Recently, at a world economic forum,
WEF event, US Secretary of State, John Kerry told his audience how Nigerian
military generals shared amongst themselves 9 billion dollars that had been set
aside for purchase of arms to prosecute the war against terrorism .
Not only was the US top diplomat
factually incorrect, because it was actually $2.1 billion that was appropriated
for the war against religious extremists known as Boko Haram in north east of
Nigeria, the fund was in fact a covert slush fund for marshaling votes for then
ruling party, Pdp which was facing serious challenge from then opposition party,
APC.
In my reckoning ,previously,the state
oil/gas firm NNPC ,the central bank of Nigeria,CBN and a few parastatal like
the ports and maritime authorities were the usual sources of funding for
political campaigns, but following the heavy spotlight on the NNPC which
opposition legislators compelled the Govt to embark on via forced audit by PwC
and the allegation of missing $45 billion that’s supposed to accrue to the CBN
from crude oil sales, a charge leveled by then CBN Gov, now emir of Kano, Sanusi
Lamido Sanusi, those two regular sources were blocked.
So a new platform had to be identified
and the fight against insurgency was thought to be the most viable ‘soft
target’ that could be explored since security votes and how they are expended
are usually opaque and hardly questioned,making the Office of The National
Security Adviser, ONSA seem like the best new option siphon funds.
But unfortunately, then ruling party
strategists were wrong as they failed to realize that in a liberal democracy
with a vibrant opposition and civil society, there is no hiding place for such
financial debauchery.
Be that as it may, it’s important to
recognize the fact that the use of govt funds for campaign is not peculiar to
Nigeria because in India, construction contracts are used by politicians to
funnel slush funds for politics and that’s according to World Economic Council
report.
What the US Secretary of State, John
Kerry’s submission at the World Economic Forum, WEF did to Nigeria was to once
again unduly put the country under a negative spot-light as she was used as a
metaphor for corruption which is rather unfair, more so as the current government
in power has done a lot to rein in corruption.
It is even more disheartening and
appalling that the presentation of our country in very bad light was
facilitated by Nigerian leaders who in a bid to enhance their selfish political
capital, embarked on campaign of calumny against the current opposition party
Pdp.
But unknown to them, the new ruling
party, APC was literarily shooting itself in the foot because, it is such
shenanigan that has, in part culminated into foreign investors apathy to the
nation, as we had warned against in several media interventions, but govt
failed to heed our advise.
Put succinctly, the Nigerian
establishment unwittingly attracted opprobrium to itself by arming critics with
damaging information and data to assail the country through their unguarded and
largely exaggerated claims of outrageous corruption in Nigeria, which has now
become an albatross and partly responsible for the rapid descent of the economy
into recession.
In my reckoning,even without such
damaging comments being made to score cheap political points, a frustrated
Nigerian populace would have still voted for the opposition candidate, General
Muhamadu Buhari, GMB or any other candidate from a solid political party with
national spread because most Nigerians were simply frustrated and were ready to
vent their anger against the establishment that is believed to be impoverishing
the masses through maladministration.
The assertion above is in line with
emerging global trends whereby voters are railing against the establishment
from the UK, Germany, France, Japan and to the US as evidenced by the outcomes
of recent elections like BREXIT in England where Britons voted to exit the
European Union, EU and the forthcoming elections in the US where
anti-establishment candidate, Donald Trump beat 16 other candidates in the
Republican Party primary election to become the GOP flag bearer.
Situation is not too different in the
Democratic Party, where anti establishment candidate, Bernie Sanders, like
Trump, also gave the eventual winner of the party primary election, Hilary
Clinton, a scare.
The growing trend of voters aversion to
electing into public office those perpetuating the old system across party
lines consolidates the belief that voters are growing increasingly restive and
opposed to the political establishment in the way it is currently constituted.
The recent losses in elections by
Angela Merkel’s party to far right politicians hitherto on the fringe in
Germany, recent successes by Marie Le Pen’s far right party in France and the
political momentum building up towards possibility of a female prime minister
in otherwise hugely conservative Japan, are pointers to the inclination of
voters towards seeking changes to the current democratic system of governance
globally.
Given the universality of indignation
to perversion of Justice and disconnectedness of govts from the governed, which
is underscored by their dysfunctional forms, the need for a new system of
governance, different from liberal democracy currently widely operated, is
becoming increasingly more imperative.
Concepts such as social democracy, as
opposed to liberal democracy which is now commonly practiced in the
Scandinavian countries of Norway, Sweden, Finland may need to be closely
interrogated to see if it might be better adapted to assuage the anger of those
that are apparently resistant to bureaucracy and big money politics which
liberal democracy tends to encourage or accommodate, globally .
But if corruption continues to be
defined only as kleptomania which is common amongst African leaders who dip
their filthy fingers into public vaults,while countries like the US which uses
its instrumentality of power to sponsor or support ‘regime change’ in other
countries,then powerful politicians in the Western world based in Washington
DC, US and Brussels, in Europe would continue to be above board. This is
underscored by the fact that the corrupting acts of subversion of other
sovereign polities in the name of ‘regime change’ are not defined as corruption
by the World Bank, Transparency International, Tl etc which the Western powers
use to perpetuate their inequity against the developing world.
The subjective definition of corruption
by the West is one of the reasons Iran contra arms deal scandal of which Col
Oliver North was made a scapegoat, is not considered a corrupt practice.
The recent allegation that the US
ferried $400 million in cash to Iran towards actualizing the six nation nuclear
non proliferation agreement as being alleged by Donald Trump is another case of
bribery- an adjunct of corruption- perpetrated by state.
How about the institutionalized
‘bribery’ referred to as lobbying in Washington, US where business interests
are procured by Wall Street dollars through lobbyists who are mainly
ex-parliamentarians.
Only recently, it was revealed that
dollar power in the US is even stretching beyond politics as money is now being
used to procure Supreme Court seats in several states in the US to the
consternation of the likes of John Paul Stevens, now retired Supreme Court
judge, who dissented in a court ruling in 2010 favoring notorious Citizens
United which sought to overturn limits on big spending on campaigns.
According to a an article by the pair
of Dorothy Samuels and Alicia Bannan on Sept 28, 2016 in THE AMERICAN
PROSPECT-a highly regarded- online US Newsletter , the retired judge had warned
back then , that the unintended implication of overturning campaign spending
limits, is that it would extend beyond political contests into the judiciary as
elections into powerful state Supreme Court seats would be fueled by money,
thereby undermining the fairness of the courts.
The eminent jurist who had hinged his
dissenting view on fear that it could put judges at risk of conflict of
interest back in 2010, is now witnessing his prediction manifesting as contests
for seats for 27 of 35 states where judicial elections are held into the
Supreme Courts are coming up this November and top dollar is flowing to secure
the seats that would serve the interests of big businesses in Wall Street. It
may be recalled that Democratic Party presidential candidate Bernie sanders
campaigned against the corruptive influence of money bags in Wall Street and of
which billionaire Donald Trump of the republican party, is also distancing
himself and linking his opponent, Hilary Clinton.
Fascinatingly, were these sleazy events
to be taking place in the developing world, such a country would be dubbed a
banana republic.
Such is the nature of double standards
perpetuated by Western powers that manifest as double jeopardy for developing
countries such as Nigeria whose leader President Muhammadu Buhari, has been
railing against corruption with unprecedented ferocity and might have ended up
jeopardizing the economy which was already in a precarious condition following
the massive crash in commodity prices.
If attempts to change the course of
events in another country via ‘ regime change’ against the will of the majority
of citizens who could have preferred it to be done through the ballot box can
be classified as corruption, as it should , then US’s attempts to change
regimes in Cuba,Iran,Libya, Palestine and even Russia over the years are
evidences of corrupt practices.
Before Col. Muama Ghadafi of Libya was
eventually killed ostensibly by his country men during the recent uprising,the
strong man of Libya had been accusing the US of wanting to oust him.
Similarly, the late ex-president of
Venezuela, Chavez Perez who died of cancer had constantly accused her neighbor,
the US of attempting to remove him from office or kill him.
Now, the Doctrine of Sovereign Immunity
which had been protecting the US from international prosecution is under threat
as the latest piece of legislation by the US Congress which lifted the ban on
US citizens from suing Saudi Arabia for damages arising from the unfortunate
incident of sept 11, 2011, bombing of New York and Washington by Al Queida
terrorists, is likely to open a flood gate of litigations against the US for
violations of other sovereignties which l earlier highlighted.
In another context, the unfair trade
practices of the Western world
against Africa, starting from the
period of Slave trade, where millions of Africans were shipped off to the
Americas for forced labor in plantations, to the partitioning of Africa between
the super powers as spoils of war during the Berlin, Germany conference of
1885, through the period of colonialism, and after independence, then
neocolonialism which is still in practice till date, the Western powers led by
the US and including the U.K, France and Germany have been perpetuating
injustice in Africa.
Priceless artifacts stolen during the
invasion of Africa by Western adventurist armies, like the British military
expedition that invaded ancient Benin kingdom, carting away artifacts like the
famous Bini bronze head, Queen Idia , till date adorns Western museums instead
of the natural abodes in Africa.
How about the public funds stolen by
African leaders and stashed away in Western banks?
The so called Sanni Abacha- former
Nigerian dictator- loot estimated to be in millions of US dollars trapped in
the USA is yet to be fully repatriated to Nigeria nearly 20 years after the
dictator literarily raped Nigerian economy. If recent media reports are
something to go by, there are indications that a US court has authorized the
release of the $550m to Nigerian Govt,the sooner the funds are dispatched the
better.
Repatriating the funds to Nigeria would
be a major relieve at this critically tough period in time, because if such
funds were returned promptly, it would help provide stable electricity so that
the West would stop referring to Africa as the dark continent or provide
hospitals for improved health care to change the jaundiced perception of Africa
as the land of disease and wars needing only aid not trade.
Also, during the former UK prime
minister, David Cameroon’s inspired anti corruption summit in London, most
Britons admitted that Western countries that acquiesce with looters by allowing
them launder their illegally acquired funds through the purchase of real estate
in london etc are equally culpable, because they benefit from the property boom
which such investments generate in their economies.
The above narrative elicits the
question: why did countries that are holding the billions of dollars allegedly
stolen by Sanni Abacha and other accused Nigerian treasury looters allow the
stolen funds to be funneled into their financial system, in the first instance?
What happened to the traditional Know
Your Customer, KYC policy in the Western financial system ?
How come alarm was not sounded until
Abacha passed away or other accused were ousted from power ?
Honestly, before these Western power
establishment people like David Cameroon, John Kerry etc direct their
sanctimonious indignation towards our country via the sort of public slurs
earlier highlighted ,they should first of all clear their conscience by
releasing the looted artifacts and funds still in their custody to Nigeria, as
president Buhari recently challenged David Cameron and other Western power
leaders during the anti corruption summit in London where Nigeria was tagged as
fantastically corrupt.
Yes, if stolen funds from Africa is
blocked from being used to purchase properties in London, for instance, it
would negatively affect real estate market in the UK, but it’s that too much
sacrifice to make to bolster the flapping hitherto sterling image of Great
Britain?
This why the recent decision by the new
major of the city of London , Sadiq khan to set up a commission of inquiry into
the pattern of ownership and sources of funds of landlords of properties in
london, is welcome development and a boost to global anti corruption fight and
a head up for transparency.
In the eyes of the average Nigerian,
where it had been ingrained that the land of the Queen is the ultimate throne
of integrity, such image redeeming gesture is overdue.
Take for instance,the conviction of
James lbori, former governor of Delta State and 8 others on charges of money
laundering in the uk.
British parliament’s authorized review
of the allegations of bribery against the metropolitan police and suppression
of material facts by the crown prosecution that could have swung the judgement
the other way have affirmed the car brought to parliament’s attention by
Bhadresh Gohil, lbori’s lawyer who himself was jailed for complexity in the
case for non cooperation with the authorities.
Curiously, although the case review
panel has unraveled and confirmed that the police and prosecution are culpable
because they indeed compromised , the authorities insist that the conviction is
in order and confiscation trial to enable them seize the assets of the convicts
should go ahead.
Meanwhile, one of the main issues in
the case is an allegation that the British aid agency DFID is an interested
party, as it is alleged to have negotiated 50% beneficial interest in whatever
proceeds that may be confiscated from lbori and others.
How the British authorities intend to
sustain the convictions which their internal investigations have discovered and
admitted as tainted and therefore subject to review, so that equity and justice
may be seen to have been served, is yet to be unfurled. Such is the extent to
which double standards are applied when it comes to matters of corruption and
related issues when Africa is concerned .
Even the Bretton woods institutions
being used to hamstrung Africa like the United Nations, UN and its branches
like the world bank,lMF and world trade organization, WTO, do not have
equitable representation of Africa, even though the continent has 54 countries
out of the less than two hundred members strong UN organization of which
president Buhari and many other heads of govt recently attended the 71st annual
general meeting in New York, USA.
Not allowing fair representation of
African countries as members of the five nations Permanent Security Country for
instance amounts to bullying of Africans by the more powerful and affluent
Western powers which is tantamount, in my view to corruption.
Despite a very strong case made for
Nigeria to be admitted as a permanent member of the UN Security Council by
virtue of her sheer population and market size and being a country with the
highest GDP of nearly $600 billion until Naira devaluation a couple of months
ago, the Western power controlled UN has been adamant .
If such injustice is not admitted as a
form of corruption, then corruption has a different definition when it is being
applied to Africa by the Western world.
According to Transparency
International, Tl, Corruption Perception Index, CPI, CORRUPTION IS THE MISUSE
OF PUBLIC POWER FOR PRIVATE BENEFIT which is subjective because that definition
precludes abuse of power without necessarily benefiting the perpetrator
personally which is what unfair trade practices enforced through WTO, World
Bank or IMF entails.
For the sake of equity and justice, the
definition of corruption has to be more generic to include the fraud committed
by the Western powers against Africa such as unsolicited ‘regime change’, slave
trade ,unfair trade practice etc, otherwise some of us will continue to regard
the ‘nose thumbing’ by the West as symbolic of neo-colonialism-evils that the
West needs to be weaned off- by consigning it to the dustbin of history.
In my considered opinion, corruption
can be at the base or sophisticated levels, depending on the stages of
advancement of developments in the economies being assessed.
While not making excuses for corrupt
officials, in Africa, where there is a dearth of systems and institutions to
checkmate corruption, as president Obama once remarked, so public officials
often fiddle with funds in public treasuries, because African leaders are hard
wired to be kleptomaniacs owing to the poverty circumstances prevalent on the
continent which was the focus of the World Bank and TI reports earlier
highlighted. But in the Western world where robust institutions of checks and
balances are the norm rather than exception, more sophisticated types of corruption
such as Lobbying, tax heavens, payment for expensive club memberships for
special clients and unfair trade practices enforced through the Bretton wood
institutions like WTO etc are practiced, without qualms.
Since by definition, the corruption
practiced in the developing world, which is reflective of their stage of
development and which incidentally the developed world also experienced when
they were in infant stages, centuries or decades ago, African politicians are
roundly condemned as corrupt, while the politicians in the advanced society
whose sophisticated and polished corrupt practices are also contributory to the
predicament of the people in the developed world, are absolved simply because
they write the rules and they continue to enjoy the privileges of doing so by
shutting Africa out of the exclusive club in the UN institutions where such
decisions are birthed.
For more interesting revelations about
the Western world double standards in evaluating corruption in the developing
world with a different template from the one used for the developed ,let’s once
again refer to Transparency International, TI recently published annual
Corruption Perception Index, CPI.
According to Jason Hickels, who
authored a probing a report titled “Flipping The Corruption Myth”, many
international development organizations ( world bank, IMF, TI) hold the view
that “persistent poverty in the global south is caused largely by corruption
among local public officials”.
Hickels contends that the view above is
not completely true and made a counterpoint by stating that worse corrupt
practices are existent in the advanced society but they are coated With the
veneer of legitimacy: “whereas (US) Congressional seats are not yet available
for outright purchase, the citizens United Vs FEC (court) ruling allows
corporations to spend unlimitedly on political campaigns to ensure that their
preferred candidates get elected, a practice justified under the Orwellian
banner of ‘ Free Speech’.
What the foregoing scenario indicates
is that while corruption is institutionalized in the West via the Orwellian
banner in the US for instance and therefore acceptable to the world bank,TI
etc, such practice is ‘evil phenomenon’ in the developing world.
Furthermore ,Hickels also noted in his
article that the world bank report indicates that corruption in the form of
bribery and theft by govt officials,which is the main target of UN Convention,
is believed to cost developing countries between $20 and 40 billion each year.
Hickels then argues that although the aforementioned sum is a lot of money,but
it’s an extremely small proportion- only about 3% of the total illicit flows
that leak out of public coffers in Africa .
He maintains that, on the other hand,
multi national companies steal more than $900 billion from developing countries
each year through tax evasion and other illicit practices.
To put the above assertion in correct
perspectives, keep in mind that Nigerian Govt is currently prosecuting AGIP and
others for illegal lifting of crude oil and that corroborates Hickels point.
lt is also noteworthy that NEITTI-
extractive industry regulatory agency- has been raising concern about
impropriety by international oil firms operating in Nigeria just as lawyer and
rights activist, Femi Falana had also been threatening to sue FGN,if she went
ahead to borrow externally to augment 2016 without first of all making efforts
to recover the over $20 billion that he believes are yet to be remitted to Govt
coffers by unscrupulous international oil companies, lOCs.
As Hickels further pointed out in his
very revealing article, “ The enormous outflow of wealth is facilitated by
shadowy financial system that includes tax heavens, paper companies, anonymous
accounts, and fake foundations with the city of London at the heart of it”.
Continuing, Hickels stated that “ over
30% of global Foreign Direct Investments FDI is booked in tax havens which now
collectively hide one -sixth of the world’s total private wealth”.
Hopefully, London Mayor Khan’s recently
instituted enquiry on london as receptacle for ‘dirty’ money would unravel all
that.
The unsavory revelations about tax
evasion antics of the wealthy with respect to the rich Western World and the
poor south via the scandalous PANAMA papers is a typical case in point and a
clear testimony to the fact that corruption is universal. The only difference
is that while the developing world is being accused of corruption,the Western
world has legalized corruption via Lobby as it is referred to in the USA and
tax havens accepted by the rest of the Western world.
In some parts of the world, especially
Asia, corruption is disguised through payment of huge sums of money as
membership fees to exclusive clubs for preferred clients.
To combat graft in South Korea,
expensive meals to entertain corporate clients, which is another
institutionalized practice of corruption has now been outlawed with a stiff
penalty of three, 3 years imprisonment for those who breach the law.
In the light of the foregoing and for
the sake of equity and Justice, l posit that there should be harmonisation of
standards in determining what constitutes corruption in both the developed and
developing world.In other words, definition of corruption should be expanded
beyond its current horizon which excludes some negative practices endemic in
the West because as the saying goes, what’s good for the goose is good for the
gander.
In the view of Ayn Rand, who was a
Russian-American novelist, philosopher, playwrite and screen writer known for
her best selling novels,The Fountain Head and Atlas Shrugged, injustice and
corruption are intertwined and should not be separated.
Hear her “ When you see that trading is
done, not by consent, but by compulsion-When you see that in order to produce,
you need to obtain permission from one who produce nothing- When you see that
money is flowing to those who deal, not in goods, but in favors-When you see
that men get richer by graft and not by work , and your law don’t protect you
against them, but protect them against you”-When you see corruption being
rewarded and honesty becoming self-sacrificing- You may know that your society
is doomed”.
If such postulation of high moral value
as the one propounded by Ayn Rand are to be upheld by all nations-developing or
developed, then all public officials can be held accountable to a universal
standard.
If the above suggested basis for
determining what can be defined as corruption and what can not, is adopted by
the world bank and other supra national agencies whose duty it is to make such
judgements calls, the world would be a better place as there would be less
feeling of being cheated or bullied between the less powerful and more powerful
countries.
Curiously, when President Barrack Obama
met with President Buhari on the sidelines of the UNGA 71, in New York, he
commended Nigerian president for his honesty and integrity “ you are highly
respected by world leaders” Obama enthused. He then literarily parted President
Buhari on the back for his successes in the prosecution of the fight against
terrorism but strangely, the American President did not utter a word about the
ferocious war that President Buhari is fighting against corruption.
Could the US president action of not
complimenting President Buhari for his war against corruption in Nigeria, which
he has prosecuted with great vigor comparable to, if not more than the zeal, he
has put into the fight against terrorism, not be indicative of non endorsement
of the exercise, perhaps owing to the suspicion that the anti graft crusade in
Nigeria, may not be altruistic, as it appears to be one sided and politically
motivated?
Since diplomats file reports about
political and economic situations in their host countries back home regularly
and most of the reports are derived from the media arena, and civil society and
opposition parties complaints also end up in the media, the darker sides of the
anti corruption war,may be filtering into the White House in Washington DC and
other seats of Govt around the world.
Given the foregoing,in my view, the
methodology applied in combating graft by president Buhari may need to be
probed with a view to reviewing same for less collateral damages such as
crippling the economy .
In the first instance,the nomenclature
Anti Corruption War, which is militarist may be too harsh for a democratic
setting; secondly the struggle to rid the nation of corruption should be people
driven as opposed to being a solely Buhari agenda and; thirdly it has to be
fought across all the strata of society and not just focused only on the top
echelon, as it currently appears to be.
For instance, while President Rodrigo
Duterte of the Philippines is fighting drug trafficking in his country at great
calamitous consequences to the nation and he has thus attracted global
condemnation due to the very unethical processes being applied. On the other
hand,South Korea is also fighting graft by placing a limit on the amount spent
on food to entertain corporate clients, which had become a corruption conduit,
without public uproar because it is being done with the civility that it
deserves.
Traditionally, the West looks away from
atrocities that compromise civil liberties in Africa, especially if the high
handedness being committed is in furtherance of the agenda of the advanced
society. This is why l’m not surprised that leaders in the Western world
commended President Buhari for his successes in the fight against terrorism,
but failed to comment on the anti corruption war which many pundits identify as
being partly responsible for the rapid descent of Nigerian economy into
recession. Such are the sort of treacheries that are endemic in international
relations/ affairs space.
While keeping in mind the assertion
above, President Buhari and his team must not relent in reminding world leaders
that Africa and particularly Nigeria needs the money stolen by its past leaders
and hidden in the vaults of developed economies returned without further delay.
That was Mr. president’s message during
the Corruption summit in London , and l hope it remained his message during the
UNGA 71 in New York.
If Mr. president had returned from the
UN meeting with commitments that are actionable and within a specific timeframe
from leaders- both in public and private sectors- of the countries where our
wealth are presently domiciled , the angst against Mr. president by Nigerian
youths both in the virtual world and physically, that has unfortunately been
President Buhari’s portion for at least, the past six to 12 months of being
president and commander-in-chief of the armed forces of the federal republic of
Nigeria, might have started ebbing.
Arising from the forging hypothesis, if
Western powers are sincere with the encomiums that they have been pouring on
President Buhari with respect to his impeccable integrity and honesty, they
should help him steer Nigerian ship of state away from hitting the rocks by
first repatriating the stolen funds stashed in their vaults and secondly give
Buhari the kind of endorsements that they give to countries like Republic of
Georgia that facilitated that country’s rapid rise.
Best of all, the Western powers should
lend helping hands to President Buhari in his efforts to turn around the
fortunes of Nigeria and Nigerians in the manner that Lee Kwan Yu , the
legendary leader of Singapore was endorsed by the West and which enabled him
transform the small Island nation of Singapore from third world to first world
in less than two decades.
After all, the current adulations and
endorsements of Buhari as a leader of high fidelity by world leaders is
synonymous with the praises showered on Lee Kwan Yu, which was the underlining
factor for the economic feat that the late Singaporean leader performed in his
country.
• Magnus Onyibe, a development
strategist, futurologist and former commissioner in delta state Govt, is an
alumnus of Fletcher school of Law and Diplomacy , Medford, Massachusetts, USA
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