abdulraheem
One of the many ways that Malam Umar Yar ‘Adua has endeared himself to Nigerians over the past six months, has been in the manner that he has tried to reverse the patently fraudulent aspects of the privatization policies of the disgraced despot, Olusegun Obasanjo. Obasanjo was brazen in the unconstitutional manner that he off-loaded our national patrimony to himself and his cronies. Arguably, the worst of these cases was the so-called privatization of NITEL, Nigeria’s strategic telecommunication asset. Obasanjo and his gang deliberately refused to fund development processes in NITEL, because a strategic decision had been taken to sell the huge conglomerate. So the company which was paying dividends to government up to the eve of the evil regime of Obasanjo was suddenly declared to be worthless. I have no illusions about the amount of corruption, wastage, sabotage, theft and inefficiency which characterized NITEL. But the Obasanjo gang was even more criminal in the manner they decided to deliberately ruin the company. We all remember how Nasir el-Rufai, as head of BPE arrogantly imposed PENTASCOPE on the company; that controversial outfit called PENTASCOPE did the hatchet jot of draining the resources of NITEL and gradually reduced it into a near worthless outfit. It was in that decrepit state, that a propaganda onslaught was launched about how useless it had become, and the need to sell it was then given a justification. Obasanjo’s purpose was served, when together with a group of cronies who had cobbled together another controversial body called TRANSCORP, all the rules were bent by the BPE, under Irene Chigbue, to ensure that NITEL was sold- and sold to Obasanjo and his clique of cronies! I have recalled this background today, in the light of reports which came out in the media this week that the Federal Government was to review the sale of NITEL. A closed door meeting was held of “stakeholders” (as if all Nigerians don’t have an interest in what becomes of our prized national asset!), including the Ministry of Communications, BPE and the Senate Committee on Communications. It is heart warming that the meeting “noted that since NITEL was the nation’s gateway in the communication sector, it should not be allowed to die”. Furthermore, they observed that Obasanjo’s “Transcorp had not substantially implemented most of the post-acquisition plans and agreements…. There is imperative need to look into the memorandum and articles of association and details of contract agreement between BPE and Transcorp over NITEL and Mtel …. In the interim, government should revisit the exercise and as it affects NITEL to foreclose further deterioration of NITEL assets”. The committee’s communiqué went further to state what Nigerians have always known that “NITEL had sufficiently trained personnel who could turn the establishment around”. Of course, patriotic Nigerians had emphasized the potentials of NITEL right form the beginning, as well as its strategic value to several facets of our national life. But those determined to implement the criminal and unconstitutional process of privatization could not be bothered; and at the forefront of the gang of privatization was the disgraced despot himself, Olusegun Obasanjo, who brazenly combined with a set of cronies to sell the company to themselves! But for me the more unbecoming aspect of the story which brokethis week was the intervention of Irene Chigbue, the Director General of BPE. She now agrees that “Transcorp failed to live up to its responsibility” according to THE PUNCH newspaper of Tuesday, 20th November, 2007. Irene Chigbue admitted further that “we know that they have not lived up to expectation, that is the truth of the matter (HEAR! HEAR!!) …We are more than embarrassed by what NITEL eventually became, we are embarrassed by the fact that Transcorp, after they took over, could not pay the $250 million”. THE PUNCH newspaper reported that Irene Chigbue “added that the investors were insincere in their estimation of their capacity”. She even offered a dose of humility by adding that “We (BPE under her leadership!) evaluated the investors based on what we saw. We are human”. I think given the confession above, Irene Chigbue should really have resigned, if she were honourable, or should be sacked immediately from heading BPE! The same woman who arrogantly defended the sale of NITEL to Transcorp when Obasanjo ruled the roost, and illegally sold 75 percent, not 51 percent, of the company has suddenly discovered that Transcorp was “insincere in their estimation of their capability”. Her BPE did not see that at the time they were deciding to sell NITEL to Obasanjo and his Transcorp mates? She also said “We evaluated the investors based on what we saw”. What did she see? Obasanjo’s uncomely visage or what? Irene Chigbue owes us full disclosure about what really transpired with NITEL’S sale and other acts of privatization; because her patently absurd confessions about what happened with NITEL’S privatization give an indication of a deep seated level of murk in the agency she heads! Or have we forgotten that BPE has the dubious task of selling what belongs to the Nigerian people, to a few individuals such as the disgraced despot Olusegun Obasanjo and his cronies? Irene Chigbue should be made to give full account before being thrown out of that BPE job. Period.
