Mariam Mariam
Two major scandals presently unfolding in Nigeria, will largely help to define the genuineness or otherwise of the commitment of the Yar’adua administration, to the flight against the deeply ingrained problem of corruption in our country. Last week, most Nigerian papers gave a glimpse into the report of the committee set up to examine one of the many controversial projects of the corrupt Obasanjo administration: the Charles Soludo-initiated, financed and Charles Soludo-led, African Finance Corporation (APC).
At the heat of the Obasanjo administration were some of the most devious schemes ever derived in the history of Nigeria, all calculated to fleece the Nigerian people, but almost always packaged with pretences at some altruistic purposes for the national good. This much we have severally argued in the past; from the dubious and unconstitutional process of privatization; the regime of import waivers; the concession of national assets; the oil blocks allocation; to the sale of federal government houses and so forth!
The most recent report of the Committee set up to investigate issues around the so-called African Finance Corporation, AFC, which the Soludo group “conceptualized as a private entity”, seem to have placed the contraption firmly amongst the many schemes of the Obasanjo regime that carry a huge question mark, if not about the stated objective which informed the setting up, but the practical ends which they served. It is therefore remarkable that at the end of its findings, the committee was unambiguous in its statement: THE COMMITTEE FINDS PROF. CHUKWUMA C. SOLUDO LIABLE FOR GROSS NEGLIGENCE, RECKLESSNESS AND GROSS ABUSE OF OFFICE”. This is very clear enough, and we shall come back to the report.
But let us refresh our minds about some related developments. On this page, a few weeks ago, I wrote a piece about the emergence of season of spin, lies and blackmail in Nigeria. When the investigation committee was set up, the Soludo spin machine went into an overdrive in the media. We were regaled with stories of allegations that some faceless people were on a witch hunt against the ‘cerebral’, and ‘hard working’ Charles Soludo, who has worked so ‘selflessly’ to give Nigeria’s banking industry a much needed shot in the arm. The spin doctors gave the impression that “the genius” Charles Soludo was being set up as a fall guy, by faceless elements from the North who wanted to take over his job as CBN governor to engage in a revanchist mission because of the banking consolidation which the North was said to have lost out from.
Ijeoma Nwogwugwu of THISDAY even went to the ridiculous extent of accusing Nigeria of never appreciating “it’s best” such as el-Rufai and Soludo (of course the same set!), who other countries and institutions were falling upon themselves to beg to work for them. But these “geniuses” chose to do Nigeria a favour and yet we were not a grateful bunch, blah! blah! blah!! But these were mischievous examples of spin as I had argued before. This is because Soludo and his ilk did not do Nigeria a favour; on the contrary! It is on record, that chaps who used to enter Abuja by night bus from the East in 1999 have now become some of the most visible individuals in the country today. Take Charles Soludo; he is one of the richest public servants in our country today, and as part of the “favour” he has done Nigeria, he is now said to be the proud owner of what was the official residence of the Governor of Nigeria’s Central Bank in Wuse II, Abuja. What an ingenious way to “do Nigeria a favour”!
But the spin doctors bought with huge sums of money on the pages of various Nigerian newspapers cannot blot out the truth. The very damaging report found that a lot went wrong with the use of the CBN funds in that AFC contraption: “it is heart-rendering that till date nothing realistic has been done with the funds invested in AFC, concerning its core objectives”. Nothing “apart from playing the money market around the globe…”
The committee also observed that “the AFC has not been able to compute the expenditure incurred to generate… income in order to net off and determine the amount payable to the CB/FGN. In view of this inconclusive and unhelpful state of affairs, the committee is of the opinion that Prof. Soludo and the CEO of the FC, Mr. Austine Omotoruwa should be PERSONALLY ACCOUNTABLE FOR THE DETERMINATION OF THE ACTUAL INTEREST THAT HAS ACCRUED TO THE CBN/FGN FROM THE INVESTMENT IN THE AFC, AND ENSURE ITS PROMPT PAYMENT”. Furthermore, the report said that its opinion above, “is premised on the way and manner the fund invested by CBN in AFC found its way and manner the fund invested by CBN in AFC found its way to UBA, New York and CitiBank, London only for it to be repatriated to Nigeria after a few weeks. THIS CONSTITUTES “ROUND TRIPPING” WHICH IS A SERIOUS CRIMINAL OFFENCE WITH ATTENDANT CONSEQUENCES UNDER THE MONEY LAUNDERING ACT. IT IS OUR VIEW THAT GOVERNMENT SHOULD TAKE APPROPIRATE ACTIONA GAINST PROF CHUKWUMA C. SOLUDO AND MR. AUSTINE OMOTORUWA WHO ARE INSTRUMENTAL TO THIS ACTION”.
It is also in the report that “the duo of Prof. Soludo and Mr. Omotoruwa were in BREACH OF DUE PROCESS BY TRANSFERRING THE INITIAL HUGE SUMS OF USD 750 million and USD143million in November, 2007 and March 2008 respectively our of Citibank, London and Uba New Yoke without the bene….. provals either by the CBN or the AFC. This being STRONGLY BELIEVED THAT GOVERNMENT SHOULT PROPRIATE ACTION AGAINST THE TWO OFFICE SURATE WITH THE GRAVITY OF THE BREACH”
Our last quotation from the report equally give increase to the way that Charles Soludo has operated as the mandate Bank, who took on a larger-than-life image, under the prot……. The lawless Obasanjo regime. It was a regime of monumental corruption; therefore, everybody went all out to feathere rest. “Professor Chukwuma Soludo authorized the first……. Sourced from the CBN in November, 2007. IT IS MIN….. THAT UP TILL April 2008 WHEN THIS COMMITTEE INSTITUTED BY THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT ON…. INVESTIGATE THE AFFAIRS OF AFC, PR… DELIBERATELY FAILED ….. THER THE PRESIDENT ……ERAL EXECUTIVE COUNCIL ……FICATION AS ROVIDED …..TION 3 OF THE TREAT……. PROCEDURE, etc)”ACT, ….L committee unambiguously stated Soludo’s action ”AMOUNTS ABUSE OF OFFICE”
This is the background to the las few months, when the defend Charles Soludo attempting to white, and tried to insult our intelligence about what amount of Soludo has been making for …….. grateful Nigeria! But even if the …… a tip of the iceberg of what happen we now know better. It is also manipulation and lobbying is Soludo’s skin. And that is Pro…. President Umaru Yar’adua has either to save Soludo’s skin, allegations from this report un… he moves fast to sack and …. Soludo and all those involved …..dal. there cannot be a meddle …. Issues that the committee has unearthed about the funding AFC. In sacking Charles Soludo, Malam Umaru Yar’adua to retrieve the CBN Governor’s residence that Charles himself so it reverts back as public property! How President handles this issue will give an indication of the real direct to take the anti-corruption fight in Nigeria.
The other issue in this elaborate network of corruption is the monumental scandal from the power sector. It was Umaru Yar’adua himself, in obvious consternation, that first that under Obasanjo, a sum of ten billion American dollars on efforts to ostensibly produce electricity. Later on, the House of Representatives informed the nation that was expended to deepen the regime of darkness under the ….. was in the neighbourhood of sixteen billion dollars.
DAILY TRUST newspapers of Tuesday, July 27, state that Liyel Imoke had visited Malam Umaru Yar’adua president\s protection against his likely arrest by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC)”. Liyel Imoke had beer …. That visit by the chairman and secretary of the ruling Party he could fool Nigerians, Imoke told the press that he was……. inform the president about the nullification of the election ,,,,,,,,,,,,, Court and to strategize for his re-election”.
The story took a different turn a few days later, when newspaper of Friday, July 25, 2008, reported that the …… fact aborted the effort of the EFCC to arres Liyel Imoke Tuesday, July 22, 2008! The report said that Liyel’s re………. surrounded by operatives of the EFCC, while “the ou………inside his bedroom making frantic calls to Obasanjo…. (Liyel Imoke ) leant that EFCC men were at his gate, began to make calls. He called Obasanjo and Obasanjo called Yar’adua, and a deal was sealed. Obasanjo commanded ……. The invasion. The President promptly compiled, Yar’adua under intense pressure to pleade his benefactor was said …. Minister of Justice and Attorney General of the Federation ……. Lously called Mrs. Farida Waziri, the EFCC boss, to call……………”
It is therefore a very testy time for Malam Umaru Yar’adua …. He does or does not do about Liyel Imoke and Charles Soludo …… clearest indications of his genuine intention in the struggle…….. tion in Nigerian. If he refuses to heed the suggestions which his regime set up in respect of AFC and Charles Soludo would know that the histrionic about “public declaration statements denouncing corruption are merely pitiable windmills. Similarly, if Liyel Imoke is allowed to go ………. Nigerians and rubbing salf into our ijuries, while all effort to rig him back into power, we can conclude that President has never been sincere about fighting corruption in the …….. see which”way he will move!
