When then candidate Muhammadu Buhari made his now famous statement “if we don’t kill corruption, corruption will kill Nigeria” in the course of his campaign for the presidency earlier this year, not a few Nigerians agreed and silently wished that the former Head of State triumph at the April 14 presidential election.
And when it came to pass that the candidate of the then opposition All Progressives Congress (APC) party was the victor in the election, the whole nation, save a few, heaved a sigh of relief that the 16 years of unbridled corruption under the “largest political party in Africa” the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has finally been terminated. And to a great and better future for Nigeria they looked when Mr Muhammadu Buhari mounted the saddle on May 29, this year, taking over from Dr Goodluck Jonathan as President and Commander-In-Chief.
A President Buhari at the helm is seen not by a few as signaling not only the beginning of the end for corruption and impunity in the country but also a rebirth for a giant of a nation that has been on all fours since inception.
The fight against corruption Nigerians expect would now be given a sharp teeth with the two main anti-corruption agencies, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and Independent Corrupt Practices and other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) in vigorous pursuit of corrupt elements in our society. And the two agencies have seemingly been up to the task, pursuing their assignments without fear or favour. The government, meaning the presidency, we are made to believe, has also been working behind the scene with core operatives of the immediate past regime to secretly refund public funds they have stolen from our common purse, to prevent prosecution and punishment. Good. But we should also be told who these people are, if only to shame them.
All these are gladdening to hear and Nigerians are beginning to not only hope for the best, but also feeling the best. The bad boys are being dealt with, we all seem to agree. Kudos to EFCC and ICPC. But what of the Code of Conduct Bureau and its twin agency, the Code of Conduct Tribunal, what are they up to? Have they been sleeping? Not really. Last week, the CCB and CCT entered the fray and all hell has been let loose since then. I hope you know what I am talking about. In case you are still in the dark, recall that a little over a week ago, the Bureau dragged Senate President, Bukola Saraki before the Code of Conduct Tribunal on a 13-count charge bordering on false declaration of asset. The president of the National Assembly and third in line to Nigeria’s presidency narrowly escaped being docked as his lawyers cleverly approached a Federal High Court to challenge the CCT. Though the Tribunal is also fighting back, issuing a bench warrant for the arrest of the SP, the matter clearly presents the sternest test to date to the Buhari administration fight against corruption.
Senator Saraki is the first big fish to be entangled in this anti corruption web and it remains to be seen how the matter would be treated. The allegations are no doubt weighty, but mere allegations they remain until the man is proven guilty. For now he is innocent of all the charges.
But while the matter is best left for the judiciary to handle, the political fallout from Saraki’s arraignment is as interesting as the matter itself. Expectedly, Nigerians, not the least, members of the ruling All Progressives Congress are sharply divided on the matter. While some see it as a move in the right direction to cleanse the stable of corruption, sympathizers of the Senate President are seeing it as a political vendetta against Saraki as punishment for defying his party to contest the presidency of the Senate and also getting a member of the opposition on board as his deputy.
Considering the frosty relationship between President Buhari and Senator Saraki since the Senate presidency election and the division it generated within the leadership of the APC, it is very difficult not to believe the Saraki supporters, while at the same time their assertion is very difficult to prove. And now that the presidency has distanced itself from the travail of Saraki in the hands of the CCB and CCT, it becomes more difficult to pin the matter on President Buhari. But this is politics, anything is possible. Did I hear you say CHANGE?
While the APC people are bickering over the matter, the PDP is expectedly licking its lips over the development, accusing the president and his party of political witch hunt in its anti corruption war, conveniently ignoring the fact that the monumental corruption that we are talking of in Nigeria today took place under PDP’s watch. Let’s put that aside for now.
While the politicians from both sides could be excused for holding different views on the matter, what is perhaps surprising is the position of the leadership of the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) on the matter. Over the weekend in Abuja, NANS president Tijani Sheu teamed up with the Director General of a political association called Heritage Group and threatened to protest Saraki’s arraignment and trial at foreign embassies in the federal capital. Ironically, the same Sheu had on September 2 led a group of Nigerian students to the presidential villa in Abuja to pledge support for Buhari’s anti-corruption campaign. So what is he up to or rather, in what direction is he leading Nigerian students? I don’t want to read too much into this but suffice to say that the Nigerian youth, especially student leaders should exercise restrain when commenting on issues outside their knowledge lest they fall victim to cheap political opportunism. They are better advised to think before they speak and to always keep quiet when they have nothing to say.
How would protesting at foreign embassies help the cause of fighting corruption which NANS told Buhari on September 2 that it supports, or stop the CCB from going ahead with its case with Saraki if indeed it has a case against the Senate President? What I think the students should concern themselves with is the integrity of the process. If the CCB thinks it has any case against Saraki, it should proceed at the tribunal as stipulated by law. And if the Senate President thinks otherwise, he should go and fight it out at the tribunal and clear his name. And if he can get the Appeal court to stop the tribunal, fine.
Let the right things be done. Imputing political motive to the CCB’s action would not change the fact that the matter at hand is a legal matter and should be so treated. I can see this matter getting to the Supreme Court, whichever side loses, and this will ultimately be good for the system. Once the matter is decided one way or the other by the courts, Nigerians would do well to forget about it and forge ahead. But then, the war should not stop with Saraki. There are many others public officers with similar stories, it is when the CCB pursues their case with the same vigor as Saraki’s that the doubters of the anti corruption war would be put to shame.
Goodnight Mama H.I.D Awolowo
Just as the Awolowo family of Ikenne , Ogun State was getting set for the centenary birthday celebration of their Matriarch, Mama Hannah Idowu Dideolu, slated for later this year, death came calling last Saturday and took away the ‘Jewel of Inestimable Value’ of their father, Chief Obafemi Awolowo.
Chief Mrs HID Awolowo, the Yeye Oba of Ife died at the age of 99. She would have been 100 years old on November 25, 2015.
Coming 28years after the death of her husband, Mama lived a life worthy of emulation by all women, especially wives of our politicians and other public office holders. She stood by her husband through out his political life and remained steadfast to his political ideology even after his death. She doggedly kept the Awolowo flag flying all these years after her husband’s death. May her soul rest in perfect peace. Amen.
NATION
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