Last week’s scandal involving Hon. Farouk Lawan and Femi Otedola made
several people sick. I cannot remember the number of calls I received,
especially from many friends who live in faraway Lagos and who wonder
the kind of life people in Abuja live. Many were depressed and only called so that I could tell them the
whole story was not true. I disappointed all of them because I didn’t
have such powers. I got a hint of the story several days before it got
public. I was not sad, not disappointed and didn’t lose sleep.
I have been in Abuja long before 1999 when Obasanjo started
“fighting” corruption by sharing bribes in the National Assembly. I also
know how he shared bribes in the National Assembly in order to procure a
third term. So I understand exactly how Abuja works, especially since
the coming of PDP governments in 1999.
My only surprise is that Farouk would be so naive in this very
high-profile probe. I wonder why he would not be aware that the Jonathan
government, which had become very desperate in its bid to discredit the
very good job that his committee had done in unravelling one of the
biggest heists in this country’s history, would do everything to entrap
him.
It is even more annoying because some of his closest friends had
intimated him that such schemes were afoot. He even assured such friends
that there was no need to worry as he would not fall so cheaply. But he
did, and even much more cheaply than his friends, including this
writer, had envisaged.
Farouk, who had built a career in politics anchored on integrity
(remember he is the leader of The Integrity Group), may have shot
himself beyond recovery; but the main issue still remains the theft of
N2.6 trillion, which, like the GSM revolution, would have changed this
country forever.
In the last 10 years since the GSM revolution started, the four GSM
companies have invested slightly more than N1 trillion in the Nigerian
economy, less than a half of the money that has been stolen. So you can
begin to imagine the damage that these thieves have done to Nigeria.
But this discussion would now have to shift from those who stole the
money to President Jonathan under whose watch the offence was committed.
If the amount that was appropriated for subsidy payments in 2011 was
N245 billion and Jonathan ended up paying N2.6 trillion, which amounts
to 900 per cent more, does he know that he can be removed as president
for this violation?
Indeed, does the president even know that this is a grievous offence?
And, for that matter, a grave felony against the Federal Republic of
Nigeria? From the way the president has treated the matter so far, he
doesn’t appear to know. In a democracy, even a president cannot be above
the law. Democracy is built on the grundnorm of the rule of law.
The Nigerian constitution envisages that, even for crimes smaller
than the theft of a humongous N2.6trillion, a president can be removed
from office. So far, nobody has said that the president himself stole
the money but if he is trying to protect thieves, then, he could be
guilty of being an accessory during or after the fact, and this should
not happen to the president of a democratic country.
The constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria envisages that a
governor or president can be impeached on being found guilty of a
misdemeanour, but the theft of N2.6trillion is much more than a
misdemeanour. It is a felony.
Indeed, is the National Assembly, comprising both the Senate and the
House of Representatives, aware that the burden is clearly on it to ask
the president why he has allowed such sharing of money, far above what
was approved for him for subsidy payments in the 2011 budget? Or, were
they part of the sharing?
Unless both the Senate president and the speaker of the House of
Representatives were beneficiaries of the loot, there would be no reason
why the president should not be asked to explain why he countenanced
the theft of such a huge amount that would have made a difference in the
lives of Nigerians.
Someone said the president is too soft and too kind and that is why
he has not been able to deal with the thieves. Well, such kindness is
impeachable. Any type of kindness that would condone the stealing of
N2.6 trillion of the people’s money should be “impeached” immediately
before permanent damage is done to the country.
In the year 2011 that the amount was stolen, the police received less
than 10 per cent of their appropriated budget. Ditto for all other
security agencies. Should we then be surprised that that was the year
terrorism, armed robbery and kidnapping flourished in the country? This
is only one damage that was done.
That same year also, no single medicine was bought in the nation’s
public hospitals and nothing happened in the agriculture and education
ministries. In fact, as I write this piece, the federal government is
finding it difficult to pay salaries and meet several of its
obligations.
Is it not obvious that all of us quickly need to save this country
from the level of theft of public funds that is currently going on?
Those who say that the president is involved in a grand cover-up of
the felons do have a point. Is it not curious that Hon. Farouk who was
set up by the Jonathan government in a bribery scandal of less than N100
million would be arrested and detained but not a single person involved
in the N2.6 trillion heist has even been invited by the security
agencies? Who is fooling whom?
If President Obasanjo had been impeached, he would not have had the
opportunity to inflict the kind of damage he did on the country, which
we are yet to recover from. And if Atiku Abubakar, who would have taken
over from him, had also been impeached on account of his implication in
the PTDF mess, say, our democracy would have stabilised by now.
Indeed, if Obasanjo had been impeached, he would not have been in a
position to impose a terminally-ill president on the nation. And if
section 144 of the constitution had been invoked when former President
Yar’Adua was sick and incapacitated and no one knew where in the world
he was, President Jonathan would not, today, be so comfortable after his
government had criminally shared N2.6 trillion to assorted thieves in
one year alone. If nothing happens to anyone after this looting madness,
then, only God can tell what will befall our democracy. If President Jonathan does not proceed to prosecute those who stole
the nation’s N2.6 trillion, it would be in order to commence impeachment
proceedings against him, and it would be in accordance with the spirit
of the Nigerian constitution.
"One thing clear to all observers is
that right from the start, Otedola was working hands-in-glove with the
Presidency in a scheme that tends to redefine the term, entrapment. If
all they wanted to do was to enforce the anti-bribery laws of Nigeria
against Hon. Lawan, that could have been accomplished just with any
evidence of
him demanding for bribe."
NIGERIA’S SHAME – THE REAL DANGER AND THE MISTAKEN ASSUMPTONS
(The Strategic Calculations of A Constitutional Lawyer)
As the drama continues to unfold in Nigeria over the apparent
bribing of a leading lawmaker by a businessman friend of the government,
we run the risk of failing to grasp the real dangers and the full
implications of that development. Nigerians must try to understand the
true threats and the real targets – which could end up being the
envisaged constitutional equations of power in a democratic Nigeria.
One thing clear to all observers is that right from the start,
Otedola was working hands-in-glove with the Presidency in a scheme that
tends to redefine the term, entrapment. If all they wanted to do was to
enforce the anti-bribery laws of Nigeria against Hon. Lawan, that could
have been accomplished just with any evidence of him demanding for
bribe. A tape record of the conversation was sufficient to establish
evidence of demand for bribe.
Who initiated the bribe? The videotapes would never show that,
and that evidence is material. Otedola could have any and all equipment
and gadgetry he needed to record his dealings with Lawan without the
involvement of the SSS. And even if the SSS came in, its operatives
could have been posted in positions in Otedola’s house to listen into
the conversation and arrest Lawan on the spot for demanding bribe. There
was no need to ship currencies, mark them, and carry them in bundles
around with Lawan clownishly sticking a few wads in his cap and carrying
them on his head.
Thinking hypothetically as a lawyer hired to work on this case, I
will briefly ignore the facts and storylines that have been fed to the
public, and examine a wholly different set of scenarios that could have
been suppressed by the actors. On the balance of incentives alone, Lawan
had the least incentive to get involved. All he gets is a promise of 3
million dollars and he risks losing his newly won status as a national
hero. He risks the ultimate humiliation and an ignominious career end.
On the other hand, Otedola gains hundreds of millions of dollars and
continues his business.
For Jonathan’s Government is a different thing altogether. The
subsidy crisis had put the administration in its worst nightmare, more
threatening to its existence and legacy than the Boko Haram problems.
Muddying the pool, confusing the public and derailing the House
investigation and implementation of its report are clearly things that
Jonathan administration could benefit mightily from. And motive remains a
compelling tool in any analysis. The popular opposition to government
policy on fuel subsidy was exacerbated, rightly so, by the demining
Report produced by the Lawan-led Committee of the House.
Therein lies the true danger and the real threat for the Nigerian
democracy. The Executive’s desire and resolve to intimidate, emasculate
and undermine the legislative arm of government constitute a total
affront on the constitution of the country. The Nigerian civilian
government has had a long history of such Executive attacks on the
fundamental constitutional values of a modern democracy. It is either
that the Presidency fails to respect the principles of federalism or, as
in this case, it fails to respect the principles of separation of
powers and the notion of limited government. Be that as it may, it is clear that Otedola-Lawan operation is
now a failed operation. The House did not collapse and it did not plunge
into a leadership crisis as must have been calculated by the initiators
of this bribery saga.
Rather than destroying the Report, it has given
new life and vigor to it. Nigerians are now more likely to demand that
the Report be implemented in full. In other words, the corrupt elite
have dribbled themselves into the wall. In order to promote corruption, a
scenario has arisen where it becomes difficult in the future for
Nigerian businessmen to bribe Nigerian lawmakers. And back to the courtroom strategy for Hon. Lawan’s defense team.
The case against Lawan is actually weak. At best, it was a clumsy act
of entrapment, pushed to absurdity. The greatest weakness of the case is
that as you follow the time-track and players, it becomes more
difficult for the government storyline to hold straight. Because the
tapes cannot tell who initiated the bribe transaction, it will not be
easy to discredit Lawan’s defense that he accepted the money to hold it
as evidence of an attempt to bribe him and undermine the work of his
Committee.
This is particularly so if Lawan believed that Otedola was
not acting alone, but was fronting for the Presidency or some powerful
cabal. It could therefore be a case of each group trying to outwit and
ensnare the other group. You simply don’t entrap an entrapper. Besides,
there is only so far you can rely on such videotape in court. The prosecutor would say that Lawan did not act timely to
establish any legitimate purpose for taking the money. But also, the
Government and the law enforcement agencies did not act timely either.
Why didn’t they arrest him with the money in his pocket, red-handed? If
the Executive could set up a sting operation to nab a member of the
Legislature, using Otedola in a sham bribe-giving staging, why wouldn’t
the Legislature attempt to counter the Executive by counter-staging a
sham bribe-taking? If Otedola is not guilty of giving bribe despite the
fact that the tape shows him doing so, why would Lawan be guilty of
taking bribe, just because the same tape shows him doing so?
From a
constitutional law point of view, Lawan’s lawyer should be examining
some fundamental questions of separation of powers.
If arraigned on Monday, the judge would grant Lawan bail. And
that would be the end of the matter. Nigerians should prepare for
another show where so much noise would be made about a criminal trial,
which then ends up in a smoke. But even more likely, the Nigerian police
would not want Lawan to appear in court and have his lawyers file
documents and make statements that would become public record. They
would like to give him administrative bail because that would suppress
the embarrassment that the government could face.
POST SCRIPT: After writing this article, the
author learned that Hon. Farouk Lawan was granted administrative bail by
the Police on the condition that he would bring the bribe money to the
Police. That condition is unconstitutional. It may violate the accused’s
right against self-incrimination. It is tantamount to granting him bail
on the condition that he would plead guilty to the offense. I hope his
lawyers will react appropriately to that.
SAM OLUWALANA, OLUSEGUN KOIKI AND TOBORE OVUORIE
15/06/2012 00:49:00
Minister of Aviation, Princess Stella Adaeze Oduah
Aviation experts from the United States and the
Accident Investigations Bureau, AIB, have suggested that impure fuel
could have caused the two engines and throttles of the crashed Dana Air
plane to fail mid-air.
This development followed speculations on the cause of the
June 3 air disaster in Lagos, killing about 160 people, including the
153 passengers and the crew members on board.
Our correspondents gathered that the AIB and their American
counterparts who conducted tests yesterday said that the two engines and
the throttles systems operate independently of each other and also
support each other and could not have packed up at the same time in the
air.
They, however, explained that this could happen “if the driving
component, which is the key element in the movement of an aircraft is
distorted.”
Sources also quoted the experts as claiming that the teams conducted
tests on samples from two airplanes belonging to Dana Air and detected
that they were bad. “The key components in an airplane are the engines,
the throttle systems and the fuel.
“The fuel, which serves as its propellant, needs to be clean and free
from any form of distortion. “Through tests we conducted on the Dana
plane and two other planes belonging to the airline, we found out that
they were bad and not good for use in an airplane,” a source close to
the teams said.
“Unfortunately, we don’t have the facilities for the required follow-up tests and analysis, so we have to fly them abroad. “This doesn’t take too long and we should have the results over the weekend,” an AIB official told National Mirror yesterday. Last Sunday, the management of Dana Air confirmed that their planes were fuelled by different oil marketers. The airline’s officials had earlier said that remnants of a bird were
found in the engine of the aircraft, a possibility of the crash being
caused by a bird strike.
President, Aviation Round Table, Capt. Dele Ore, said that
contami-nated fuel could lead to an air crash, but refused to comment on
the crash involving Dana Air. Ore insisted that bad fuel could lead to
dual engine failure at the same time.
He said: “We have said it over and over again, the answer is yes, but
we are not saying it was contaminated fuel that caused the crash of the
Dana aircraft.
“I was a pilot for so many years, so I know what I’m saying. In
general principle, yes, it can cause an accident and cause the aircraft
engine to flame out.“If there is too much water in it, it can cause the two engines to
pack up at the same time. But that does not mean we should say that was
what caused the current accident”. Airlines’ regulator, the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority, NCAA, has
suspended the licence of Dana Air, pending the outcome of
investigations into the crash.
Meanwhile, families of the air crash victims may have agreed to wait
for another four weeks for the results of the DNA tests on their
relations to be released before claiming the corpses of their family
members.
This is reflected in the unusual quiet noticed at the Lekan Ogunsola
Memorial House, Lagos State University Teaching Hos-pital, LASUTH,
mortuary, yesterday as only one corpse was claimed and eventually buried
in his family house at Lekki, a suburb of Lagos.
National Mirror also learnt that Dana Air management had
started visiting the family members of those that died in the ill-fated
crash. Speaking to National Mirror yesterday, one of the bereaved
relatives, Kelvin Ifekawa, said: “We heard Dana has been visiting and
condoling with the families, but we are yet to see them maybe they will
still come to my house.” He added that they were yet to receive any information on
compensation from the airline. Ifekawa said the family had contemplated
suing the government, but changed their mind, just like other families,
after the explanation about the DNA process by the government.
Meanwhile, police are still keeping a 24-hour surveillance at the mortuary after Tuesday’s incident.
It will be recalled that an angry relative had attacked officials of
the morgue with a cutlass but the situation was arrested by the quick
intervention of the Rapid Response Squad, RRS, team.
So far, nine bodies have been released, although 19 of the 43
identifiable bodies are ready to be claimed as their families are yet to
turn up. There have been controversies over the collection of the crash
victims’ corpses. Officials of the morgue had declined releasing corpses
to any of the family members, identified bodies inclusive, on the
grounds that all corpses must undergo DNA test.
But as at Tuesday, eight corpses which identities they had refused to disclose had been released.
The state government on Sunday suggested giving mass burial to the victims, which the families rejected.
Close
friend of President Goodluck Jonathan and Co-convener of the National
Summit Group, Tony Uranta, has declared that the Peoples Democratic
Party (PDP) is made of people with questionable character calling them
thieves and criminals.
Uranta, who spoke during a programme on a Lagos-based television late
Thursday, said he was not a politician but an activist whose activities
had pitched him against the presidency several times.
“I believe the PDP, even though it is the only true national party in
Nigeria, is a party leading with a lot of thieves, leading with a lot
of criminals.
“I said it before ex-President Obasanjo but I don’t know about rogues and robbers being in the National Assembly. “What I am saying is that the PDP has people of shady character.”
He also denied that the President sponsored the last conference
organised by the National Summit Group as the group had people of
integrity like Prof. Pat Utomi, who would not collect such funds from
the presidency. Uranta denied being a staunch supporter of the current
administration, emphasising that in the last statement of the group, “we
said we were voting against certain ministries in the presidency and we
were given a qualified vote of confidence in the presidency. “We of the Niger Delta believe we would have gained more as Niger
Deltans if we have a none Niger Deltan as the President, because we
would not be over expectant of him.
Therefore, we would have piled more
pressure in getting the things we want. “We have been lulled into a false sense of security, a false sense of
accomplishment especially because we have, so to say, our son in the
presidency.” He however said though President Jonathan was not a disservice to the
people of the area, he had not been engaged enough by the Niger
Deltans, adding that people often forget that as the President, he had a
nationalist outlook.
Uranta, who said he can never stop being an activist for the Niger
Delta, disclosed that Niger Deltans had met and had made up their minds
to secede anytime the military struck in the country.
He also said if Nigerians did not like the President, they had the right to vote him out in 2015.
Uranta, who said he did not know why the Boko Haram existed, said it could be linked to the issue of North-South divide.
According to him, while President Jonathan was gunning for the
presidency, so many people within the PDP threatened to make the country
ungovernable if he comes out, adding that the CPC also made such
threat.
He justified President Jonathan’s ‘turning a blind eye’ to the issue
of the Boko Haram saying it was better for him to work through various
other channels to curb the crisis and their sponsors as a matter of
national interest.
He credited the current administration with introduction of the
National Security Strategy which had become operational in other
countries" by
PM NEWS/ By Eromosele Ebhomele
"CONTRARY to his insistence on Sunday that he did not meet with or receive any bribe from anybody, documents in possession of The PUNCH
showed that Chairman of the House of Representatives probe panel on
fuel subsidy mismanagement, Farouk Lawal, indeed accepted $500,000 from
billionaire businessman, Femi Otedola. Clerk of the committee, Boniface Emenalo, also received $100,000 from the businessman. The sums added up to the $600,000 bribery scandal rocking the House committee which recently exposed how some subsidy thieves robbed the nation of whopping N1.7trn.
Farouk and Emenalo, as the documents, mostly
correspondence, indicated, however let in the Acting Inspector-General
of Police, Mohammed Abubakar, into the “attempt” by Otedola to bribe
them.
Also, there were indications in the correspondence
that Lawan intimated the House committee chairman on Drugs/Narcotics and
Financial Crimes, Adams Jagaba.
Sundry documents. In one of the documents sourced by our correspondents
in Abuja on Monday, Lawan, in a letter to Jagaba, wrote, “Attached (to
the letter) is the sum of five hundred thousand dollars only offered to
me with another promise of two million, five hundred thousand dollars.”
Another letter written by Emenalo to Lawan read, “I
wish to inform you that I was on his invitation, at the residence of
their Chairman, Mr. Femi Otedola, in Maitama (Aso Drive) this morning
and he offered me the sum of one hundred thousand US dollars in two
bundles of $50,000 each. The money is herewith forwarded as evidence.” Another letter, reference
number,CR:3000/IGP.SEC/STF/FHQ/ABJ/VOL 2/309 indicated that the IG
directed “a discreet investigation into the matter.” The letter was
signed by Commissioner of Police, Special Task Force, Ali Amodu.
Both Jagaba and the police on Monday declined comments on their involvement in the matter.
While Jagaba told our correspondent that he could not
comment on the matter on the telephone, spokesman for the police, Frank
Mba, said he had yet to get an update on the probe.
“I was unable to reach CP Ali Amodu who is handling
the investigation but I will get back to you once I get an update on the
matter,” he said on the telephone on Monday.
Obasanjo, Mark view video
The fresh insight into the bribery scandal came as The PUNCH
learnt on Monday how the video recording of the transaction between
Lawan and Otedola had been shown to President Goodluck Jonathan,
Vice-President Namadi Sambo, former President Olusegun Obasanjo, Senate
President David Mark and House Speaker Aminu Tambuwal.
Otedola had revealed in an interview with THIS DAY newspaper
how he involved the security agents to supervise Lawan’s persistent
demand for a bribe from him. He also narrated how he released a total
sum of $620,000 to Lawan and Emenalo in three tranches, all monitored
and recorded by the security agents.
The ad hoc committee chairman said in another letter
that he did not raise the issue of Otedola’s pressure on him on the
floor of the House because it would overshadow the essence of the fuel
subsidy probe.
Lawan stated in the letter, a copy of which was obtained by The PUNCH
on Monday that, “I had considered bringing this issue as a matter of
privilege on the floor of the House later today (April 24), but I am
concerned that the controversy it will generate will dwarf the contents
of the report, which needs public attention so that necessary reforms in
the sector could be affected.” The ad hoc committee chairman added that Otedola issued veiled verbal threats against him. He said, “Given the desperation of Mr. Otedola,
handling this matter, in a firm but diplomatic manner is necessary as he
has also made some veiled threats which put me and members of the
committee in a delicate situation.”
The ad hoc committee chairman also disclosed that the
clerk of the committee, Emenalo, had in a letter written to him on
April 24, 2012, said Otedola offered him $100,000.
Threat allegation
Lawan also stated that the police were aware of the
offer of a bribe as the Acting Inspector-General in a letter dated, May
9, 2012, directed the task force on investigation to meet him.
Lawan explained that in a letter dated May 31, 2012,
he told the IGP that the matter (bribe offer) had been referred to the
relevant committee of the House for legislative action. He said that he promised that the House would inform him about the outcome of the legislative action. According to him, the IGP in a letter to the Speaker
of the House, Mr. Aminu Tambuwal, dated June 4, 2012, stated that a
detailed criminal investigation had been ordered into the matter.
In the letter titled, “Investigation activities:
Letter of invitation in a case of criminal conspiracy and attempt to
pervert the course of justice by offering gratification,” the office of
the IGP stated that “the Inspector General of Police has directed a
detailed criminal investigation into the matter.”
Calls for investigation The President of the Campaign for Democracy, Dr. Joe
Okei-Odumakin, has however called on the EFCC to investigate the bribery
allegation against Lawan.
Okei-Odumakin, in an interview with one of our
correspondents on Monday berated the EFCC for not prosecuting those
indicted by the committee. She said that while the anti-graft agency had found
it convenient to prosecute the Chairman of the House Committee on the
Capital Market, it had found it difficult to prosecute oil thieves.
The CD president said, “The EFCC is prosecuting Hembe with N600,000 estacode, yet it has not done anything to the subsidy thieves who stole the country broke.
“If there is any allegation, it should be investigated. The EFCC should work rather than play media shield.”
Also, the Civil Society Legislative Advocacy Centre on Monday called for probe of the bribery scandal.
This is contained in a statement issued in Abuja and signed by executive director of CISLAC, Mallam Auwal Ibrahim.
The statement called on the National Assembly and the
executive arm of government “not to let the current scandal serve as a
straw to bury the probe report under the carpet”.
It advised the leadership of the House to urgently
institute a thorough investigation into the alleged bribery and involve
anti-graft agencies to also probe the circumstances and reality of all
claims.
“Those indicted by the report may go to their wits’
end in order to rubbish an exercise that is widely applauded by
Nigerians in view of the nasty dealings it uncovered”, CISLAC said.
A lawyer, Prof. Itse Sagay, also on Monday expressed shock over the bribery allegation levelled against Lawan.
Sagay, who spoke with one of our correspondents on
Monday said the development was saddening, describing it as a tragedy
which spelled doom for the future of Nigeria. The Save Nigeria Group asked security operatives to invite both Otedola and Lawan for interrogation. Spokesman for the group, Mr. Yinka Odumakin, said
such an invitation was necessary to clear the air about the allegation
that Lawan collected $600,000 bribe from the oil marketer. Odumakin said if it was ascertained that money actually changed hands, the giver and the taker must be punished. He, however, advised Nigerians not to allow the issue to distract them from demanding the prosecution of the subsidy thieves. Odumakin said, “Both Otedola and Lawan should be
invited by security agencies to ascertain the veracity of this
allegation. If it is true that money changed hands, the giver and the
taker must be punished.
Nigerians must not allow this to distract them from the demand for the prosecution of the subsidy thieves which this latest video production by the Presidency clearly wants to achieve.”
Meanwhile, our correspondents learnt on Monday that the EFCC was planning to use Otedola as a prosecution witness against Lawan. Sources within the commission said though Otedola had
not been officially queried over the role he played in the bribery
saga, it was said that since he carried the security agencies along, he
might be used to nail the lawmakers. “Yes, we may use Otedola as a prosecuting witness in
the case. But we are still carrying out our discreet investigation. When
that has been sufficiently done, then we will swing into action,” the
source added."PUNCH.
DEAR READERS, PLEASE READ BELOW AND SEE HOW WE ARE BEING PLAYED BY CORRUPT RULERS:
"I reported Otedola’s bribe to Police and EFCC in April – Farouk Lawan
The Chairman of the House of Representatives
ad hoc committee which probed the management of the Fuel subsidy scheme,
Farouk Lawan on Monday said that he reported the $3 million bribe to
the Police and the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) law
enforcement agents as far back as April 24.
The Chairman of the Subsidy probe committee, Farouk Lawan
Documents released by National Assembly sources to the media,
revealed that Mr Lawan allegedly informed the House Committee on
Financial Crimes in a letter dated April 24, 2012, of pressures to offer
him bribe to influence the outcome of the investigation into the fuel
subsidy scheme.
In a letter to the leadership of the House, Mr Lawan also said his
“life has been under constant threat since the fuel probe begun.”
Mr Lawan reported the bribe to the police following which the
Inspector-General in a letter dated, May 9, 2012, directed a task force
on investigation to meet him.The IGP in the letter with reference number
CR:3000/IGP.SEC/STF/FHQ/ABJ/VOL 2/309 called Lawan’s attention to an
interview he granted a national newspaper on April 28, 2012 and
directed, “a discreet investigation into the matter.”
The letter was signed by the Commissioner of Police, Special Task Force, Ali Amodu.
He said that in another letter dated May 16, 2012 with reference
number CR:3000/IGP.SEC/STF/FHQ/ABJ/VOL 2/319, and signed by Mr Amodu,
the IGP requested money exhibit, names of witnesses and other material
evidence from him.
Mr Lawan explained that in a letter dated May 31, 2012, he told the
IGP that the matter (bribe offer) had been referred to the relevant
committee of the House for legislative actions.
After the correspondence between the IGP and Mr Lawan, the p in a
letter to the Speaker of the House, Aminu Tambuwal, dated June 4, 2012,
stated that a detailed criminal investigation had been ordered into the
matter.
In the letter titled, “Investigation activities: Letter of invitation
in a case of criminal conspiracy and attempt to pervert the course of
justice by offering gratification,” the office of the IGP stated that
“the Inspector General of Police has directed a detailed criminal
investigation into the matter.”
The Chairman, Zenon Petroleum and Gas Limited Femi Otedola said in
some national dailies on Monday that Mr Lawan and the Secretary of the
probe committee, Boniface Emenalo had collected $620,000 from him in a
sting operation masterminded by the security agencies.
The amount, according to Mr Otedola, the amount was part payment of
$3 million, which he alleged Mr Lawan had demanded from him to exonerate
Zenon Oil from the probe committee’s report.
Mr Otedola said on April 21, the Saturday before the plenary, Mr
Lawan came in person to his residence and collected $250,000 in cash, as
the first instalment and on Monday April 23 “Lawan came and collected
another $250,000.”
House vows to probe bribery
Meanwhile, the House of Representatives said it will investigate
allegations of bribery levelled against Mr Lawan, saying it will not
support underhand deal from any quarters.
The Chairman, House Committee on Media and Publicity, Zakari Mohammed
who disclosed this in a statement said, “While we await investigation
into these weighty accusations, we wish to state without equivocation
that this Honourable House will never take sides with corruption and we
will always stand on the side of the rule of law. We cannot, for
whatever reason, support any underhand dealing from any quarter.” By Channels Television
Reading the above, you will see how confusing this is.
But on a closer look, you find that the articule alleged that Farouk "indeed accepted $500,000";
Then it went on to claim that
"Farouk and Emenalo, as the documents, mostly
correspondence, indicated, however let in the Acting Inspector-General of
Police, Mohammed Abubakar, into the “attempt” by Otedola to bribe them";
"
Please remember the use of the word “attempt”
Now read and note this part:
“Attached (to the letter) is the sum of five hundred
thousand dollars only offered to me with another promise of two million, five
hundred thousand dollars?”
And then this part:
“I wish to inform you that I was on his invitation, at the
residence of their Chairman, Mr. Femi Otedola, in Maitama (Aso Drive) this
morning and he offered me the sum of one hundred thousand US dollars in two
bundles of $50,000 each. The money is herewith forwarded as evidence.”
And then lastly this part:
Another letter, reference
number,CR:3000/IGP.SEC/STF/FHQ/ABJ/VOL 2/309 indicated that the IG directed “a
discreet investigation into the matter.” The letter was signed by Commissioner
of Police, Special Task Force, Ali Amodu.";"The ad hoc committee
chairman also disclosed that the clerk of the committee, Emenalo, had in a
letter written to him on April 24, 2012, said Otedola offered him
$100,000"
Nigerians, note the use of “attempt”, “offered”.
And remember that we were previously informed that the bribe was "given
to Farouk at the airport".
The question we should be asking is who is behind all this misinformation?
On looking closer at the above article, you will also deduce that
it says both “Farouk and Emenalo, as the documents, mostly correspondence,
indicated, however let in the Acting Inspector-General of Police, Mohammed
Abubakar, into the “attempt” by Otedola to bribe them”.
So ask yourself when
was it a crime to report “offer” of bribe, “attempt” to bribe to the appropriate authorities?
Where is Femi Otedola and why was he been used as a witness
when he was the person named as the culprit who “attempt” to and “offered” a
bribe?
CAN SOMEONE PLEASE TELL
ME WHAT FAROUK AND EMENALO HAVE DONE WRONG?
HAVEN’T THEY ALLEDGELY REPORTED THEIR ENCOUNTER TO THE APPROPRIATE
AUTHOURITY?
IS IT NOT THE JOB OF THE AUTHOURITY TO IMMEDIATELY ARREST
THE PERSON WHO ALLEDGELY OFFERED THE BRIBE?
DIDN’T THIS ARTICULE CONFIRM THAT EFFORTS WERE MADE TO
DISTRUST DUE PROCESS DURING THE INVESTIGATION OF THE OIL SUBSIDY SCANDAL?
AND CRUCIALLY, DOES THE REPORT APPEAR TO FAVOUR THE PERSON
WHO OFFERED THE BRIBE?
DID THE OIL SUBSIDY REPORT SHOW ANY SLIGHT INDICATION THAT
FAROUK AND EMENALO WERE INFLUENCED BY THE ALLEDGE BRIBE?
THE CABAL ARE BEING INVESTIGATED FOR “ATTEMPT” TO “OFFERED”
BRIBE IN ORDER TO DISTRUST THE OIL SUBSIDY SCANDAL REPORT FROM BEING RELEASED
TO THE PUBLIC.
DID FAROUK AND EMENALO NOT RELEASE THE OIL SCANDAL REPORT
THAT CLEARLY EXPOSES THOSE THAT ARE STEALING HUGE TRILLIONS FROM OUR NATION
WEALTH TO YOU AND I?
DID FAROUK AND HIS TEAM FAIL US?
AND WHERE IS THE SO CALLED TAPE RECORDING OF THE BRIBE
ALLEGATION?
HOW COME FAROUK AND EMENALO ARE NOW BEING SUBJECTED TO RIDICULE
EVEN THOUGH THEY HAVE NOT BEING CHARGED FOR TAKING PART IN ANY CRIME?
CAN’T YOU SEE THIS IS A DISTRACTION?
ANY REASONABLE PERSON WILL INSIST THAT THOSE WHO ARE CAUGHT
STEALING OUR NATIONAL WEALTH SHOULD BE ARRESTED BY NOW?
WHY IS THE NIGERIAN GOVERNMENT NOT ARRESTING THEM?
WHEN IS THE PROSECUTION GOING TO START?
WHY IS THE PRESIDENT NOT FIGHTING CORRUPTION
OR DECLARING
HIS ASSET ACCORDING TO THE LAW OF THE LAND?
OMG, NIGERIANS WHEN ARE WE GOING TO STOP AIDING THOSE WHO
ARE KILLERS OF DREAMS?
WHEN ARE WE GOING TO START ASKING THE CORRECT QUESTIONS AND
KEEP RECORDS OF EVENTS?
WHY DO WE FORGET SO QUICKLY FOR GOD SAKE?
NIGERIA APPEARS TO BE THE MOST RELIGIOUS IN THE WORLD.
YET, EVIDENCE CLEARLY SHOWS THAT WE HERO WORSHIP KILLERS, THIEVES, SPONSORS OF
TERRORISTS, KIDNAPPERS, CHILD-MOLESTERS AS LONG AS MONEY IS INVOLVED.
WHY SHOULD WE THEN BE SURPRISED THAT DISASTERS HAS BEFALLING
US AS A NATION?
WE HAVE TO CHANGE OUR WAYS AND BEHAVIOUR FOR THE BETTERMENT OF ALL;
CAN GOD BE MOCKED?NIGERIANS AWAKE, DON'T LET CABALS DESTROY THIS CASE AS THEY HAVE DONE TO SO MANY OTHER CORRUPT CASES IN THE PAST.
NIGERIANS BE AWAKE!!!
UPDATE 15.6/2012: This is one reporting that we
can keep for our records. Please assimilate and consider contents
rather than sentiments. Thank you
Now this is not an article, this is just me trying to gist with too
many people scattered in too many places. So, I will write this like I
am talking to people informally not as an effort to impress the reader
but an attempt at making Nigerians see a few things in the right
perspective.
The Nigerian government never intended to punish the fuel subsidy
cabal. A serving Senator had gone to the President in August 2011 to
report the corruption in the subsidy process and the president had
called his bluff. The Senator then went ahead to do the right thing.
Days on, the president and his crew decided to withdraw subsidy, not
because they wanted to punish the thieving cabal but because they wanted
to ensure the people of Nigeria and not the government bear the brunt
of the inefficiencies and corruption of the subsidy system. Today, we
all know how that panned out. Nigerians refused and in the end we know
it was not about Nigerians using too much petrol but about government
intentionally allowing a few people to loot our common wealth.
Now, there is a report of that scam totaling about N3 trillion as at
the latest count – including arrears paid this year – yet the government
has been stalling on the House of Representatives’ probe report. Games
and gimmicks on, time passed and now the government realised something
had to be done about the report. In a sane society, “something” here
would mean the prosecution of the indicted individuals and companies, in
a mad and corrupt system as ours, something here means to throw a cog
in the wheel of the justice process. Distract Nigerians, set the members
of the committee up as corrupt and get them in a brawl of arguments
that’d at least create doubts in the minds of the people. All they need
was that doubt. Now they have more from the same Nigerians who were
crying to see justice done to the subsidy probe report.
Trust me, they (the cabal) don’t care if Farouk Lawan is guilty, they
just want us in doubt as to the veracity of the probe panel’s report.
These men and women of perverse ways and corrupt means know that
Nigerians run at every straw and dance to every beat of distraction. At
this point, we must begin to ask the right questions. Farouk Lawan is
only one of the committee members. Did the said money influence the
content of the report? Is Farouk Lawan the report? Why is this happening
now? Is this in the best interest of Nigerians who want to know what
happened to over N2 trillion (given that even the remaining N1 trillion
or so is even above the previous yearly subsidy budget averages)
First Obasanjo, Now Jonathan. Otedola knows who to ball with
They know we are obsessed with news portraying any politician as
corrupt and they know we convict people long before they are convicted.
They know our general makeup and they have simply thrown this bait of
distraction to keep us dancing our way to 2015 while the rest loot and
those in office do absolutely nothing. Mr. Otedola is currently with
President Jonathan as I type this. The same Otedola in the eye of this
storm. The same Otedola that has been seen carrying the bag of the
legendary Patience Jonathan. If Nigerians don’t know what this is all
about, then we deserve the evil we get from these lot. This is not about
Farouk Lawan, this is about us.
Farouk Lawan is not a saint. I am not either. You have to know how to
play the PDP game to remain influential in Nigeria’s politics since
1999 but as far as this fuel subsidy probe goes, himself and his
committee members have done their job. Those who said the report
exonerated some people are not saying the right thing. No report can
achieve all its aims, that is why there are government institutions to
follow up on such reports. Of course, the SSS has been busy trying to
catch Farouk Lawan while Boko Haram has been busy killing Nigerians in
droves. State devices are set against innocent Nigerians while evil
people are called to the negotiation table when they successfully kill
enough Nigerians. That’s why there is a phrase called “the Nigerian
paradox. ”That we have charlatans in government is a known reality,that they
know the mindset of Nigerians and their gullibility is another known
reality. What is not known is whether Nigerians will get carried away by
this Otedola distraction or instead focus on the N3 trillion loot.
Farouk dared the Cabal, the Cabal has N3 trillion and presidential powers to fight back
If Farouk Lawan is guilty, let him face the law but the State cannot
prioritize his case above the fuel subsidy scam like it is already
doing. To do so is to prove beyond all doubt that indeed the subsidy
cabal has a head that cannot be differentiated from the head of Nigeria.
That is not to say that has not been proven beyond all doubt though. So, those who are interested can focus on the Otedola bait, while
those who know the game well enough can focus on the real thing. N3
trillion or so has been stolen from Nigeria and as we speak, the
government keeps throwing all sorts of distractions on the path of
justice. The distraction started with the twin Abuja-Kaduna blast. We
just pray the next distractions don’t include more bombs.
In conclusion: Yes, Nigerian politicians are guilty until proven
innocent. The subsidy cabal has at least N2 trillion to work with and
nail Farouk Lawan. This is the biggest scam in our history and Farouk
Lawan, Bukola Saraki and the likes must be ready to suffer the
consequence of standing in this case on the side of truth. There will be
more consequences but it’d help to see Nigerians focus on the most
important things. Has subsidy money be stolen? Yes. Let’s go after the
culprits. At least that hit the#NationalDistractionAlbum charts before
this latest distraction.. Videos can be doctored, but that over N2 trillion has been stolen
from Nigerian’s federation account cannot be doctored. A cabal member
bought a Polo Club in America last April. The government is broke. Yes,
we cannot doctor our poverty, a poverty caused by wanton public
stealing.
Don’t be fooled, don’t be distracted, this is an act of
deception from the same evil studio that produced the many fake videos
we have been privy to watch since the days of Sani Abacha.
Whatever happened (or did not happen) between Otedola and Lawan
cannot change reality. The reality that Otedola is the central striker
in this game of grand deception. No one expects the president to do this
himself. And yes, until he is proven guilty beyond every doubt, that he
favoured Otedola in the report, Farouk Lawan remains innocent in the
eye of this writer. The other culprits have been proven guilty so it is
fair that justice takes its course. A man who ought to be in jail should
not be available to set other people up. I should say more but it is
time to allow others talk.
This is @Omojuwa saying it as it is
Tomorrow, President Goodluck Jonathan will have spent one full
year of his four-year mandate, and, unless you do not live in Nigeria or
you live in Dokubo-Asari’s or Edwin Clark’s make-believe Nigeria, the
report card should be pretty straightforward: President Jonathan’s first
year has been a total disaster and a complete failure. I wish I could
find harsher words that could present the true picture of the situation.
Jonathan took over at one of the most trying periods in this
country’s history. The nation had been without a leader in charge and so
many people who pretended to have the support of President Yar’Adua,
who was already brain-dead, looted the treasury dry using the president
(Yar’Adua) as a bogeyman. The ailing president’s cronies who constituted
themselves into a criminal cabal forged his signature severally to
steal money and resisted all attempts to invoke the relevant sections of
the constitution that was clear about the removal of a president in
those circumstances. Billions and billions of naira was stolen during
this period that lasted for more than six months. Eventually, Yar’Adua
died and Jonathan took over.
#But since Jonathan became president, the theft of the nation’s
commonweal has been in trillions of naira. Only petty thieves and pick
pockets still steal in billions. In fact, what is happening under
Jonathan is not just stealing but sheer madness and wickedness. Fuel
subsidy looting that used to be between N250 billion and N300 billion
annually since Obasanjo’s kleptocratic era became N2.6 trillion in just
one year of President Jonathan. The pension fund theft still beggars
belief. The sheer heartlessness of it remains unfathomable, yet the president
is not in the least outraged. Just as we were still processing that,
the Malabu-gate scandal broke. On that, too, the president has been
silent, just as he has been on the N2.6 trillion fuel subsidy-gate.
Obasanjo and Yar’Adua pretended throughout their tenures to be fighting
corruption; Jonathan doesn’t think he should waste his time at all
pretending.
The president has never uttered the word “corruption” either in the
positive or negative sense. It doesn’t appear to be an issue to him.
Unlike Obasanjo who calls people thieves, rogues and armed robbers and
then proceeds to steal more than these armed robbers, Jonathan is too
polite to use such derogatory terms on people. Because our president is
such a very compassionate person, the thieves actually hold their
committee meetings not too far from his office in Aso Rock. That must be
the only thing that can explain the theft of N2.6 trillion from a
single unit of government and the president would not be aware or even
be part of it. No one has so far directly accused the president of being
part of it, even though the theft actually took place about the same
time as the elections. Ditto for the N155 billion Malabu oil scandal
that also directly involves his government and probably his office. All
these are only the few that we are aware of.
And then there is the crude oil theft that is currently going on with
a vengeance. The government puts the estimated theft at about 200,000
barrels per day but even that cannot be true. It is either the
government lacks the competence to know the amount that is being stolen
daily or, as usual, has decided to lie about it. The theft is more like
500,000 barrels per day. And it is simple to know this. Before the theft
got out of hand, the nation was nearing the production and sale of 2.6
million barrels daily but it is now just about 2 million barrels per
day. But if the government tells us that the Niger Delta militants have
surrendered their arms and has given that as the reason for the huge
expenses on the amnesty programme, where then did the thieves get the
arms with which they are committing armed robbery on the nation’s oil?
And, by the way, isn’t Tompolo, the president’s personal Niger Delta
militant, supposed to have been awarded the contract of securing our
maritime space? Or is the contract supposed to provide cover and
protection for the oil thieves? Some of us are not sure anymore.
And now talking about Tompolo: we cannot assess Jonathan’s one year
in office without discussing the very critical Tompolo factor. Tompolo
has undoubtedly become the most powerful figure in Jonathan’s
presidency. He is, in fact, more powerful than all the principal
officers of the Nigerian state, including the vice president, Senate
president and speaker. He is also infinitely more influential than E.K.
Clark, the grand old man of the Ijaw nation. Tompolo is the leading
member of President Jonathan’s brain trust. Unlike other noisy Ijaw
nation operatives like Mujahid Dokubo-Asari and E.K. Clark, Tompolo
doesn’t talk. He only tells the president what to do.
He holds court with the president and ministers, and heads of
agencies are in grave trepidation of him. A mere altercation between a
head of a parastatal who is Tompolo’s boy and nominee and his
supervising minister, who of course was supposed to be his boss,
recently led to the immediate re-deployment of the minister to a less
strategic ministry. It has been said that the minister was only lucky
not to have been dismissed. Tompolo has his own nominee ministers and
several appointees. The ex-militant is also the man who is so powerful
that the president would actually give him a contract to take over part
of the job of the Nigerian Navy. It speaks volumes of the president’s understanding of government that
a “former” militant who had taken up arms against the Federal Republic
of Nigeria and has also been involved in the theft of oil is today the
person that is in charge of the nation’s maritime security. Should we be
surprised that, since Tompolo took over our maritime space, the theft
of crude oil has reached such a scandalous level? Let’s even forget the
other rumours making the rounds about the real motives behind giving
Tompolo that kind of contract. I am sure the country can take care of
itself when that time comes.
Should it then astound anyone that the president has not been able to
achieve anything in the last one year? There is no way any president
can achieve any results with the kind of savage thievery that is going
on. Should we be amazed that our hospitals, roads, schools and other
infrastructure continue to be in such a shambles in spite of all the
money the nation is supposed to be earning? If we consider that the
total amount of investments that have been achieved through MTN, Glo,
Airtel and Etisalat in the last 10 years is just slightly over N1
trillion, then, we can appreciate the opportunity cost of the theft of
N2.6 trillion from one unit alone. With just N1 trillion, see the number
of jobs and the growth that was created in the telecommunications
sector. Imagine that, of this N2.6 trillion stolen, N1 trillion
effectively went into agriculture, another N1 trillion into education
and the balance was ploughed into the health sector; imagine the
difference this could have made. Because of these serial thefts, the
government is no longer able to meet some of its basic obligations as at
when due.
It used to be that Nigerian governments were unable to implement
their capital budgets. Under Jonathan, even recurrent expenditures are
falling behind schedule. These days, even salaries are not paid as at
when due. The president is also just about to open a new battle front
with most of the major Nigerian newspapers over non-payment for services
rendered. During the fuel subsidy protests, Jonathan’s government,
through some of his friends, in desperation, placed several wrap-around
adverts in Nigerian newspapers worth at least N1 billion. Nearly six
months later, the adverts have not been paid for in spite of the weekly
lies that the newspapers are constantly being fed with by those who
placed the adverts. If Jonathan would court the wrath of nearly all the
major newspapers over non-payment of an obligation, then, the situation
must be very bad indeed.
The insecurity in the last one year is actually worse than what many
countries witnessed in a state of war. And, instead of the president to
face the matter squarely, he has allowed his apologists to excuse his
incompetence on the grounds that his enemies (read northerners) had
promised to make the nation ungovernable if they did not win the
presidency. I wonder how he would have been president without votes from
northerners anyway. Apart from the Boko Haram phenomenon, armed robbers
now use grenades and bombs and the government cannot even locate where
these grenades are coming from. Or, maybe it is his northern enemies
that supply the grenades to the armed robbers.
It has entered our history books that the first bomb ever to be
detonated in Abuja, the nation’s capital, was under Jonathan’s
presidency and the president’s first response was to defend those who
claimed responsibility for the bombing. That was totally beyond the
pale. And, as I write this piece, no one has been brought to book for
that. Nobody has been punished for the hundreds and hundreds of deaths
in the last one year.
The president’s failure will only get egregious as long as he does
not change his lukewarm attitude towards the madness in the theft of
public funds that has so far solidly defined his presidency.
In an interview last week, Nasir el-Rufai, a CPC top brass, said he
fears that this republic may not get to 2015 because of the madness that
is going on and the incompetence associated with President Jonathan.
The president is most likely going to consider this as the ranting of an
opposition politician. But that is the fear that even some of his best
well-wishers have been expressing behind his back and have only not been
courageous enough to voice out. The president needs to change his
attitude towards governance fast for the sake of all of us.
E A R S H O T Oil Found In Kogi State
In the past few weeks, I have been crying my heart out over the need
for the federal government to do more about the exploitation of oil in
the other sedimentary basins of the country. I have argued that, from
the facts available, there is oil or gas or both in the Chad Basin,
Sokoto Basin, Upper Benue Trough, Lower Benue Trough, Bida Basin,
Anambra Basin and Dahomey Basin in addition to the Niger Delta Basin
which is the only one that the nation currently pays all its attention
to. It is in the precincts of some of these sedimentary basins that
other countries like Chad, Niger Republic and Benin Republic have found
oil. What this actually means in plain English is that there is oil or
gas or both in all the six geopolitical zones of the country.
Well, it would appear that some of the things some of us say are
beginning to make sense after all. Only recently, Orient Petroleum made a
case for an oil block to be allocated to it on the grounds of its
commitment to constructing a refinery. The company was allocated an oil
block at the Anambra Basin, which probably in the government’s
estimation was not supposed to be a good oil block. Now Orient Petroleum
has found oil at the Kogi State side of the basin, precisely at Ibaji
local government area. Ibaji therefore becomes the first LGA in the
north to hit oil. It took a private company to achieve this.
This only means that, if we are serious as a nation, we should start
paying more attention to all our sedimentary basins. No wonder a
director of Shell declared, a few months ago, that Nigeria could produce
four million barrels of oil daily, instead of the current 2.5 million
if we were serious. We need to start running our country properly.
