|
Nuhu Ribadu: Anti-Corruption Czar Or Obasanjo’s Hunting Dog? By Babayola Toungo
I have had the misfortune of listening to the NTA network news of September 28th, 2003, the day the PDP held its 33rd NEC meeting. Misfortune I say, because as matter of principle I don’t watch the crab the television network dish out daily as news to its phantom ’30 million viewers’. But this day I happened to be at an elder brother’s house and it so happens he is one of the ’30 million viewers’ of NTA network news. Watching Olusegun Obasanjo address the gathering of the party’s “big wigs” (or nit-wits) made me want to puke. The audacity with which he looked Nigerians in the eye and pooh-poohed Nuhu Ribadu’s submission to the Senate the previous day took away my breath literally. It is now apparent that Obasanjo doesn’t have an iota of respect for Nigerians, else how do you situate his dismissal with a wave of his callous hand the weighty allegations levelled against the governors by the Chairman of EFCC as “spurious”. I thought it was the same “spurious” EFCC that investigated and presented a report to the presidency that Obasanjo is using to nail his Vice Presidency for corruption. What has gone wrong with the EFCC that in less than a month the agency could lose its credibility? The same EFCC that went through the Marine Float and MOFAS accounts with a toothbrush.
Watching Nuhu Ribadu’s presentation to the Senate, one could see the zeal oozing out of the anti-corruption czar. The anger in him was so thick you could feel it in the atmosphere or even slice it with a knife. His anger was understandable because of the sleaze that was uncovered by his men in the course of their investigations into the financial affairs of the states and local government councils. Cases of outright theft, embezzlement, diversion of funds and many other serious cases of financial misdemeanours with facts and figures were uncovered, documented and presented to the upper legislative house. Painstaking investigative police and detective work went into the unearthing of the said sordid details and deals of our governors, who always prefer investing in foreign countries to the detriment of their land. People who take pride in buying up real estate in Europe, the Americas and the latest vogue – South Africa. Houses that they may never live in. All pertinent details were supplied by the EFCC and according to the Chairman investigations have been completed in about 15 states and the agency could go to court in about 2 weeks time.
And now Obasanjo is telling us that all the EFCC submitted is mere ‘bullshit’. If Nuhu Ribadu has been in doubt as to how Obasanjo perceives him – as just one of his hunting dogs – he should know better now. He it was that supplied the ammo that Obasanjo used in nailing Atiku’s skin to the wall, though in all honesty, Atiku is giving as much as he is taking. But the impudence of Obasanjo in trying to stand the truth on its head is absurd, to say the least. Being an illiterate, I think Obasanjo is beginning to believe all Nigerians are illiterates like him and being gullible will be susceptible to his foxy ways of double standards. As is usual with Obasanjo, in his haste to nail everyone else bar Obasanjo, he forgot he still needed some favours from the governors and therefore may be an easy target for blackmail by them. When Nuhu Ribadu released his report to the Senate, it was fortuitous enough for the governors the day they were to meet in Abuja with the president for the Council of States meeting. So they bullied the bully to publicly disown Ribadu and his report or else they will withhold their support for him in his battle with Atiku. The shameless selfish bully, like all other bullies succumbed to this cheap blackmail and Ribadu was made the fall guy with his reputation on the line. Now he is made to eat humble pie publicly by a drowning, morally bankrupt old man, talking about a “moral burden”, the meaning of which am sure he doesn’t know.
I think I might have given Ribadu more credit for intelligence than he deserved, if after the NPA/ Bode George fiasco, he still believe Obasanjo is interested in fighting corruption. Ribadu was in Nigeria when Obasanjo entered a nolle prosequi on the very day judgement was to be delivered in a case where his cousin – Makanjoula was accused of theft; he was in this country when Obaseki thumbed his nose at us and literally asked Nigerians to go to hell when he, alongside Obasanjo destroyed the oil sector and turned it into a personal business. Ribadu is living in Abuja with the likes of Tony Anenih and Chris Uba who wine and dine with Obasanjo despite allegations of corruption against them. Moral burden? The PDP is our moral burden. Nigerians are asking about Obasanjo’s N8million eye glasses. What answers do we get? Insults and threats.
Nigerians have been treated to a circus show in the past three weeks between Team Obasanjo and Team Atiku. But when Team Atiku appears set to coast home to victory, Obasanjo caused the arrest of Team Atiku’s anchorman. We are all by now aware that both Atiku and Obasanjo are thieves without conscience and they could both lie through their teeth without shame or remorse. But of the two, I think I prefer to go with Atiku because he isn’t given to saying much – at least he is economical with his words so will hardly ever tell us lies. But Obasanjo – ah, ah. At the said meeting of the PDP NEC, he was talking about zero tolerance of corruption, yet they were shoulder to shoulder with the indicted governors and the likes of Christ Uba. The same body suspended Atiku for three months for corruption and corrupt practices. Well, it is Atiku’s fault for showing Obasanjo how these political manoeuvrings are done. Remember 2003 elections?
I have always thought Atiku to be the crooked one of the presidential pair. I was of the mistaken belief that Atiku was the armed robber and Obasanjo the pick-pocket. Now I know better, so am using this medium to apologise to Atiku for mistaking him to be his boss’s alter ego. Going by the spate of revelations sparked-off by the failed third term ambition, Atiku should be regarded a saint compared to Obasanjo. But in this whole “na you, na me” drama, the one that came out with garlands round his neck is Mallam Garba Shehu, Atiku’s spokesman. I hope by his performance, the embattled Vice President will now realise the place of intellectuals in governance and politics. When the chips are down, the court jesters and political janjaweeds that surrounds the VP melted into thin air and left the battle field to the likes of Garba Shehu and Dr. Akande. If for nothing else, I believe the Vice President has learnt some lessons the hard way.
|