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Rule of Law or Rule of Fraud?--A response to Mrs. Farida Waziri--

April 17, 2009

Were it not for the blatant dishonesty in the poorly written press release you issued on the 6th anniversary of the Economic and Financial Commission (EFCC) during the week, it wouldn’t have been necessary to respond to the bundle of inconsistencies and outright falsehood contained in the release. Out of naiveté or duplicity, you set out on a revision of history that exposed you as not only incompetent but completely out of touch with the Nigerian reality.

For the benefit of those who did not have the misfortune of reading your statement, I shall endeavour to recap and respond accordingly. You started off by acknowledging that “six years in the life of a government agency is relatively young. Some agencies at this age are still barely struggling to stand on their feet. It is indeed gratifying that at 6, the EFCC has built an admirable reputation for itself nationally and internationally. The results of its work are apparent and have been acknowledged worldwide”.



Well said! What you failed to do in your characteristic deceitful way is to give credit to those who built the organisation from scratch before you were plucked from obscurity to head this all important agency a few months ago. Decency demands, madam, that you do this. You can’t take credit for work that you didn’t do. Under normal circumstance, it is a criminal offence and you should know as a law enforcement personnel. When Nigerians, and indeed the international community, talk about the success of the EFCC, they are not referring to your rebranded EFCC. The reference is to the REAL EFCC and the work it did. You have not done anything to warrant the kind of accolade you seek.

Under you, the rebranded EFCC has become not just a political tool, but a criminal tool in the hands of corrupt politicians and government officials. You are more or less the official undertaker of the war against corruption in Nigeria. 

You mentioned that “the true essence and meaning of equality before the law and rule of law were made manifest by the work of the Commission. For the first time in this country, top administration officials are made to face justice and give account of their stewardship”. I am sure you were referring to the REAL EFCC here because since you took over, no single person in government has been challenged, prosecuted or made to face justice, to use your words. Even the corrupt officials whose files you met, you have managed to find an ingenious way to get them off the hook. You have expanded the frontiers of corruption and emboldened corrupt people so much so that under your infamous leadership, the notorious Inspector General of Police, Mr. Tafa Balogun, who, in the most banal case of “primitive accumulation” and abuse of office desecrated the Nigeria Police, is staging a comeback to claim “his properties” that were forfeited to the government after his conviction.

You acknowledged that “the stages of development of the Commission have been two fold. The first stage has been the first five years of its existence and the second stage has been the last 8 months when a new leadership came on board” (you really would call your stay at the rebranded EFCC leadership?). You wrote: “It is necessary therefore to do a frank appraisal of not only the achievements of the Commission but also the challenges and weaknesses the Commission has faced. From inception, the Commission has faced the following criticisms:
EFCC focused on enforcement and not preventive/educational functions.
EFCC’s actions are not based upon the rule of law.
EFCC is a political tool of the Presidency.
EFCC is arbitrary and selective in its investigations
Consequently, upon assumption, the new leadership faced the following key challenges:
Weak administrative structures and the absence of career path for officers
Absence of strategy/blueprint for realisation of the Commission’s mandate
Haphazard administration and investigation
Poorly motivated work force
Failure to properly utilise the Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit (NFIU) for investigation
Non-compliance with the Rule of Law and the attendant human rights abuses
Political interference from government”.

Is it clear Mrs. Farida that this rule of law mantra that you and that other dissembler who unfortunately is the face of Nigeria on the international stage (I mean the Attorney General of the Federation) is nothing but a ruse. It is nothing but a very smart although fraudulent phrase for doing nothing and creating a cover for corrupt people in power.

You talk about “EFCC focused on enforcement and not preventive/educational functions”. Again your ignorance comes to the fore here. For those of us involved in anti-corruption issues who followed the work of the REAL EFCC, we are aware of something called Fix Nigeria Initiative which was a genuine attempt to engage the broadest strata of civil society and let them claim ownership and control of the war against corruption. Fix Nigeria engaged the religious community, the NBA, students, youth, market men and women, corps members, teachers, Nollywood, the media, professionals in diverse fields, etc. And the result was phenomenal. For the first time in the history of our great country, young people began to understand the impact of corruption on Nigeria and their own future and the need to do something about it. Even at that, the leadership of the Commission then did not take its foot of the pedal in pursuing those who had been identified as corrupt. It realized that the best preventive tool is to punish those guilty of corruption.

Madam, let me inform you that Nigeria is comatose today simply because our leaders and those in government understand that there is no consequence for their actions. Under Mallam Nuhu Ribadu, the REAL EFCC was getting to the stage where corruption – at least grand corruption – would be unfashionable. You came in and all you have done in the last eight months is to reverse the trend. Talking about selectivity in investigation, we know how you and your principal went on a bogus corruption investigation in the power sector all in an attempt to create room for your cronies to come chop with you.

The REAL EFCC investigated members of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) at the federal, state and local government levels and was able to bring them to justice. Minsters, top legislators, governors, even the vice president were investigated. Under the REAL EFCC, the Commission was able to work with foreign anti-corruption and law enforcement agencies to deal with money laundering. Former governor D.S.P. Alamieyeseigha was caught with millions of pounds in cash in London. Same with Joshua Dariye. In the case of the vice president it was, I understand, based on tips from the US under the mutual legal assistance scheme. Are you aware that the former vice president can’t step foot in the US even though he has properties there? You will do yourself and Nigerians a world of good if you spent the time that you really do not have to face the challenges before you. Anyone genuine war on corruption will not allow the likes of former governor James “artful dodger” Ibori to walk freely in the streets of Abuja, much less hold court at Aso Rock, the seat of government. A real war on corruption will put the searchlight on the likes of “justice” minister, Michael Andooaka, Inspector General of Police, Mike Okiro, the minister of agriculture, the economic adviser to the president, and even the president and the first lady (parents who have debased the very meaning of parenthood by offering their daughters to the highest bidders) who are not only coordinating your efforts, but are the ultimate beneficiaries of your shenanigans.

The REAL EFCC investigated those in government. Even while you parley with corrupt government officials daily, you would rather be chasing after members of the former government. The EFCC today is working hard not only to cover up for the president, but his many cronies and associates. What can be more political? Today, the EFCC is made up of people from your State, many half-baked professionals whose interest is not in combating corruption. You have managed to secure the services of the worst members of the media who are more at home with syndicating articles and stories for “friendly” journalists and media houses than telling you what you need to hear.

You talked about inheriting weak administrative structures and the absence of career path for officers. You fail to realize or mention that it was the structure that you inherited that did all the work that made the EFCC a world class institution. The REAL EFCC had motivated workers who were led by example. It could boast of a passion-driven workforce. All that has disappeared. Try doing a survey today to gauge the mood of your staff. The double standard of walking with corrupt politicians and pontificating about corruption cannot motivate staff. Madam, isn’t it clear that the EFCC is collapsing before your very eyes!

According to you, “using the mix of the preventive approach and the traditional mode while operating within the rule of law, the Commission in the past nine months has witnessed startling results”. What are these results? Here is a snapshot: 
1) Secured 50 convictions in the past nine months. These represent about a third of all convictions secured since the establishment of the Commission in 2002.”
 2) Made recoveries of over N50 billion in the last 9 months.
3) Investigated and filed several fresh high profile cases which include cases of former Governors and Ministers.
4) The case of Nasir El-Rufai has also been filed and the Commission will soon commence the process of his extradition. Several other high profile matters will soon be filed in court.
5) Instituted an aggressive programme of sensitization of the public and whistle blowing to ensure their buy-in into the anti corruption fight (ANCOR).
6) Improved Nigeria’s Transparency rating and direct foreign investment inflows. Nigeria’s Transparency International (TI) rating moved from 142 in 2006 to 121 in 2008.

First, it is important to remind you that it would have been helpful to mention or release the names of those you have convicted. It is important to note that conviction is the end of the road in a very long process of investigation and prosecution. Clearly, some of these convictions you are seeking adulation for were cases that were started by the REAL EFCC; many of them had been concluded and were only waiting judgement by the time you came onboard. Eight months of stealing and doing nothing would not have produced this kind of result. Also, many of the so-called fresh cases are really not fresh. But let us even leave the issue of fresh or no fresh, after all, this is not fruit or coffee we are talking about.  We are waiting to see the outcome of your investigation and prosecution.
    
You noted that “the Commission has continued to double its efforts in addressing corruption. A day hardly passes without the investigation of a high profile case. There are presently over 200 pending cases in various courts across the country at various stages of prosecution ranging from corruption, money laundering, fraud, illegal oil bunkering, pipeline vandalism, etc”.

What a bundle of razzmatazz and contradiction. In one breath, you talk about 50 convictions during your tenure as representing “about a third of all convictions secured since the establishment of the Commission in 2002”. In the same breath you gush: “Our conviction records remain unequalled in the country and in Africa. Over 300 convictions in 6 years of operation is unprecedented”. Are we dealing with a problem of mathematics here? 50 is one-third of 150. One-third of 300 is 100. Mrs. Farida, if you enjoy gloating about the over 300 convictions which have made EFCC the envy of the world, you should give credit to those who made it possible. Whatever good things people have to say about the EFCC is only because of the work it did between 2003 and 2007.
 
According to you, “in its 2008 Annual Report, the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) described the EFCC as the most successful anti-corruption Agency in Africa. Recently also in Banjul, The Gambia, under the instrument of the EFCC, Nigeria was elected to chair the new ECOWAS Network of Anti-Corruption bodies in West Africa. These are not indicators for a country that its war on corruption is waning”.

Sorry I am taking it personal, but Mrs. Waziri you do not deserve the credit you so desperately want to claim. You can get it though, but you must work for it. For now, you are doing the very opposite. In conclusion, you assured us “that the war has not slowed down. During the course of prosecuting the war on corruption, the Commission has been lucky to receive tremendous support locally and internationally. Mr. President has not only been supportive, his exemplary leadership and zero tolerance for corruption also provided the needed political will to advance the fight”.

Mrs. Farida, you and your principal have given a new meaning to the term “zero-tolerance”. For you, “zero-tolerance” means accepting corruption without questioning! As for the local and international support, there is nothing to add. Nobody will support a leadership that is corrupt. You must be living in Lala Land to think that Nigerians do not know what is going on within the Commission. Today, the rule of law is used as an alibi to destroy the most important cases of corruption in the country. Nothing is going on in the cases involving former governors. The rule of law means that it is only the hopelessly poor and downtrodden who are helpless who are made to face corruption charges; rule of law means that wealthy people can pay cash and escape justice; your rule of law means free for all stealing once again; it means trying desperately, even if unsuccessfully, to compromise the media and the judiciary.

Rather than pontificate about the rule of law and attack your predecessor who has since moved on and whom I hear is doing a three-year stint at St. Anthony’s College in Oxford University as a visiting fellow, you will do well to sit up and really fight corruption. EFCC has lost its credibility both at home and abroad. History will judge you and the way you are going, it will judge you harshly!

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