world of their own, tin-gods, of sorts, reeling in knee-deep avidity and self-amplification in their insatiable praxis to ravish in reckless aggrandizement and sublimation. To gain access to them, one has to first defeat the Roman army; even then, there would be further formidable obstacles. To date, none of Nigeria's thieving billionaires has admitted in public his billionaire status even though it is of public knowledge. There is a legitimate reason for this; unlike Gates whose source of wealth is well known by the government (Internal Revenue Service) and the general public; Nigerian billionaires continue to deny the existence of their stolen billions. For those betrayed by their fecund, palatial and luxuriant lifestyles, they are forced to fabricate and fictionalize their source of wealth and attribute it to wise investment, renting of houses, luck and the authorship of books. In 2005 when the media broke the news of Vice President Atiku Abubakar’s $1.4 million mansion in Potomac, Maryland, the vice president, as emblematic of Nigerian politicians, denied ownership of the edifice. But when confronted with irrefutable evidence from the City of Potomac, he reluctantly owned up and left the rest to his boys to defend. Buba Marwa, the former Lagos State military administrator, has also towed this line; he once stated that he made his billions from authorship of a book. Indeed! Which book, The Way to Heaven? Even the world's famous authors would have to be credited with authorship of hundreds, if not thousands of books to become billionaires. Incapable even with their stolen funds to sober in commiseration, incapable of human indemnity, recompense and quittance, the Nigerian billionaire would rather be doused in voluminous vaunting of his ill-gotten wealth than to engage in humanitarian endeavors. Just look at former head of state, Ibrahim Babangida and his 50-bedroom villa on the hills of Minna. Here is a bewildering prospect; a general in a third world army earning enough money to build a $50 million mansion in his home state upon retirement. Here is a further bewildering prospect; a general whose annual salary never eclipsed $15,000 is able to purchase a private jet. And if one may ask - for what humanitarian project is Babangida noted for? Except “embezzlement and mismanagement” can be classified as a humanitarian projects, I am afraid, the answer is none. Philanthropic endeavors elude Nigerian billionaires, leaders and politicians as the onus continues to be the agglomeration of mansions, exotic cars, private jets and the ostentatious display of same. When Dr. Chuba Okadigbo, the late senate president, had a chance at government money, he did not build hospitals in his constituency of Anambra, but rather, he purchased thirty-two (32) cars, none of which, to knowledge, was interred with him. His successors, Wabara, is said to own a million dollar mansion in New York City. When Abacha had the same chance, he did not give soft loans to Nigerians to start businesses, but rather, he decided to improve the Swiss economy and enrich some Indian prostitutes. When disgraced Bayelsa governor had a chance to make his mark on history, he redirected the marks to his stomach with a tummy-tuck while his people wallowed in poverty. And former transportation minister in Shagari's administration, Umaru Dikko, has not been heard from since he ended up in Buhari's crate with $2 billion of Nigeria's money in tow. With over $400 billion stolen by Nigerian leaders, there ought to be a buzz of charitable contributions coming from this bunch – why not? After all, isn't it the peoples' money in the first place? At the aforementioned conference, former U.S. president, Bill Clinton, was also a featured speaker. The two "Bills" and other distinguished personalities threw their weight behind various initiatives to combat the malady destroying families in Africa, etc. But heavens forbid that such noble endeavors, such fine exertions, such rewarding undertakings be the rallying mantra of Nigerian billionaires, leaders and politicians; they are well too busy pilfering, filching and fleecing the country. They are too entrenched in finding invective ways to launder, hide and checkmate the system. A few days ago, it was reported that Babangida, Atiku and Buhari were locked in a "crucial" meeting in Abuja to counter the alleged plot by the presidency to frustrate their presidential ambitions. Why is it that they never hold “crucial” meetings about the state of insecurity in the country, about creating jobs, about improving the literacy rate in the north and the rest of the country, about ridding the country of corruption and improving the lives of Nigerians? When will they hold “crucial” meetings to address these issues? It would be productive if such progressive topics were discussed; but no, just more ways to circumvent the system and institute disorder. I have always wondered, perhaps, too much, about the colony of beggars that litter the streets of the nation and what Nigerian billionaires are doing to uplift the destitute. I dare say that these big men suffer from a goodly dose of languor inebriated by rapacity and that explains the dearth of moral advancement and solicitude for human endeavors. Throughout the land, AIDS continues to harrow its victims, four (4) million Nigerians have HIV/AIDS, motherless babies home operate with very little funds, but the nation's billionaires cannot be bothered. In contrast, every year, talk show host and richest black woman in the world, Oprah Winfrey, gives away millions of dollars to charity. Her generosity knows no bounds. Two years ago, in a demonstration of munificence, she surprised each member of her audience, two hundred and seventy-six (276) in all, with brand new cars. Her contributions to various charitable organizations, including the United Negro College Fund, are just too numerous to mention. A few years ago, she spent time in southern Africa where she sponsored kids, paid teachers' salaries for three years and positively changed the lives of many young people. Even as Warren Buffett, the world's second richest man joins forces with Bill Gates to fight AIDS, Nigerian (African) billionaires continue to beholden to material entrapments, evil mechanization and harebrained treaties. They carry on without a care in the world and at the end, they die (or would die) miserable deaths. Zaire's Mobutu died hopelessly from a cancerous corrosion of his manhood in spite of being richer than his country. And where is Abacha now? His excesses were so unbearable that God in His infinite wisdom had to intervene and extinguish his lights. In the end, his body was unceremoniously dumped into a hurriedly dug hole without his stolen billions and with no credible soul to witness. I mentioned once in one of my write-ups on British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) that nothing short of a thorough assessment of past failings and a resultant expurgation of society's pollutants would save the country from its moral crisis. I state it here again, that anything short of this effort would be an exercise in profligacy, if not prodigality. _______________________________________ Dr. Phil Tam-Al Alalibo writes from Virginia and can be reached at alalibo@gmail.com
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