THAT APC MANIFESTO ON FIGHTING CORRUPTION; THESE THAT GO TO EQUITY MUST GO WITH CLEAN HANDS! The lunching of APCs. 10 points roadmap last Thursday, the 6th day of March, 2014 marked yet another milestone in the partys quest for control of Nigerias leadership. The manifesto/roadmap touched on wide range of spectrum bordering on indiscipline, education, national security, employment, social security, electric power stability, state Police, health and most importantly on the monster called corruption. In all of the APCs pledges and promises as is contained in the roadmap, I am personally agitated and carried away by the partys approach to how it intends to fight corruption. This is because corruption as is pervasively prominent or existing in the present Nigerian polity and our socio-economic lives, remains the most dangerous social vice that is retardating the countrys growth and development. This is to say, all other vices are tied to, or dependent on corruption. That is why in the APC roadmap/manifesto the party gave an elaborate or detailed policy pronouncement in order to stem the tide of this national endemic (called corruption). Bellow is the partys roadmap on how it intends to fight the monster of corruption, if voted into power comes 2015; APC started by recognizing that corruption is crippling Nigeria, that it would create a vibrant economy where jobs and opportunities are more readily available, that every individual civil servant, business and government leader must play by the same rules, obey the laws and reject the temptation of bribery and corruption. The party was very specific on its anti-corruption agenda when it said it plans to, show Zero tolerance for official and /or private sector corruption. Here is one of the APCs expensive jocks? when it says it plans to place the burdened of proving innocence in corruption cases on persons with explicable wealth (what this simply means, is that if any person is seen to be living above his means, he shall be compelled to explain the sources of his wealth). Another big Jock? is that the party shall pursue legislation expanding forfeiture and seizure of assets, laws and procedure with respect to inexplicable wealth, regardless of whether there is a conviction for criminal conduct or not. That APC intends to strengthen legal provisions to prevent stay of proceedings and other delays in corruption trials. The party pledge to guarantee the independence of anti-corruption and financial crimes agencies by legislation, charging their budgets directly from the consolidated Revenue Fund. The APC also intends to improve the ability of citizens to keep an eye on their government, with more open access to government data, greater disclosure of government contracts prior to awards and during implementation, and ensuring that peoples business are done in an open and transparent way. Finally, the APC has also pledged to stop corruption in our elections, in part by making the Independent National and States Electoral Commissions truly independent and free from political interference or manipulations. As laudable as the APCs approach to corruption as enunciated above, the leadership of the party and its board of trustees must however be reminded that He Who Goes to Equity Must Go With Clean Hands, that Charity Must Begin at Hope and These That Live In Glass Houses Must Not Throw Stones. What those words of wisdom simply mean is, for the APC leadership to genuinely achieve those noble policy pronouncements on corruption, they MUST live, and lead by example and they MUST also be seen to be living, and leading by example. It is the opinion of this writer that, the starting point of the APC leadership and its governors is to first start by public declaration of their assets. Where they are found to be living above their means, they must forfeit the ill gotten wealth to the Nigerian state (the late General Murtala Ramat Muohammed example). The APC leadership Must also be reminded that, to achieve this kind of corruption-free dream in this county where corruption has now become the norm and tradition of the majority, it needs the rear courage of the likes of the late General Murtala Mohammed, the General Muhammadu Buhari, the late General Tunde Idiagbon, the General Hassan Usman Katsina, the late Sunday Owoniyi, the Audu Ogbe, the Nuhu Ribadu, the Late Yahaya Gusau, and many more of the Nigerian patriots, present and beyond, that have clearly manifested courage and strength of character and disdain against this monster and cancer called corruption.
Posted on: Sun, 09 Mar 2014 12:02:46 +0000