Far deeper, and beyond, Edo State

Sonala Olumhense

No, it is not what just happened in Edo State, but where goeth Nigeria.  Twenty years ago, in August 2005, I published the article below.

What happened to…the 400 political and public office holders the Presidency said in January 2004 were being prosecuted by the Independent Corrupt Practices Commission. The source told the media the offences included embezzlement, misappropriation of funds, stealing, forgery, and failed contracts.

…the threat by the House of Representatives in January 2004 to summon former Head of State, General Abdulsalami Abubakar, to explain his role in the unexecuted contract for the repair of two aircraft for which $14.5m was collected in 1998 without a single aircraft repaired or delivered to the Air Force?

…the announcement last February that the Federal Government would establish 300 industries annually targeted at women? The Minister of Women Affairs and Youth Development, Obong Rita Akpan, said her ministry had budgeted substantially for the projects.

…the threat by President Olusegun Obasanjo in February 2004 at a meeting with members of the national panel on the New Partnership for Africa Development and the Federal Executive Council to sack any minister found to be corrupt in the conduct of government business. “You cannot have corruption and development sleeping together on the same bed,” he had said.

…the revelation in February by Ibrahim Abubakar of the 2003 Obasanjo re-election campaign team that the Peoples Democratic Party financed the bid with N1.5bn loan facility from an unnamed businessman?

…the report in February that the ICPC was trying 64 persons, including a former governor, on various charges of conspiracy, theft, bribery and inflation of contracts?

…the investigation of the “THE HARLIBURTON/TSKJ/NLNG” scandal by the House of Representatives in connection with the TSKJ consortium probe by the French and American governments of alleged payment of bribes to Nigerian government officials from a slush fund of $180m to secure the contract for the construction of Nigerian Liquefied Natural Gas Trains in late 1990, in connection with which British lawyer Jeffrey Tesler had admitted to French investigators that he had received about $150m?

…the allegation by the Conference of Political Parties in February that the Independent National Electoral Commission had embezzled N300m approved for the initial six political parties to conduct the last voter registration, money that was alleged to have been paid into the personal account of a top official of INEC?

…the federal government’s announcement, at the World Economic Forum in June 2004 through Mustafa Bello, the executive secretary of the Nigerian Investment Promotion Commission, that it was launching software to catch 419 perpetrators?

…the reported investigation by the Presidency of the alleged disbursement of N3.6bn by the Managing Director of Federal Mortgage Bank, Alhaji Tanimu Yakubu, of which N3bn was reportedly transferred to an undisclosed account with All States Trust Bank Plc on April 29, 2003?

…the 2002 Annual Audit Report of the National Assembly, which reportedly identified widespread and numerous cases of financial impropriety by senators and representatives, including the spending of $40,000 by two Senators as “miscellaneous”?

…the “leave Lagos State or see hell” warning to armed robbers by the new Commissioner of Police for Lagos State, Mr Israel Ajao, in June 2004?

…the alleged investigation ordered in June by President Olusegun Obasanjo, into the mismanagement of $100m federal government funds meant for the payment of outstanding debts owed our embassies and missions?

…the $460 million grant given by the United States last year to support Nigeria’s economic reforms, combat poverty and HIV/AIDS, and promote democracy?

…the July 2, 2004 warrant of arrest issued to the police to produce former governor of Osun State, Chief Bisi Akande, for his alleged role in the defrauding of the government of N126m while in office?

…the 75 senior customs officers suspended in July 2004 by the Comptroller-General of the Nigeria Customs Service, Mr Jacob Buba Gyang, for allegedly trying to export scrap metal valued at N450m through the Tin Can Island Port?

…the N164.47bn worth of assets—including seven aircraft, equipment and four subsidiaries belonging to Nigeria Airways Limited reported to be rotting away in Lagos, NAL having been liquidated by the government in May 2003.

…the billing software acquired by the defunct National Electric Power Authority last year for $500,000?

…the 130 indicted contractors directed by the Federal government in July 2004 to refund over N7bn? The government said it would begin the prosecution of some highly placed persons who abandoned Federal Government projects after collecting billions of naira in mobilisation fees between 1976 and 1998, resulting in the failure of such contracts. The government was also exploring the possibility of establishing a Special High Court that would speedily handle cases of failed contracts and related financial crimes.

…the implementation of the report of the Mustafa Bukar-led committee in July which investigated N96bn contracts awarded by the Nigerian Port Authority between 2001 and 2003, which allegedly indicted several top officials of, among others, contract-splitting and over-invoicing? Over 3000 contracts were involved, and Transport Minister, Abiye Sekibo, vowed, “There will be no sacred cow in the enforcement of the report of this committee.”

…the “fraud of gargantuan magnitude” reported by the Managing Director of the NPA, Chief Dapo Sarumi, in July, stating that of 29000 contracts awarded by the NPA in the two years before he assumed office in 2003, “none were found to be fraud-free,” and that he would “battle corruption headlong”?

…President Obasanjo’s allegation that a “government agency” had tried to defraud the Federal Government of €36m through the over-invoicing of a contract sum? Announcing the scam before the Public Procurement Reforms Programme and Public Sector Stakeholders Conference for senior public servants in Abujain in July, the President asked the Office of the Budget Monitoring and Price Intelligence Unit to watch out for his memo.

…the 40 innovations by Nigerian and local research institutes slated for commercialisation that the Minister of Science and Technology, Professor Turner Isoun, announced last July in the Federal Capital Territory?

…the Abuja land scam allegedly masterminded by one Mr. Success Amuchie in connection with which the EFCC named prominent Nigerians, including the Edo State Governor Lucky Igbinedion; former President of the Senate, Anyim Pius Anyim; former FCT Minister, Mohammed Abba-Gana; and the Deputy Leader of the Senate, Dr. Jonathan Zwingina, as likely beneficiaries?

…the investigation by the House of Representatives into the disbursement of the N130bn received from foreign donors between 2000 and 2004 to combat the Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS)?

…the 78 persons, including former aviation ministers and directors—indicted by the Justice Obiora Nwazota Judicial Panel of Inquiry into the activities of Nigeria Airways between January 1983 and December 1999 were declared wanted by the police on April 26 2004.

The panel had concluded that N54bn was mismanaged, looted or misappropriated, and recommended prosecution, ban from public office and refund of money by those indicted, and among those wanted by the police were former Managing Directors: Alhaji Jani Ibrahim, Capt. Mohammed Joji, Air Commodore Bernard Banfa, Capt. Bara Allwell-Brown and Air Vice Marshall Anthony Okpere (rtd); former ministers Maj. Gen. Olu Bajowa (rtd), AVM Patrick Koshoni (rtd), AVM Abdullahi Bello (rtd), Alabo Tonye Graham-Douglas and Capt. Benoni Briggs.

…the report that the liquidation of Nigeria Airways Limited had left the federal government with a liability of over N96bn, including payment of severance benefits of the workers and settlement of local and external debts.

…the decomposing bodies, skulls and other human body parts found in Okija, Anambra State shrines, one year ago, this week had the Anambra State Commissioner of Police, Mr Felix Ogbaudu, crying like a baby and his men vomiting?

…the legion of shrine priests arrested in connection with the Okija shrines during the famous police raid one year ago, and the pledge by the Force to speedily investigate the matter and bring the culprits book?

…the 10 registers allegedly seized from the Okija shrine priests containing the names of their privileged visitors, and the report of the federal high-level panel from Abuja that travelled to Anambra State early last August to investigate the shrines?

…the petition to President Obasanjo one year ago by representatives of the Mwagharul community of Mangu Local Government Area, Plateau State, against Deputy Senate President Senator Ibrahim Mantu that he took an active part in inflating the project from N1bn to N3bn, and in moving it from Dan Hausa to Langai?

…the claim by Employment, Labour and Productivity Minister, Alhaji Hassan Lawal, prior to the opening of last year’s Heads of Government’s summit on employment and poverty eradication in Quagadougou that no fewer than 89 million Nigerians (70.2% of the population) live below $1 a day?

…the top officials of the Directorate of Military Pensions, whom the Minister of State for Defence, Mr Rowland Oristejafor, said in September 2004 had been arrested for stealing N20bn of the N22bn the federal government budgeted for the payment of salary arrears, pensions and gratuity of military retirees in 2001?