Beyond Cameron’s Apology …Another Look At Anti-Graft War

President Buhari and Prime Minister Cameron

By his antecedents, Nigeria’s President Muhammadu Buhari, it is generally believed, brought to the Presidency and governance a rare measure of acceptability, especially to his avowed war against corruption. From his modest life-style, his disciplinarian mien and his mark of transparency, by publicly declaring his assets, none should doubt his credibility.
That is why when British Prime Minister David Cameron recently described Nigeria as “fantastically corrupt”, many took offence as if the abuse was on Buhari. Strangely, Buhari’s initial response was statesmanly, when he said, in that case, Cameron and his ilk should help return the stolen loot still stashed away in various financial institutions in Europe and America.
The bottomline is, anyone who hides a thief cannot be a saint, neither can one who buys or secures, away from the primary owner, any stolen funds. The United Kingdom cannot make such a blanket statement about a nation part of whose stolen wealth is hidden within her boundaries.
Strictly speaking, Cameron went beyond his bounds, especially as one who was to play host to world leaders for an anti-corruption conference, in which the Nigerian leader was going to be in attendance. It didn’t amount to playing a good host, although, it was later gathered, Cameron’s view was not intended for public consumption.
Interestingly, the reactions of some Nigerians were diverse and amusing. But, lets ask ourselves some basic questions: Are we, as a country, truly fighting corruption? What is corruption? Is it when it is suspected that members of a government out of power exercised some indiscretion in managing public funds? Has the Buhari government bothered to truly check the background and antecedents of some of those around him in the party’s ranks.
Gradually but surely, the definition of corruption has been reduced to vengeance against political foes. This is in spite of the fact that there are many in the ruling party, who, so corrupt, cannot be depended upon to fight corruption, the way Buhari should, without fear.
The activities and investments of such key characters in Buhari’s government, may be concealed from Nigerians but they are public knowledge in the UK and USA. That is why when comments like that by Cameron make the air waves, they should call for introspection and not vile outburst.
Remember former Delta State Governor James Ibori? Nearly all Nigerian anti-graft agencies found him clean, pure and innocent until he was found guilty abroad. There are several such secrets just awaiting brave whistle-blowers.
But one cannot totally blame Buhari. In politics, three things are very important. The first is money, the second money and the third, money. No matter how credible, creditable, upright and trustworthy an ambitious politician might be, that pedigree cannot pay the bills. He needs funds to tour the states, appoint points’ men, sponsor media needs and above all, get the right not necessarily honest men, to bankroll his needs.
In the quest to actualize one’s political ambition, no money is bad money, no sponsor is a corrupt giver and no supporter is a bad one. Only men like US Republican Party’s presumptive nominee, Donald Trump and may be late Nigerian Business Mogul Moshood Abiola could bankroll their own campaign needs, and damn all consequences.
Unfortunately, Buhari did not fall into that class, so how sure can he be that all monies, channeled towards his ambition was clean and not ill-gotten? How sure is Buhari that some of the support he got from politicians in course of his campaign were not ill-gotten or stolen state funds? How did they amass such wealth?
If a serving governor, not Aliko Dangote, donates as much as N3billion in four trenches, shouldn’t a question  be raised? Could such funds be his or his state’s? Will it be fair to accept such gifts without verifying the source?
But politics is like a Church. Armed robbers and even prostitutes pay tithes. So do coffin makers and mortuary owners. That is why no politician ever summons the courage to question the source of funds he needs badly to fund his ambition. Is it why no former PDP governor now in the ruling APC can ever be considered corrupt, even if, as is repeatedly said, the PDP institutionalized Corruption for 16 years, and many of them, part of eight years?
Does it mean that once a corrupt governor defects to APC his sins are washed clean? Or that no more questions can be raised about his legendary earnings, while, in the PDP and office?
That is why many see Buhari’s attempt to probe election funds, allegedly spent by officials of the last government as very good, as long as the APC will also make public a comprehensive account of its own campaign expenses and donors to the President’s electioneering course, and treasury.
Such a statement must state clearly all donors, contributors and financeers of both the APC as a party and the Presidential elections. It is only that way that skeptics, especially, the international community would see us as serious-minded in the fight against corruption. A crusade that adjudges all of the President’s men as innocent, even if some of them ran their state’s resources aground in preference for political relevance, cannot enjoy the people’s total support.
Even with Buhari’s pedigree and unblemished credibility, many Nigerians don’t see his anti-graft war as a true battle against corruption. The closest it is viewed is vengeance against members of a political party who had denied him the Presidency thrice.
This is not good for a good course like the anti-graft war. It will instead continue to attract comments like Cameron’s, even if not voiced yet, for pecuniary benefits some world leaders hope to make from a country in desperate need of foreign investors.
Even within Nigeria, the word on the street is not different. If Buhari had at least investigated petitions raised by Lagos and Rivers States against their former governors, no matter how helpful they were to the actualization of Buhari’s Presidential ambition, the anti-graft war would have been credible.
For, many believe, if the same accusations had been raised against others, their travails would surely be worse than those of the former National Security Adviser (NSA)Sambo Dasuki. But it does appear, no matter the size of one’s, loot, once defected to the ruling party, all one’s sins are washed clean.
These are perhaps why Cameron, inadvertently voiced what ought to have remained a guarded secret, not necessarily that it’s a lie, by upgrading the present day Nigeria from merely being corrupt to being ‘fantastically’ corrupt.
Viewed from an even broader perspective, there have been actions and inactions under the present Federal administration, that tend to question the sincerity of the crusade.
A vital public document like the 2016 Budget Proposal presented to the joint-session of the National Assembly by President Muhammadu Buhari, disappeared from the Senate and re-appeared with amendments which law-makers called padding. None considered the act an offence. None was punished. And with the signing of the fiscal document into law, that matter is closed. Pronto.
Also, it is nearly a year into the life of the government, and over 2,000 ghost workers have been found. Who has been signing the salaries of the ghosts? What has been done in reprimand?
Another was the reaction of government that bail-out funds granted some states were diverted. Who are those state governors? Are they APC governors or PDP governors? Critics say those names may have remained guarded secret apparently because they may be chieftains of the ruling party.
These  lack of consistency and transparency are what is giving some dent to the credibility of President Buhari, and which every step on the way forces many to question the true definition of corruption. The Commander-In-Chief is either too trusting or bugged down by past goodwill to turn on some of his own, same heat being faced by opposition politicians.
There should be some measure of balance, fairness, objectivity and justice in the daily pursuit of corruption related complaints. If the crusade is to succeed, the Federal Government must not pick and choose which to probe. Every complaint should be considered a possible lead to something concealed.
My Agony is that the antecedents of some politicians being protected by the Federal Government today are like mirror to the international anti graft agencies. It is with such knowledge that our promotion from just corrupt to fantastically corrupt came about. Sadly, Cameron did not say, ‘Nigeria was corrupt’ but ‘Nigeria is fantastically corrupt. That should worry Buhari.

Soye Wilson Jamabo