Discovery Of Mysterious Billions In Nigeria: 34 Critical Questions Before The Federal Government & Its Agents
(Intersociety, Onitsha Nigeria: 16th April
2017)-Deeply worried and concerned by a litany of
discoveries of mysterious billions of naira worth of hard currencies including
British Pounds, Euros, US Dollars and Naira Notes in Nigeria, the leadership of
International Society for Civil
Liberties & the Rule of Law (Intersociety) have resolved to raise a 34-Point
critical questions before the Federal Government of Nigeria and its agents.
We have also
been bombarded with calls and text messages for our informed comments by a
section of the print media in Nigeria concerning the above named issues
particularly the 12th April 2017 “discovery” of naira equivalent of
over N13.3billion domiciled in foreign currencies including US dollars, British
pounds and Naira notes at a high rising building in Ikoyi area of Lagos State,
Southwest Nigeria. The criminally dumped currency notes include $43.4million
dollars, 28,800 British Pounds and N23.2million; totaling over N13.3billion.
Not long ago, on
3rd February 2017, officials of EFCC claimed that they “discovered”
and “recovered” another mysterious sum of $9.8million domiciled in US dollars
($9.77million) and British pounds (74,000 British Pounds). The “discovery” and
“recovery”, according to EFCC were made in a house located in Kaduna State
belonging to a former Managing Director of NNPC, Mr. Andrew Yakubu. Critics
also alleged that the said former NNPC Managing Director is presently having
some political differences with the incumbent governor of Kaduna State, Mallam
Nasiru el-Rufai; possibly over next governorship poll in the State.
The authorities
of State Security Services (SSS) had in their press briefing following the
Service’s late night raids of the sleeping and dwelling houses of some serving
judges on 8th October 2016, claimed that they “discovered” $2million
cash in the house of Hon Justice Adeniyi Adeomola; a serving judge of the
Federal High Court. Hon Justice Ademola, alongside others was spuriously
accused of corruption by the SSS leading to the blue or evil hour of the night
invasion of their private residences. Hon Justice Ademola Adeniyi and his
wife-Olubowale (current Head of Service of Lagos State) were on 6th
April 2017 discharged and acquitted by a High Court of the Federal Capital
Territory in Abuja on spurious allegation of corruption leveled against them.
As if these are
not enough, the EFCC has illicitly embarked on further mysterious cash discovery
jamboree by invading markets and other private business outlets, confiscating
cash sums belonging to some innocent business operators. These include
N49million it claimed to have “discovered” and “recovered” at the Kaduna
airport on March 14, 2017; N448million confiscated at a Lagos Bureau de Change
plaza on 7th April 2017 and another N250million confiscated inside a
shop located at Balogun Market in Lagos State.
The legal basis
and intents of these operations as well as their genuineness have remained
sketchy, shoddy, blatant, brazen and condemnable. In crime, guilty act (actus
reus) can never secure competent investigation, prosecution, conviction and
sentencing except it is combined with guilty mind (mens rea). The main trust of criminal investigation is
rested on ascertainment of guilty mind (mens rea) or otherwise, and where mens
rea fails to establish itself in criminal investigation, actus reus or guilty
act which has been found cannot secure proper prosecution, conviction and
sentencing; with the exception being in cases of strict and statutory liability offenses such as traffic and sanitary
offenses.
Till date and as
we write, the generality of Nigerians do not know the whereabouts of all the
monies that the SSS, EFCC and the Federal Government claimed falsely or
otherwise to have recovered since the mysterious cash “discovery” and “recovery”
jamboree was started by the SSS in October 2016. Whether such mysterious cash
sums actually and genuinely exist or were arranged and periodically planted to
frame up regime enemies and falsely
shore up the so called Federal
Government’s anti corruption crusade; have totally remained outside the
collective or public knowledge of the generality of Nigerians till date.
We have
severally observed and still observe that a lot of things are irremediably
wrong in Nigeria particularly under the present dispensation. The sanctity of
public governance in the country particularly under the present dispensation is
so tainted that it looks as if the country is perpetually gripped and cloaked
in leadership gangsterism and mafiocracy
We understand
the sentiments shared by most Nigerians including conscientious citizens in the
media who always want our informed and unbiased positions to be aired regarding
burning national issues particularly in matters of this nature. We are deeply
pained and concerned because facts of the issues as they concern our collective
interests including governance, security, moral conducts of our leaders and our
general welfare are constantly desolated, corrupted and bastardized by those
steering the ship of public governance in trust for the generality of Nigerians
particularly under the present dispensation at the Federal level. In other
words, burning national issues such as that under discussion are never
presented to the generality of Nigerians as they truly happened.
We hereby present the following 34-Point Questions
before the Federal Government and its agents concerning the mysterious cash sums discovery and recovery jamboree in
Nigeria:
·
Does it mean that commercial banks are no longer functioning in
Nigeria to warrant storage of such huge cash in someone’s office or
apartment?
·
In common sense, what will be the intention of keeper(s) of such
huge cash in such high profile place that plays host to the country’s secret
services and well known persons in the corridors of power?
·
Is there no longer common sense in art of criminality especially
such involving white-collar crime or intellectual crime (i.e. fraud, laundering
and embezzlement)?
·
Is it not possible that the huge cash was planted as a set up by
powers that be targeting certain opponents or regime enemies?
·
Is it not correct to say that the “discovered” cash was planted to
frame up someone or some hated persons but got misfired?
·
Which bank will lend withdrawal approval of such cash?
·
Are there no longer limitations to amount of cash to be withdrawn
per day and per person/institution in Nigeria?
·
Where are Buhari Administration’s monetary policies on hard
currencies and cash carriage or do we now have two-side monetary policies in
Nigeria: one for the rich and the other for the poor?
·
Which individual or institution or company will sanely withdraw such
cash and with what intents?
·
Has Nigeria abandoned cash and electronic banking and resorted to
trade by batter?
·
Are payments for contract projects or private sector and public remunerations
now paid cash at hand in present day Nigeria?
·
Is Nigeria holding general
elections or a State gubernatorial election requiring cash bribery and cash
logistics of such huge amount under discussion?
·
Which bank in Nigeria has the
authority of warehousing such huge hard currencies?
·
Does CBN have anything illicit to do with this and has it been
engaging in such criminal practices under this dispensation?
·
Has Nigeria entered the inglorious era of late Idi Amin and his
infamous Central Bank in Uganda?
·
If not CBN, what about the cabal that controls the sales of forex in
Nigeria?
·
Does it have any link with Nigeria’s presidency?
·
Is there possibility that the
forex cabal can be used deviously and dubiously for the purpose of lending such
cash to set up hated citizens or regime enemies and get such cash back after
the possible completion of evil deeds?
·
Why are the so called “discovered” and “recovered” huge cash sums
always in mint/neat and unused forms?
·
Where are all the “discovered” and “recovered” cash sums including
the $2million “Judges’ loot”, $9.8million “ex NNPC’s MD loot” and the latest
N13.3billion “Ikoyi mysterious billions”, etc?
·
Have these huge cash sums been deposited to the Federation Account
manned by the CBN or the Consolidated Revenue Account of the Federal
Government?
·
Are the huge cash sums in the custody of EFCC or SSS presently?
·
Does the law allow them to keep money for the Federation of Nigeria?
·
Is it not correct to say that
the huge cash sums are lent from their dubious private owners or custodians
(i.e. CBN or cabalistic forex dealers) for the referenced dirty jobs and
returned to them being used in setting up regime enemies including some judges
and other opponents of the present central government in Nigeria?
·
Is there really anti corruption crusade going on in Nigeria under
this dispensation?
·
Is it correct to say that
decampment to APC is the beginning of issuance of clean slates to decampees in
matters of graft or corruption?
·
Has it not become a pattern that whenever there is a national
controversy surrounding the so called anti corruption crusade, such as the
present ordeal of COMPOL Ibrahim Magu; strange huge sums of cash will be discovered
with their “discoveries” credited to doubtfully existing “whistleblowers”?
·
Is it not correct to say that
there is a raging fraud in the activities of some CSOs which have now become
the government mouthpiece on “anti corruption”?
·
Is it also not correct to say
that these government mouth-pieced CSOs are complicit in the present central
government’s hyper corruption of the anti corruption crusade in Nigeria?
·
Is there not something
strange about the exclusive reports of the two Southwest owned online news
media in the country bordering on the government’s so called “anti corruption
crusade”?
·
Is it also not correct to say
the strangeness of their exclusive reports particularly on periodic “discovery”
of huge cash sums by agents of the present government such as EFCC and SSS is a
clear indication that they are far from being independent and are controlled by
the said government?
·
Is it not correct to say that the events that are periodically
reported as exclusive by them are brazenly arranged or stage-managed?
·
Is it not correct to say that these two online news media are “the
whistleblowers” the present government noisily talked about, used and funded by
in its so called “anti corruption crusade”?
·
Is it not correct to say that such exclusive reports are well known
to the two online news media as stage-managed and false?
Signed:
·
Emeka Umeagbalasi, Board Chairman
Mobile Line: +2348174090052
·
Obianuju Joy Igboeli, Esq.
Head, Civil
Liberties & Rule of Law Program
·
Chinwe Umeche, Esq.
Head, Democracy
& Good Governance Program
·
Florence C. Akubilo, Esq.
Head, Campaign &
Publicity Department
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