Members of the Nigerian Democratic Liberty Forum (NDLF) in New York today ensured a heart-pounding exit from public view in the city by Farida Waziri, Executive Chairperson of Nigeria's Economic and Financial Crimes Commission. She had to leave by a back door.
Waziri was at the Upper East Side offices of the Council on Foreign Relations (CFR) to talk about corruption in Nigeria. But the NDLF was not buying the ruse that she is qualified to to talk about fighting graft. Their presence, in the end, saw the former policewoman fleeing into the Friday afternoon traffic. Yesterday, the NDLF indicated that despite the short notice and the fact that Friday is a work day, they would be in place to make sure the corruption pretend-fighter would understand the feelings of her compatriots.
This morning, soon after the protesters unveiled their placards and began to lift their voices, the CFR security hurriedly called the New York Police. Upon their arrival, the police requested that the protesters move across the street. That decreased the protest’s visibility, but not the protester's impact or their message.
Our reporter noted that long after Waziri was scheduled to have departed CFR's Harold Pratt House offices at 1: 30 PM, it was obvious that she and her entourage were holed up inside the building, afraid to come face to face with the protesters. At 2 :00 PM, she hurriedly exited the building through a back door, and was swiftly smuggled off in a waiting car belonging to the Nigerian Consulate in New York. The protesters did their best to mob the car, waiving their posters and angry presence was duly noticed. Indeed it was, and the car carrying Ms. Waziri quickly sped off around the corner through a red light.
Following yesterday's breaking of the story by Saharareporters that Waziri would be showing up in the Big Apple, Nigerians, through the NDLF and the UK-based Nigeria Liberty Forum (NLF), began actively protesting the role of the CFR, which was hosting Waziri at a second “invitation only” event within the week. On Monday, it held a similar event in Washington DC.
Many Nigerians said they called and e-mailed CFR's officials and offices. Mr. Bukola Oreofe, the executive director of the NDLF said the active participation of Nigerians across the globe has stressed the belief of the NDLF that contrary to Waziri's advertised “zero-tolerance for corruption”, she has aided corruption in Nigeria far more than she has opposed it, and has become part of the problem. It is for this reason that Nigerians denounced CFR’s invitation to Waziri to speak on the behalf of the struggle against corruption in Nigeria, and called for it to be cancelled.
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