Economic Terrorism - By: Aniebo Nwamu - November 17, 2013 Our leaders are quarrelling and our anti-corruption agencies are working. Surely, there is a relationship between the two events. Anyone who says that the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) are not selective is simply lying. Is it a mere coincidence that, just a day after Governor Sule Lamido of Jigawa State alleged that a minister in President Jonathan’s government received a $250 million (N42 billion) bribe from an oil company, the EFCC swooped on Jigawa State and arrested Lamido’s two sons and the ICPC started looking into the books of the state’s local governments? In recent times, we have witnessed demonstrations of raw power in Abuja. The FCDA suddenly discovered that a building in Maitama that had been used as the office of a political association and a political party for several years was meant to be a residential place, as soon as the “new PDP” hoisted its flag on it. Those devils in the Development Control department of the FCDA promptly marked “REVERT”, in red paint, on the building, and the FCT minister threatened to revoke its certificate of occupancy. Another building belonging to Kano State governor Rabiu Kwankwaso was equally identified and threatened with demolition. Economic terrorism, then, has become a potent weapon in the hands of Nigeria’s demi-gods in power. We may never get our politics right until we get a workable constitution that makes it impossible for the ruling party to persecute the opposition. The winner-take-all attitude of our politicians is what has been turning Nigeria into a one-party state. I know that, by 1999, the APP and the PDP were running neck and neck in terms of spread and acceptability; I still believe that APP won the presidential election of that year, but the generals had already determined whom to hand over power to. Obasanjo did not tolerate opposition, and Nigeria’s hungry politicians couldn’t play politics on empty stomach. The Jonathan government seems to have rediscovered the old trick of whipping the opposition politicians into line: cripple their finances and they would come begging for alms. Incumbency! Early in the life of the All Progressives Congress (APC), this column advised the gladiators to gather lots of money from anywhere before fighting the ruling party. That piece of advice, it seems, has been ignored by paper tigers, who are now working hard to give victory to the ruling party on a platter of gold in 2015. The incumbent leaders are using every weapon in their arsenal: FCTA, banks, EFCC, ICPC, FIRS and many other ministries, departments and agencies (MDAs). On a daily basis, the politicians in power are compiling lists of thousands of their supporters to be employed in the MDAs. Ask the directors of most federal government agencies and they would tell you how their wage bills have been mounting on account of senators’ lists, ministers’ lists, the presidency’s lists and the like. And these are the same people preaching “due process”. When, therefore, Governor Lamido charged that a minster accepted a N42 billion bribe and that he informed the president who took no action, one could understand. Never mind the denials. They always ask for evidence of a crime when they feel they have covered their tracks. Even though Governor Lamido did not mention the minister involved, everyone knows it must be someone close to the presidency. And the “bribe” in question must have been shared by many people or kept as a slush fund for fighting the next elections. I have heard also that N500 million is diverted from a maritime agency’s treasury every month. The evidence? They are still looking for evidence that N255 million was used to buy two bulletproof cars! In seeking the truth in Lamido’s allegation (the source of the $250m bribe), it is necessary to examine a few facts: How could a nation be losing 400, 000 barrels of crude every day to thieves and yet nothing happens? Several panels have confirmed that over N1 trillion was stolen in the name of fuel subsidy two years ago, but what happened to the culprits? Could someone explain to Nigerians why the Petroleum Industry Bill is yet to become law? What is the source of the money a Niger Delta militant used to buy a private jet recently? By this year’s end, over N2 trillion would have gone into “security”, yet nobody and no place is secure. Economic terrorism is a weapon of mass (opposition) destruction. Governor Lamido should have reported the matter to the EFCC and not to the president. Perhaps he felt the agency wouldn’t move unless pushed. Now, it has turned its searchlight on his two sons. For me, however, that is not a problem. The EFCC may be selective in the prosecution of alleged offenders, but what matters is this: are the people it is investigating involved in corruption? Lamido’s sons were alleged to have laundered billions of naira; let them face the law. And let the minister that accepted a bribe – it might have been “returns” from an oil deal anyway – also face justice. The unfortunate thing is that Nigerian criminals almost always escape justice while on the Nigerian soil. Driving Traders Out Of Business The coming of ultra-modern shopping malls like Shoprite and Next to Nigeria is sure to drive many traders into bankruptcy and then joblessness. I have gone shopping in these malls several times and I can confirm that they are getting a lot of patronage. My advice to all traders across Nigeria is: look for something else to do immediately. Virtually everything found in Onitsha, Ariaria or Alaba market could be found in these shopping malls: from bread, sweets and pepper to TV sets, clothing items and refrigerators. Air conditioners keep customers away from heat or cold. There is no haggling or bargaining. Every item has a price tag; you pick it and go straight to the cashier who issues a receipt and hands you the correct change, including coins that are no longer seen in Nigerian markets. For now, their prices are competitive. But their biggest advantage is that there is no chance of any tout cheating you or stealing your items, as they do in open markets. Each branch has a very large parking space for cars. I wonder why nobody saw it coming: the fortune of Nigerian traders will soon nosedive, if it has not started dwindling already. Shoprite and Next, I learned, plan to set up hundreds of branches in Nigerian cities within the next two years. Last week, Governor Adams Oshiomhole of Edo State laid the foundation stone for Shoprite in Benin City. The project is estimated to cost $45 million (N7.4billion) and will be completed in 18 months. All those who earn a living by buying and selling goods have been given advance warning or quit notice. Let them now seek opportunities elsewhere. Farmlands are waiting for those that can go into rice farming. Wheat, beans, fruit and scores of other crops are needed by small and medium-scale manufacturers. Nigerians also need fish for local consumption, not for export yet. It’s up to the government at all levels to stop paying lip service to agriculture. The traders that are being displaced by these modern shopping malls should be helped to find other jobs. Imagine the number of traders and their dependants that would be affected when the markets in Kano, Onitsha, Aba, Abuja, Damaturu, Lagos, Ibadan and Jos are no more.
Posted on: Wed, 20 Nov 2013 10:27:58 +0000
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