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| Presidents Jonathan & Barack |
The United States has passed a damning verdict on the Nigerian government under the leadership of President Goodluck Jonathan. The government, it says, has been shielding those guilty of high-profile cases of graft.
In its Country Report on Human Rights Practice for 2013, the US State Department alleges that the government had been frustrating the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) from prosecuting those found culpable of financial crimes. Section 4 of the report entitled ‘Corruption and lack of Transparency in Government’ states that “the EFCC faced several frustrating setbacks during the year (2013)”.
According to the US State Department,”despite the arrest of several high-ranking officials by the EFCC, allegations continued that agency investigations targeted individuals who had fallen out of favour with the government, while those who were in favour continued their activities with impunity”.
The report obtained by LEADERSHIP yesterday cites the presidential pardon granted former Bayelsa State governor Diepreye Alamieyeseigha “who was convicted in 2008 for embezzling over $10million in state funds”. Police corruption, it says, remained “rampant” and the lack of legislative protection for whistleblowers like suspended Central Bank governor Mallam Sanusi Lamido Sanusi was the most offending among the pile-up of corruption cases in Nigeria.
Besides, the report notes that the refusal of President Jonathan to disclose his assets and the lackluster in implementing the “Public Access to Information” (the Freedom of information Act) by the federal government also feature prominently in the US report.
The report observed that EFCC chairman Ibrahim Larmorde, who took over office in 2011, continued previous cases or brought new cases against 12 nationally prominent public officials, amidst several frustrating setbacks faced by the anti-graft agency during the year.
On the presidential pardon granted the president’s former boss, the report states: “While Alamieyeseigha served two years in prison and forfeited the property he held in the country, he was still wanted in the United Kingdom on money laundering charges, and another foreign government seized his assets. By granting him a pardon, President Jonathan paved the way for Alamieyeseigha to run for another elected office or to hold other appointed offices.”
On corruption in the Police Force, the report notes: “In January the EFCC won the conviction of John Yakubu Yusuf for embezzling two billion naira ($12.6million) from the Police Pension Fund,which carried with it a two-year prison sentence. The judge fined Yusuf N250,000 ($1,570) in lieu of prison time.
“The day following this judgment,the EFCC re-arrested Yusuf on the charge of failing to declare a N250million ($1.57million) bank account on his mandatory Declaration of Assets Form; Yusuf remained in custody pending trial at the end of the year.”
The report also cites the case involving former Bayelsa governor Timipre Sylva as one of the corruption cases still pending. It states: “In February 2012 the EFCC brought criminal charges against former governor of Bayelsa State Timipre Sylva for laundering almost 5 billion naira ($31.4million) of funds belonging to Bayelsa State. In October 2012 the EFCC seized 48 properties worth approximately one billion naira ($6.3 million) allegedly belonging to Sylva in Abuja.
“Sylva was granted bail in January. The EFCC discovered still more evidence of Sylva’s money laundering activities,and after he refused to co-operate with the investigation,the EFCC arrested him again in May to bring new charges,raising the amount of money he was suspected of laundering to 6.46 billion naira ($40.6 million). The court held Sylva in custody for one month before granting him bail of 100 million naira ($628,000);the court refused his request to return his passports to travel to London with his wife.”
The report further cites the trial of a member of the House of Representatives, Farouk Lawan, who was indicted over soliciting a bribe from business mogul Femi Otedola, noting that the case which started on October 23 was still pending.
Citing other corruption cases, the report notes: “On July 4, the Federal High Court in Abuja acquitted former Minister of Works and Housing Hassan Lawal. In May 2011 the EFCC arrested Lawal on 24 counts of fraudulently awarding contracts, money laundering and embezzlement of 75 billion naira ($471 million).
“On May 28, the Federal High Court in Abuja started the trial of former Speaker of the House of Representatives Dimeji Bankole for making fraudulent contracts worth 894 million naira ($5.6 million); it continued at year’s end. “
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