ADVERTISEMENT
The Sun Nigeria
  • National
  • Columns
    • Broken Tongues
    • Capital Matters
    • Diabetes Corner
    • Duro Onabule
    • Femi Adesina
    • Frank Talk
    • Funke Egbemode
    • Insights
    • Kalu Leadership Series
    • Kunle Solaja
    • Offside Musings
    • PressClips
    • Public Sphere
    • Ralph Egbu
    • Shola Oshunkeye
    • Sideview
    • The Flipside – Eric Osagie
    • Tola Adeniyi
  • Business
  • Politics
  • Entertainment
  • The Sun TV
  • Sporting Sun
  • The Sun Foundation
No Result
View All Result
  • National
  • Columns
    • Broken Tongues
    • Capital Matters
    • Diabetes Corner
    • Duro Onabule
    • Femi Adesina
    • Frank Talk
    • Funke Egbemode
    • Insights
    • Kalu Leadership Series
    • Kunle Solaja
    • Offside Musings
    • PressClips
    • Public Sphere
    • Ralph Egbu
    • Shola Oshunkeye
    • Sideview
    • The Flipside – Eric Osagie
    • Tola Adeniyi
  • Business
  • Politics
  • Entertainment
  • The Sun TV
  • Sporting Sun
  • The Sun Foundation
No Result
View All Result
The Sun Nigeria
No Result
View All Result
ADVERTISEMENT
Home Columns

Looters’ challenge for President Buhari

25th March 2016
in Columns, Duro Onabule
0
powers
Share on FacebookShare on Twitter

When he embarked on his moral crusade for probity among public office holders, especially in the management of public funds, President Muhammadu Buhari could hardly have bargained for the series of challenges currently emerging. Whether Buhari likes it or not, he cannot avoid the challenges.
The first of them is what, in the Nigerian political parlance, is fast becoming another abandoned project. On trial all along before Buhari assumed office was the scandal of over two trillion naira subsidy fraud. It was straightforward. Paid by the NNPC to oil importers purportedly as subsidy, neither ex-President Goodluck Jonathan nor former Finance Minister, Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, knew about the huge payment(s), or so they both claimed. Worse still, the National Assembly never appropriated that huge expenditure.
What, therefore, has happened to the trials of those involved in the subsidy theft. In some cases, trials were adjourned. Indefinitely? President Buhari must demand from EFCC full account of the trials.
The challenge facing President Buhari, therefore, on this particular issue, is that he must not let it be recorded for him in history that he abandoned the fuel subsidy fraud for the arms expenditure theft. None is more tolerable than the other. If anything, the $2.1 billion arms money row (420 billion naira) is chicken feed compared to over two trillion naira fuel subsidy fraud. Buhari must call for the Nuhu Ribadu report on the fuel subsidy widespread looting. After four years, none of the trials is yet concluded.
The second challenge facing President Buhari is the handling of the culprits of the arms money scandal. While some are facing trial in law courts, it seems others are being treated with kid gloves. Consequently, those involved don’t know and do not accept the gravity of their offence. Hence, their arrogance and unrepetance. Nigerians are now being irritated with a nebulous distinction between assumed PDP money and stolen state funds. With that posture (more out of desperation to escape), Buhari is being dared, if not ridiculed. It is a challenge he must confront, by the way, not necessarily for himself but for Nigeria. If some are on trial and cannot even meet their bail  conditions, why must others be daring the government?
It is an established fact that PDP committed a crime of collecting state funds unlawfully and distributed some to accomplices. Or does the PDP print the naira? In effect, PDP emerged to have stolen state funds. Anybody who thereafter received in part or whole, is guilty of receiving stolen property. They knew they were stealing public funds. That was why, in the run-up to the election campaigns, Nigerians were deceived with a stage-managed donation of funds by the private sector at the Banquet Hall, Aso Rock.
No matter how tenable was Buhari’s initial policy of stick and carrot or his leniency of allowing the crooks to refund the loot, Nigeria is turning out to be the loser. Those who embraced Buhari’s leniency are cutting a sorry figure for themselves as fools in refunding any money at all. All they too had to do was to defy and dare Buhari, and nothing would have happened to them like the unrepentant ones. It is baffling why these fellows are not being arraigned. By their admission, they knew PDP gave them money and they collected the money. Does their ignorance of the source of receiving stolen property necessarily and legally shield them from returning the stolen property? That is at the most lenient.
If, therefore, even at that, the culprits are daring government, it is a challenge Buhari must pick up by allowing the law courts to determine whether that ignorance is an excuse. Nigerian judiciary is capable of many strange pronouncements and should be allowed to further dent its reputation. What is unacceptable is for President Buhari to be soft with those who stole almost one billion naira while forcing others to refund five or twenty-five million naira.
Buhari is on record that his priority is first to recover the stolen funds, implying that probably, it might no longer be necessary to try such looters. But are those daring him on that score not facing him with a challenge? Yet, these are fellows, who should not only have taken up the offer but should, in fact, have co-operated with Buhari by repenting and apologising to Nigerians. In so doing, the culprits would have merited Buhari’s leniency. But not only do they no longer deserve any mercy, they must also be made to account for their loot.
There is one other compelling reason President Buhari must make the crooks face trial. The 2019 elections are near enough to offer them the notorious self-rehabilitation. The standard practice is to exploit political opportunities by seeking elective offices, to which once elected, even the prosecution will gradually become less enthusiastic.
Without proper trial in law courts for proper conviction, any of these arrogant fellows will emerge as aspirants to public office in 2019. Security reports by State Security Services (SSS) and INEC would not be tenable in law or, at least, never proved tenable in law to bar them from holding public offices for some ten years after their crimes.
Off to the law courts they would take to establish that any such ban, as a breach of their fundamental human rights, is unconstitutional. And the law courts, ever jealous of their supremacy has established that whatever administrative inquiry or even Buhari’s leniency in making crooks refund looted fund, would never be a substitute for trial in law courts for proper conviction.
The latest of such rulings, quite rightly, was the one, which upheld the election of Governor Ayo Fayose of Ekiti State for the second time. It is a point of law, the challenge of which President Buhari must take against both suspects and accused in the arms money scandal. Otherwise, all his vows would amount to empty boast, moreso, if these bad guys are once again allowed on the political scene in 2019.
By the way, it has just been announced that President Buhari is soonest to account for how much he has recovered from the looters. He should be reminded of his full promise. As much as whatever amount he gives will be in line with his pledge, that would be only in part. His full pledge was that not only would he report the amount to Nigerians but that he would also disclose the identities of the crooks, who refunded the  money. On top of this, he must make them face trial to establish a judicial point for banning them from holding public office in the immediate future.

sunnews

sunnews

Related Posts

Winning with the Nigerian spirit
Columns

Epistle to Dimgba Igwe, my dad in Heaven 

28th January 2023
Nigerian destiny in hands of the people
Columns

Nigerian destiny in hands of the people

27th January 2023
The economy and social investment programme
Columns

The change Nigerians need

27th January 2023
Next Post
LG Polls Are Free, Fair and Credible’, Sokoto APC Insists

Rivers re-run polls: A national setback

Rivers election of controversy, killings

Rivers State: The madness must stop

The crucifixion of Jesus Christ (2)

The crucifixion of Jesus Christ (2)

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Highlights

PVCs: Utomi urges INEC to extend Jan. 29 deadline

G-5 Govs are fighting for equity in Nigeria – Mbah, PDP Enugu guber candidate

Excitement as Peter Obi holds Town Hall meeting in Borno

Niger Airstrike: 8,200 people flee from community

Increased violence plot to disrupt poll — CNG

Gombe: My opposers are bandits, have nothing to offer – Gov. Yahaya

Trending

Oyo jail break: Over 300 inmates recaptured
Cover

BREAKING: INEC extends PVC collection again

28th January 2023
0

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) said it has extended the deadline for the collection of Permanent...

Women who shared their men

28th January 2023
Atiku joins calls to extend deadline on old naira notes

Atiku joins calls to extend deadline on old naira notes

28th January 2023
PVCs: Utomi urges INEC to extend Jan. 29 deadline

PVCs: Utomi urges INEC to extend Jan. 29 deadline

28th January 2023
Blame endless fuel scarcities on deficit of investment in downstream – Pinnacle Oil CEO

G-5 Govs are fighting for equity in Nigeria – Mbah, PDP Enugu guber candidate

28th January 2023
ADVERTISEMENT

Follow us on social media:

Latest News

  • BREAKING: INEC extends PVC collection again
  • Women who shared their men
  • Atiku joins calls to extend deadline on old naira notes
  • PVCs: Utomi urges INEC to extend Jan. 29 deadline
  • G-5 Govs are fighting for equity in Nigeria – Mbah, PDP Enugu guber candidate
  • Excitement as Peter Obi holds Town Hall meeting in Borno
  • Niger Airstrike: 8,200 people flee from community
  • Increased violence plot to disrupt poll — CNG
  • Gombe: My opposers are bandits, have nothing to offer – Gov. Yahaya
  • Poll: INEC refusing to replace 4 of our candidates, NNPP cries out
  • NCP South-South Zone rejects Obi’s endorsement as party’s candidate
  • Fear not, your sorrows will soon be over – Muoka tells Nigerians
  • 2023 Poll: Reject candidates with criminal records, cleric urges Nigerians
  • NYSC Deploys 1,800 Corps members to Benue for 2023 batch A orientation
  • Ortom condoles Nasarawa Governor, Sule, over son’s death
  • Redesigned Naira notes: CBN takes sensitisation campaigns to Ogun West, Central senatorial districts
  • 2023: Imo PDP Congratulates Engr. Albert Agulanna On His Victory As Candidate for Aboh Mbaise/Ngor Okpala Federal Constituency 
  • Nasarawa indigents to access N500m bank loan to boost small Medium businesses
  • Lagos APC condemns PDP guber candidate over violence 
  • NYSC to get 3000 capacity multipurpose hall from Nasarawa govt.

Categories

  • Abuja Metro
  • Anambra Watch
  • Arts
  • Broken Tongues
  • Business
  • Business Week
  • Cartoons
  • Citizen Joe
  • Columns
  • Cover
  • Culture
  • Duro Onabule
  • Editorial
  • Education Review
  • Effect
  • Elections
  • Entertainment
  • Events
  • Features
  • Femi Adesina
  • Food & Drinks
  • Frank Talk
  • Funke Egbemode
  • Gallery
  • Global Square by Kenneth Okonkwo
  • Health
  • Insights
  • Kalu Leadership Series
  • Kunle Solaja
  • Kunle Solaja
  • Letters
  • Lifeline
  • Lifestyle
  • Literary Review
  • Marketing Matters
  • Muiz Banire
  • National
  • News
  • Offside Musings
  • Opinion
  • oriental news
  • Politics
  • Press Release
  • PressClips
  • Public Sphere
  • Ralph Egbu
  • Shola Oshunkeye
  • Sideview
  • South-west Magazine
  • Sponsored Post
  • Sporting Sun
  • Sports
  • Sun Girl
  • Tea Time
  • The Flipside – Eric Osagie
  • The Sun Awards Live
  • The Sun TV
  • Thoughts & Talks
  • Time Out
  • Today's cover
  • Tola Adeniyi
  • Travel
  • Travel & Tourism
  • Trending
  • TSWeekend
  • Turf Game
  • Uncategorized
  • Updates
  • Views from Abroad
  • Voices
  • World
  • World News
  • About Us
  • Paper Ad Rate
  • Online Ad Rate
  • Change of Name
  • The Team
  • Contact Us
  • Privacy Policy

© 2019 The Sun Nigeria - Managed by Netsera.

No Result
View All Result
  • National
  • Columns
    • Broken Tongues
    • Capital Matters
    • Diabetes Corner
    • Duro Onabule
    • Femi Adesina
    • Frank Talk
    • Funke Egbemode
    • Insights
    • Kalu Leadership Series
    • Kunle Solaja
    • Offside Musings
    • PressClips
    • Public Sphere
    • Ralph Egbu
    • Shola Oshunkeye
    • Sideview
    • The Flipside – Eric Osagie
    • Tola Adeniyi
  • Business
  • Politics
  • Entertainment
  • The Sun TV
  • Sporting Sun
  • The Sun Foundation

© 2019 The Sun Nigeria - Managed by Netsera.