At his election, corruption was not the main focus of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s campaign; he was more concerned about the issues of insecurity, poverty alleviation among the poor, unemployment among Nigerian youths and other issues that concern the welfare of the ordinary people.
Also, at the appointment of his
Ministers, the President was
silent on corruption matters;
his charge to them was simply
to be innovative, and come up with creative ideas that
would provide solutions to
the problems of the masses,
as it related to their various
Ministries. At a retreat for
his Ministers and political
appointees, his covenant with
them was that they must be innovative or bow out.
Suddenly, the unexpected
happened, when there was an
anti-corruption whistle at the
Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs
and Poverty Alleviation; it was
a whistle against corruption at
the Ministry. In the mess was the
Minister, Dr. Betta Edu; she was
alleged to have approved the
payment of N585.189 million
to a private account.
It was also alleged that the money was meant for the vulnerable persons in Akwa Ibom, Cross River, Ogun, and Lagos states. It was the second anticorruption whistle; the first was at the National Social Investment Programme Agency, (NSIPA), where President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, had earlier suspended its National Co-Ordinator, Halima Shehu, over alleged N44 billion
frauds.
Not long after, the Code of
Conduct Bureau invited the
Minister of Interior, Olubunmi
Tunji-Ojo to appear before it
over the involvement of New
Planet Project, a company he
co-founded; in a N438 million
contract by the Ministry of
Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Alleviation. The company was reportedly alleged to have benefited from a N438 million contract as payment for consultancy fees.
The Code of Conduct Bureau, in
a letter signed by the Director of
Investigation and Monitoring,
Gwimi S. P. and addressed to the
Interior Minister stated that “the
Bureau is investigating a case
of alleged breach of Conduct
for Public Officers in which your
name featured prominently.
Consequently, you are invited for
an interview…
The Code of Conduct Bureau
investigation of the Minister
of Interior was coming after
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu,
had directed a thorough investigation into the
allegation against the Minister
of Humanitarian Affairs and
Poverty Alleviation, Dr Betta
Edun, over the alleged payment
of N585 million into a private
account and ordered her
immediate suspension from
office.
The first indication that
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu
would not tolerate corruption
was the removal, arrest and
detention of the former
Governor of the Central Bank of
Nigeria, Mr. Godwin Emefiele.
Although no reasons were given
for his arrest and detention, it
became clear that the former
CBN Governor had his fingers soiled with alleged various
corruption deals while in office.
He was standing trial before
Justice Hamza Muazu, on an
amended 20 charges bordering
on criminal conspiracy,
conferring undue advantage
and breach of trust among
others, brought against
him by the Economic and
Financial Crimes Commission,
EFCC; including, allegedly,
impersonating the Secretary
to the Government of the Federation to illegally obtain a sum of $6.2 million on January 8 2023; forgery of the signature of former President Muhammadu Buhari, among others. In what appeared to be a total anti-corruption war, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, under President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, has revisited several other corruption cases, some of which may have been swept under the carpet. Consequently, the Commission had re-opened alleged money laundering cases amounting to about N853.8 billion against 13 former governors and ministers.
For example, the EFCC reopened a case of $2.2 billion meant for arms procurement in the fight against terrorism, which was allegedly laundered, diverted and misappropriated under former President Goodluck Jonathan. A Presidential Committee, which investigated the arms procurement indicted former National Security Adviser Sambo Dasuki and others.
The EFCC also reopened the alleged $6 billion Mambila Power Project fraud in which former Minister of Power, Mines and Steel, Olu Agunloye was standing trial, among several other cases against former Ministers and Governors, which were abandoned inconclusively.
The EFCC Chairman, Ola Olukoyede, had reportedly vowed that all high-profile cases would be reviewed and revisited; while indicted former and serving public officials would not be overlooked. Acting Director of Public Affairs at the EFCC, Mr. Wilson Uwujaren was reportedly, said, during a protest by Zamfara Alternative Forum at the Commission’s headquarters in Abuja that the EFCC Chairman had reviewed all inherited highprofile cases, since he assumed office, and the Commission would investigate every indicted high-profile person. He assured that nobody was above the law and no case shall be swept under carpet.
