The New Billion-Naira Game
By Sonala Olumhense

Billion. IT is becoming an increasingly prominent feature in our news headlines. But this is not Robert Mugabe's Zimbabwe, where annual inflation has risen by 2,200,000 per cent, leaving citizens with worthless sackloads of dollar bills.

Instead, it is Nigeria, where it has become fashionable for governments, its agencies, and businesses to speak in billions. Transactions are now increasingly by the billions, and less often in millions. At a certain level, this suggests prosperity. Our oil receipts are in the billions. So are the receipts from non-oil sources, such as the Sani Abacha account, and the savings from our external debt relief deal of three years ago.

Officially, Nigeria is awash with money, and it would seem that the nation's Accountant-General could use a new calculator. Here now, are 10 randomly-chosen reports from last week:

• The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) was looking for the former Chairman of the Board of the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA), Chief Olabode George, over an alleged N84billion worth of financial improprieties recorded during his tenure.

• At the National Judicial Institute, the EFCC said the suspended management allegedly concealed a total of N1.b billion of its unspent funds in 2007. The EFCC recovered N1.5b from the same management.

• On Monday, the EFCC charged a Lagos billionaire businessman and Chairman of the Board of NICON, Mr. Jimoh Ibrahim, with N1bn fraud, accusing him of forgery, altering, impersonation and obtaining money by false pretences.

• Two days later, Mr. Ibrahim presented bank drafts worth N25bn for the re-capitalisation of NICON Insurance Plc and Nigerian Reinsurance Plc., towards "honouring" an agreement with the government and to demonstrate the "integrity" of his business venture.

• The Federal Government announced it was cancelling N37b worth of health centre projects hurriedly awarded in the final days of President Olusegun Obasanjo's government; the awards had not followed follow due process.

• The House of Representatives asked the police to explain N1.2 billion it paid to consultants to handle the online recruitment of personnel; applicants paid N2,000 each to obtain police recruitment forms, an exercise by which the NPF sought to raise N2 billion.

• The Ibadan Elders Forum wanted to know what Governor Adebayo Alao-Akala of Oyo State did with the N27bn he received last May from the Excess Crude Account and Paris Club debt relief; the bonanza having arrived after the budget had been prepared. The demand followed the report by the EFCC that in 2006 while he was Acting Governor of the state for 11 months, Alao-Akala misapplied the sum of N1bn.

• SEVEN political parties sued President Umaru Musa Yar'Adua, asking for N300billion in special damages, among others, for their unlawful exclusion from his Government of National Unity.

• The Group Managing Director of the Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), Abubakar Lawal Yar'Adua, admitted that the corporation had paid N1.4 billion to militants in the Niger Delta in the two months before they allowed the corporation to repair a damaged oil facility in the area.

• The House of Representatives yesterday discovered that between 2003 and 2008, government ministries, departments and agencies failed to remit up to N1.5 trillion belonging to the Federal Government to the Federation Account.

As I have said, these samples come from the past week alone. It does seem old-fashioned now think in terms of millions of Naira. Fewer contracts are being awarded in the millions.

What is strange is that despite this flood of funds, Nigeria persists in failing to change or develop. Our country remains among the Top-20 of the poorest nations on earth. Our citizens still die for the worst of reasons: road crashes that should never have been; bad water that should never have been; carbon monoxide poisoning as we struggle to use broken generators.

And, of course, it is easy to see that fewer thieves in the "right" circumstances would now steal by the million. There is no former governor being tried or expected to be tried, for stealing millions of anything. It seems that our greed has multiplied, quickly.

This may be the greatest question of the Yar'Adua Era. If Yar'Adua is the rule-of-law president, and he has genuine affection for what is right and proper, what is responsible for the contradiction between the amazing resources at his disposal, and our rampaging poverty? If Yar'Adua has such distaste for injustice, why are there such questionable people never far from his impeccable agbada?

Keeping that in mind, I will close with another story.

About 10 days ago, a Lagos court sentenced a man, Danladi Usman, to 690 years imprisonment for fraud.

The EFCC had brought Usman and his accomplices: Emmanuel Imohiosan, Adewale Balogun and Valentine Nwogu before Judge Morenike Obadina of the Ikeja High Court. Between them, they had in 2003 defrauded some individuals and companies of about N26 million.

Imohiosan got 605 years in jail; Balogun, 600; and Nwogu, 420. Each of the men would actually spend about 10 years behind bars because the sentences on the various charges will run concurrently, beginning September 2004 when the men were arraigned.

I like Judge Obadina's spirit, and it will be interesting to see what happens should the EFCC take people like former Governors James Ibori or Lucky Igbinedion before her.

Or when she looks up from the bench, and sees the flamboyant Patience Jonathan, the wife of the Vice-President of Nigeria in the dock. Let us remember that the EFCC claims it is now attacking its high-profile cases.

The rule of law is not difficult to preach. But it is in the availability or non-availability of justice with neither favour nor flinching that our future will be determined. I have no doubt that Nigeria's billions will be counted, one way or another, perhaps in blood. We must learn from the situation in the Niger Delta.

If Nigeria's political elite cannot summon the discipline to do the right thing by our people, our people must stop playing the spectator, and fight for themselves.

sonala.olumhense@gmail.com

Robot  Villager

# 1 The New Billion-Naira Game By Sonala Olumhense ...Read the full article. Posted by Robot| 27.07.2008 02:14

aringaranso  Villager

# 2 Quite spot on SO, Billions serves the purpose well, Pleases the 10 percenters and 20 percenters Makes the government look serious, whereas they are not or how do we explain the N16 billion Darkness Project, or the N200 billon earmarked for roads that went missing may be it makes them appear generous generous to themselves,not to the masses OBJ library launch generated billions Aso-villa spends 1.5 billion on annual refreshments abi monthly Emirs collect billions from their subjects http://http://www.nigeriavi... The Ubas demanded 3billion from Ngige Among the elite, The billion talks continues, Among the masses, the bill talks continues, what an irony, God please save us from ourselves Posted by aringaranso| 27.07.2008 06:18

akuluouno  Villager

# 3 Dear SO, The billioniarisation of looting was the second stage in the attempt by the elites to numb our consciousness in their crass attempts to loot the nation blind. The first stage was millioniarisation which was conducted successfully following the first oil boom. What does billioniarisation entail, make Nigerians beliieve that to embezzle in billions is now th new benchmark so that if one does away with anything less. Thus during declaration of assets you up your ante to a billion or more like Andy Uba, UMYA and GJ. Anything less you will shortchange not only yourself but the anticipated loot you are going after. The latest fad is the encouragement of frivolous petitions against your selection, quash the selection after a year or two or three in office, then stage new elections and win and begin a fresh mandate. See Imoke at it. I sorry for Nigeria, Nigerians ans whatever remains if any by 2014. Talk of billions, it was C Achebe who while trying to put a million into perspective, explained that it is not yet a million days since Our Lord and Personal Saviour, ascended from planet earth.:redface::redface::redface::redface: Posted by akuluouno| 27.07.2008 08:22

Omowa2  Villager

# 4 We think we know the root cause of Nigeria's Billionmania. It has to do with conversion or don't you all think so. It is so simple take for instance buying ordinary 200 pounds you need about 48,000 Naira. So you can imagine what the children of we the rich need in one day, then in one month and then in the 4 years our children are in universities here in America or in the UK. If you folks do not want we your leaders to steal that much then do something about the cost of gas and the cost of fees for international students, and also the payment for immigration (a la SEVIS). On another matter we hope you all will attend the conference we politicians are planning to organize for those who abuse us the most. I tell you mr. S.O you are not qualified because you mix yours with humor and we like that. Tell the other writers to apply quickly but to qualify you must have written a billion words no more no less (especially if you love Fuji Garbage). This message is from the Ministry of Go slowly, department of running on the same spot...approved by King I be Posted by Omowa2| 27.07.2008 10:51

bobokite  Villager

# 5 The annoying part is that when the looting is about entering into trillions, they change the currency sign from # to $ to reduce the figure.. lol!!:lol::lol::lol: Posted by bobokite| 27.07.2008 11:44

K_Station  Villager

# 6 =Robot;4295075936>If Nigeria's political elite cannot summon the discipline to do the right thing by our people, our people must stop playing the spectator, and fight for themselves. This is truly the way forward for Nigeria. Posted by K_Station| 27.07.2008 14:57

Omowa2  Villager

# 7 =K_Station;4295076069>This is truly the way forward for Nigeria. Did I read you well? Fight? Fight who if I may ask? Who will lead that fight. We better learn to organize and not agonize. Writing is one, getting the generality of Nigerians to read is another and then getting them to take action. We can make a change in Nigeria's history if each one of us can empower those who are ready to take the lashes and the bullets including pellets. Assure them that you are there for them and watch the people demand for their rights...over to you K_Station Posted by Omowa2| 27.07.2008 16:28

Anambra Movement  Villager

# 8 =akuluouno;4295075980>Dear SO, Thus during declaration of assets you up your ante to a billion or more like Andy Uba, UMYA and GJ. : Andy Uba declared N3.3 trillion naira ( $30 billions US DOLLARS not Zimbabwe dollars)!! if common house boy is worth this much, how much his "oga" go worth? Please iyabo, stop stealing "chicken change i.e N10 million. kill baba so you inherit his trillion of dollars... Posted by Anambra Movement| 28.07.2008 03:46

bobokite  Villager

# 9 =Anambra Movement;4295076216>Andy Uba declared N3.3 trillion naira ( $30 billions US DOLLARS not Zimbabwe dollars)!! if common house boy is worth this much, how much his "oga" go worth? Please iyabo, stop stealing "chicken change i.e N10 million. kill baba so you inherit his trillion of dollars... Do you really think Andy Uba has that much? Or don’t you think he might have declared in Advance so that by the time he completes his tenure he will be worth that amount and people will not question him because they we already knew he declared $30billion some years back. Most Nigerian governors for all I care do advance declaration… which is declaring what they will have in 4 years time. Posted by bobokite| 28.07.2008 10:11

Anambra Movement  Villager

# 10 =bobokite;4295076311>Do you really think Andy Uba has that much? Or don’t you think he might have declared in Advance so that by the time he completes his tenure he will be worth that amount and people will not question him because they we already knew he declared $30billion some years back. He bought a house for N2 billion in abuja. we don't care if he has it or not or whether he slept with baba. all we know, HE WILL NEVER RULE ANAMBRA STATE! NEVER! Posted by Anambra Movement| 28.07.2008 11:55