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Nigeria: EFCC Begins Probe of Obasanjo
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Leadership (Abuja)
27 March 2008
Posted to the web 27 March 2008
Oba Onipe
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) yesterday said that it had commenced investigation into the eight-year administration of former President Olusegun Obasanjo.
This came on the heels of several calls by many prominent Nigerians and groups which have criticised and persistently urged EFCC to probe Obasanjo's eight years of "inglorious" administration.
Announcing this was the head, General Investigations of the anti-graft agency, Mr. Sanda Umaru, during a protest staged by an anti-corruption civil society group under the umbrella of Coalition Against Corrupt Leaders (CACOL), at the Awolowo Road, Ikoyi, headquarters of EFCC.
According to Umaru, "We are fighting the same cause. The truth about the matter is that we are on that issue (probing Obasanjo administration) at the moment. We want everyone to know that we are on it and definitely we will get to where we are going."
He noted further, "the difference between the EFCC and CACOL is that CACOL wants investigation into the matter to be conducted urgently, while EFCC by the nature of its job needs to be thorough, which made it appear to be slow on Obj's probe."
"You might not like the pace with which we are going in investigating Obasanjo. Ours is to ensure that we do things thoroughly. In so doing, we must not only display prudence, but we must be able to display professionalism so as to ensure that everything we do is in line with the scheme of things.
"You people are in a hurry, but we are telling you that we are on it and we will get to where we are going."
He assured Nigerians that very soon, results of their investigation into the activities of the former administration, including its key players, would be made public. "You might want it now, but we assure you that you will get results," he reiterated.
While commending the efforts and method adopted by CACOL in its agitation for the probe of the former president, Umaru stressed that the fight was for the general masses and the good of the nation.
Earlier, the leader of CACOL, Mr. Debo Adeniran, who led the protesters, while addressing the EFCC, posited that the on-going probe by the House of Representatives into the power sector would be futile if Obasanjo, who had been indicted by most of those who testified before the house panel, failed to appear.
The group's leader said his group would not be satisfied if the House Committee on Power and Steel failed to compel the former president to testify before it in the ongoing probe into how his regime wasted about $16 billion without anything to show for it.
His words: "Such preferential treatment will not only rubbish whatever good intention that might have informed the effort of the Ndudi Elumelu-led panel, it will also paint the house as another pack of opportunistic rent seekers."
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The group called on EFCC to extend its search light on the administration of former military head of state, Gen. Abdulsalami Abubakar.
Specifically, the group is calling for the probe of former Finance Minister, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, and her Education counterpart, Dr. Oby Ezekwesili.
He said, "This group of recalcitrant sleaze managers, including some serving governors, Gen. Abdulsalami Abubakar, Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala and Dr. Oby Ezekwesili, alias 'Madam 'Due Process,' who was said to have laboured in vain to reduce the graft fund to $4 billion, should be made to answer serious questions on why they were so callous and reckless to have reaped where they refused to sow."
This latest developments in Nigeria are a good sign of a positive future.Nigeria, like Kenya has had many problems associated with misconduct of the leaders. Most Africans live in abject poverty although the African continent is potentially the world supper power in terms of wealth. Poverty in Africa can be attributed to various factors, the major one being corruption. Agood example of real effects of corruption is Kenya. ... [Read Full Text]
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