Beyond Ibru’s Conviction

At long last, Nigeria recorded a landmark conviction in the attempt at fighting corruption in all strata of society, particularly the banking sector. This followed last Friday’s ruling by Justice Dan Abutu of the Federal High Court in Lagos which sentenced Mrs. Cecilia Ibru, former managing director of Oceanic Bank International plc, to 18 months in jail on a three-count charge and ordered a forfeiture of her assets worth over N191 billion.

Nigerians, who have hailed this judgement are, however, disappointed that Mrs. Ibru will spend only six months in prison as her jail term runs concurrently. But they also appear to be consoled by the fact that she would give up a large chunk, if not all, of her loot.

Trouble started for the matriarch of the Ibru business empire when on August 14, 2009, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) released the names of five big banks which, it said, were in deep financial mess. These included Afribank, Finbank, Intercontinental Bank, Oceanic Bank and Union Bank.

The subsequent sacking by the CBN of the chief executives of these distressed banks and their relentless hounding by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) made some of them (Mrs. Ibru inclusive) to go underground. She was later nabbed by security agents while attempting to flee the country in her private jet.

Although the banking dame entered a plea bargain for which reason she was convicted on only three charges and given what appears to be a mild jail sentence, the EFCC’s initial charge list was said to have contained about 25 counts, all of which bordered on fraud and mismanagement.

In fact, the Oceanic Bank chief was accused of approving bank loans well above the authorised limits; siphoning funds to local and offshore accounts using names of cronies (including her nanny’s); converting official property to her private residence; owning a private jet worth $100 million; owning over 94 properties in the United States and Dubai; and having proprietorship of about 100 companies in Nigeria, among others.

For a woman who appeared to have held her own in the midst of many professional male bankers, Mrs. Ibru was easily seen as a perfect role model for the younger generation of female bankers. There was certainly no shortage of admirers even outside the banking sector. But where has all that led everyone given the recent turn of events?

Even though most Nigerian and foreign investors would have expected a lot more than the soft landing granted the ex-bank chief, The Tide thinks that her sentencing alone provides fresh hopes that those in whose hands public funds are entrusted do not convert them for their personal usage. The loot which is to be recovered from her  and given to the newly established Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON) should serve as enough warning to others that the days are gone when bank executives became too lawless in the management of investors’ funds.

We also agree with the CBN Governor, Lamido Sanusi, that it is not a perfect conviction because if both the EFCC and the Federal Ministry of Justice had prepared a water-tight case against her, a plea bargain that handed down a mere six months jail term on each of such offences wouldn’t have been necessary.

This is why The Tide insists that the trial of all others should be pursued by both the EFCC and the Justice Ministry in a manner that provides no loopholes for such soft landing. They should be thorough, patriotic and, above all, open-minded knowing that the outcome of subsequent trials will play a key role in boosting investors’ confidence in the economy.

It is also instructive to salute Justice Abutu for summoning the strong judicial will of identifying an immediate useful channel for the forfeited loots. This is quite different from previous experiences where, the EFCC was allowed a percentage of any recovered loots while the remainder is hardly accounted for. The huge sums confiscated from the accounts of late Head of State, Gen. Sani Abacha, former Inspector General of Police, Tafa Balogun, and former Governor of Bayelsa State, Chief Diepreye Alamieyeseigha, readily come to mind.

Furthermore, we urge Sanusi to pursue, even harder, his latest reforms which seek to safeguard shareholders and depositors funds while also working towards ensuring that no bank executive remains in office beyond a ten-year tenure as a means of checking corruption in the sector.

Lofty as the intentions are, we are afraid that little will be achieved if the apex bank fails to recharge its Inspectorate Unit. Our apprehension is based on the fact that any fraudulent mind would hardly require as much as 10 years to ground a finance house. Only regular inspection and close monitoring by CBN officials can help to check such wanton theft from the banks.