BUHARI SIN: Why Buhari convicted my father – Alli Twenty four years after Professor Ambrose Alli, former governor of defunct Bendel State (now Edo and Delta states) passed on, his alleged conviction by the Muhammadu Buhari-led military junta in 1984 is now attracting public concern. The Policy Forum, a group consisting of Nigerian intellectuals, hosted the second son of the late former governor, Ayo Abumere Alli, in a memorial e-lecture it organized on September 22, 2013, to mark the former governor’s birthday, which coincidentally was the date he died. Correspondent, Andrew Airahuobhor, cornered Alli and he explained why the family does not want a pardon for their late father, insisting that the man was never guilty of any crime but was just a victim of the military junta’s persecution. He also spoke on other issues. We understand that since the passage of Prof. Ambrose Alli, there hasn’t been any payment of compensation or entitlements to his family by either the state or federal government. How true is this? It’s very true. We have never received a kobo from any state government or federal government of Nigeria. My mother, whom most people, perhaps, don’t remember worked as a midwife at the University of Benin Teaching Hospital all through the four years she was 1st Lady (perhaps the first to work as a front-line public servant), has to date not received any of his pension or other benefits that the widow of an elected governor would and should be entitled to. Does he actually have some outstanding entitlements that the state owes? I am not an expert on the pension laws of Edo and Delta States, but from what I have read, all elected former governors are entitled to pensions, etc. And their widows are entitled to receive these benefits if their husbands (or wives, though there has only been one woman governor in Nigeria) pass on. I would point out that they all do, even those convicted of personal corruption after trials, following due process in a court of law operating under democratic and legal norms. Certainly dad had land in GRA, Benin (which he bought when Waziri was Military Administrator), which was seized and/or appropriated. We have the C of O for this. Also, dad (like every other governor at the time) was allocated land in Abuja (which was then a shadow of what it is now), which was seized by the military junta. Unfortunately, no record of this property exists today. He had land in Lagos, which he sold before he died – this was possible even though it had been seized almost certainly because Mike Akhigbe who is from Edo and admires dad was governor of Lagos, and Aikhomu was IBB’s number 2 – if not, this would have been appropriated as well. But a university was named after him; doesn’t it show that Edo State has acknowledged or appreciated his legacies enough by that action? Well, no one said he wasn’t acknowledged at all. I would point out, it is a university he founded – along with almost 1000 schools, four teacher training colleges, Delta State University, three polytechnics, and numerous other educational institutions. For instance, when he left office in 1983, he was responsible for founding over 10 percent of all the schools in Nigeria at that time – built from scratch. Also, remember that AAU is the first non-federal university in Nigeria; because dad successfully took the federal government (under Shehu Shagari) to court to establish the right for other non-federal universities to be accredited and opened, hence all the state & private universities in Nigeria today. As to whether this ‘acknowledges or appreciates his legacies enough’, perhaps you should examine the impact and depth of his legacy – and the millions of Nigerians he has given opportunities to. Consider the cascade effect of all those literate people, all those graduates, all those teachers? Now you answer the question. Dad does not even have a road named after him in Abuja or Lagos. Also, dad was a public figure and there is the matter of the public record and his ‘conviction’, a term I use loosely. On what grounds are you faulting the tribunal that was duly set up by the Buhari-led military junta to try your dad and several other politicians of the time? That’s an interesting question. ‘Duly set up’ ignores the fact that the Buhari military government itself was technically illegal and illegitimate. Coups were defined as treason by the military themselves after the assassination of Murtala Muhammed in 1976. So, can an illegal administration ‘duly set up’ anything? But that’s perhaps an academic argument, but what’s not in dispute is that the junta had an agenda. For instance, let’s examine the tribunal and its processes for one minute. The accused had no legal representation, in dad’s case, witnesses were harassed and intimidated (detained & threatened with prosecution if they didn’t testify against him); they were not allowed to see any evidence against them; and the accused were questioned in what can only be called an abusive manner verging on torture. Dad, like several others, for instance, was denied medication for blood pressure and diabetes. That, in itself, would be grounds to quash any conviction in a country that has a modicum of justice and strong, working, legal institutions. Also it seems that the tribunal (of 3 serving military officers and 1 judge), was ordered to find dad guilty. A senior member of the Supreme Military Council, or whatever they called themselves, from Bendel State intimated that to me after he had retired from public life. Former vice president, Alex Ekwueme, also refers to this in his autobiography: dad, Bisi Onabanjo, Bola Ige, and Adekunle Ajasin, were announced as being guilty of the specific offence by Idiagbon before they were even charged with it. Interesting that dad was the only politician from Bendel State found guilty and jailed for any offences (others were detained). Also, he was tried for several things. Even the tribunal could not find him guilty of corruptly enriching himself or any other individual. Rather, he was found guilty of ‘corruptly enriching his political party’ – and, unlike what some think, he didn’t give state funds to the UPN. Rather, a campaign contribution was given to the UPN treasurer in Bendel State by a contractor to the Bendel State Government. Dad accepted that as UPN chairman in the state and the chief executive of the state he was responsible, even though he himself did not personally accept or disburse the money. Dad described the tribunal as a ‘Kangaroo Court,’ which is what it was. It is interesting to note that the chairman of the tribunal, General Ndiomu, had some form in chairing tribunals that gave verdicts the incumbent dictator wanted. He chaired the tribunal that sentenced General Vatsa to death on very flimsy circumstantial evidence, and that’s being generous. This is not to say that politicians in the 2nd Republic were not corrupt or that none found so by any tribunal wasn’t. Even a broken clock is right twice a day. But dad’s real ‘crime’ (as far as the junta was concerned), was political. My father’s establishing the derivation of oil revenue as a constitutional reality in Nigeria by successfully taking the FGN to the court to establish fiscal federalism. Buhari’s views on that are very well known. The 1.5 percent revenue derived is what funded my dad’s school buildings and public health programmes. If he had the 13 percent they have today, who knows what he might have done. Now, do you think he was the victim of a terrible injustice or not? Where is the former first lady, widow of the late former governor, Ambrose Alli? My mother lives in the UK. She is well, happily retired and enjoying her grandchildren. She recently turned 70, we thank God. Why did she relocate and for how long has she been away? She relocated for the reasons stated above. She was forced to by constant harassment. Also, she had options – for which we thank God. You said somewhere that your dad does not need a pardon because he was not guilty of any crime, meaning he was unjustly convicted and imprisoned. What else could be done by government with regards to the conviction? I said we are loath to accept a pardon because you pardon the guilty. Accepting a pardon implicitly and explicitly admits guilt. Again, I am not a lawyer, I studied geology for a degree, and West African Politics & Creative Business Management at post-graduate – but it seems to me, when you examine the circumstances, that there are grounds to quash his conviction. Has your family made any case for a possible reversal of the judgment that convicted your dad? I met with, and wrote formally to the current Governor of Edo State, Comrade Adams Oshiomhole, on all these matters a couple of times. So far, despite a seemingly positive disposition, we have had no official acknowledgement, response, or action. Is your family planning a special event to commemorate your late father’s anniversary? Next year is the 25th anniversary of his death on 22nd September – it would have been his 85th birthday. We are examining and exploring doing something to mark it. But the best thing we can do is see that he gets justice and has his name cleared. I would add that if you consider the way dad was treated and his narrative, it is no wonder that politicians in Nigeria are the way they are. Would you rather steal billions and live a comfortable or luxurious life with your family or serve your people, die a pauper and leave your family to the tender mercies of Nigeria? Could you narrate a bit of what you people suffered following the death of your father? I’m sure you’ll appreciate that some of the details are personal and painful. Our dad was sentenced to 100 years in jail and was there for five years. To get some idea of what our mother went through, when your house is ransacked by 30 heavily armed soldiers of the Nigerian Army, in full combat attire, all your husband’s properties seized and bank accounts frozen, you are regularly harassed and questioned by the security services, perhaps you’ll understand something of what she experienced under the Buhari junta. Although she was a senior midwife of over 20 years experience, when she finally had enough and joined us, the children in exile in the UK, mum had to start again as a newly qualified midwife. She worked in the UK National Health Service until she retired a few years ago. We, children, were lucky that we had an English grandmother who had the means to help us go to good schools in the UK. How did you get over the trauma? Well, human beings are resilient. It took some time. It wasn’t until the response we saw at dad’s burial that we realised the regard and affection the people of the then Bendel State and Nigeria had for him. Also, we were taught to try and forgive people who wrong us, and to believe in justice. Considering the great impact your dad made on the lives of people in the then Bendel State and the ideals he stood for, how much appreciation has been shown to the family he left behind? I mean how have Edo and Delta people shown their appreciation to your family? The people of Edo and Delta appreciate my father and refer to him as ‘Our Hero’. Certainly, the goodwill towards him is huge. And elections in Edo and Delta are fought using him as a reference point for good governance, vision, impact, delivery, probity and honesty, as well as in Nigeria. Although not a lot of people remember his role in oil derivation, it’s fair to say that the people of the Niger Delta have benefitted from it, perhaps some disproportionately more than others, if we’re being honest. Also, he is highly respected all over Nigeria till today. As he once said to me, a good name and an education are the two things that no one can take away from you. Are friends and political associates of your late father still in touch with your family in any way? Yes. We are in touch with some of them. Also, my elder sister, Rose, is a politician in Edo State. Do you have any desire to return to Nigeria in the future and, maybe, participate in the political process? I do live and work in Nigeria for pretty much six months of the year. As for participating in the political process, I am currently a businessman and entrepreneur, and that is my focus at this time. Perhaps, in future, if our people want me to serve them in some capacity, I may go into politics. But not right now. Your late father was a Professor of Medicine, is any of his children in the same field? No. Our father always encouraged us to follow our own paths. The only requirement he made was that we must go to university and work hard. My younger sister has, however, recently started studying to become a nurse in the USA, where she lives with her family.
Posted on: Fri, 19 Dec 2014 20:02:58 +0000
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