Comparing Buhari with Jonathan – in frankly speakin President Goodluck Jonathan and Gen. Muhammadu Buhari (rtd) By Dele Shobowale “Under Buhari’s watch as Petroleum Minister in the late 1970s, $2.8 billion (worth billions of naira today) was missing from the NNPC ACCOUNT. The matter was subject to Senate investigation under the Chairmanship of Olusola Saraki in 1983. But, before the report could be dealt with, Buhari conveniently overthrew the Shagari government in a military coup.” Femi Aribisala, l “Be thou as chaste as ice, as pure as snow, thou shalt not escape calumny.” Shakespeare, 1564-1616. (VANGUARD BOOK p 25). N.B. The title had been slightly amended from Part 1. I never experienced so many tears shed over a few words; so many crying more than the bereaved. And, the fun is just starting. Aribisala, in an astonishing demonstration of arrogance of ignorance piled more falsehoods into one paragraph than any respectable columnist and public opinion molder should be allowed to get away with in two years. I don’t know how old Femi is, but let me present FACTS which can be verified, not wooly statements like “in the late 1970s”. Buhari became the Federal Commissioner for Petroleum and Natural Resources in 1976 and held that position until April, 21, 1977 when the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC, was promulgated into law by Decree 33 of 1977. Buhari was made the non-Executive Chairman of the Board which included, the Managing Director, the Permanent Secretary, Federal Ministry of Finance, the Permanent Secretary, Federal Ministry of Economic Development, the Managing Director, and three persons to be appointed by the Federal Executive Council. Contrary to what Femi, in his absolute ignorance wrote, the Commissioner’s power under the decree were so proscribed he could not have single-handedly removed a kobo, not to talk of $2.8 billion, which the NNPC, in 1977-79, never had. (See my book PDP: CORRUPTION INCORPORATED Chapter 10. In addition, I challenge Femi Aribisala to provide the Annual Reports and Accounts of the NNPC from 1977 to 1979 to prove that the Corporation, in its entirety, was worth $2.8 billion. If the entire organization was not worth that much, how on earth could $2.8 be missing? At any rate what were the MD, the Permanent Secretaries and the other Board members doing while Buhari alone made $2.8 billion to disappear? Furthermore, at the time, the President granted the crude lifting permissions; and the revenue was paid directly into the Central Bank account. How did Buhari collect $2.8 billion from the CBN? And where is Femi’s proof? I can bet my life he can provide none. NONE!!! For Femi’s education, because he badly needs it, the only $2.8 billion which made the headlines in 1978-1979, and later became the stuff of hostile columns by people like late Dr Tai Solarin and the butt of jokes by Fela Anikulapo, Abami Eda, was the $2.8 billion loan which Obasanjo secured for Nigeria and which several people claimed was mostly embezzled. I have no proof of theft. But, I know that $2.8 billion had featured in our history only once in 1978-1979 and it was the loan. Now, let me quickly turn to the coup of 1983 and Buhari’s involvement in it, which Femi, deliberately inferred was staged to prevent a report by Saraki from being presented. Here again, Femi’s grasp on Nigeria’s history is so poor that I hope this is not representative of the stuff he teaches; if it is, the students have my sympathy. To start with, Buhari was the Head of the Third Armored Division in Jos when the coup plotters, led by Babangida and Abacha struck. They invited Buhari to come and take charge and removed him at their conveniece. So, the statement “Buhari conveniently overthrew Shagari” is a blatant lie. The lie is made more heinous by the fact that there was no Saraki report to “be dealt with”. Let me quickly explain why. Shagari was re-elected for the second term and sworn in October 1, 1983. From October to December of that year, just three months, both the Executive and the legislative branches of government were still taking shape. The Senate President had just finished the composition of the numerous committees of the Senate and none had resumed work before they went on Christmas break in mid-December – and from there into retirement. When exactly did the Saraki “investigation” start? Who were the people called? And when was the report prepared? Even the village idiot knows that the Nigerian Senate does not work so fast as to dispose of alleged theft of $2.8 billion in two and a half months. Was Buhari called or are we to believe that the Committee would investigate a matter and write a report without calling the one accused? The whole damned thing is simply a figment of Aribisala’s over-fertile imagination thrown up to satisfy his anti-North, anti-Islam bigotry… OIL PRICE DECLINES TO $82. “The only thing necessary in life as in art is to tell the truth” Leo Tolstoy, (VANGUARD BOOK OF QUOTATIONS, P 255). We warned our Fellow Nigerians about inevitable decline of crude prices to under $90, when it was selling for $112. Tuesday, November 4, 2014, it went down to $82. What was the Finance Minister telling Nigerians? What was Jonathan being told?
Posted on: Sun, 09 Nov 2014 19:15:14 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015