Emefiele: Show the difference between prosecution and persecution
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THE first part of this poser was published on August 20, 2023 by The Niche, among other on- line media platforms. In that piece, I had lamented the traumatic ordeal the erstwhile Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria ( CBN) under the Buhari administration, Godwin Emefiele, has been subjected to with little recourse to law and order.
The lackluster end of the Buhari administration on May 29, 2023, following a controversial general election conducted by the Independent National Electoral Commission ( INEC) under Professor Mahmoud Yakub continues to resonate with the subsequent suspension and arrest of Emefiele and his being clamped into detention by the Department of State Service ( DSS) for various allegations, among which was illegal possession of firearm.
I would like to state at this juncture that there is nothing wrong with the effort of government to try to curb and or sanitise the stinking Nigerian system reeking in corruption. But everything is wrong when the process of fighting corruption impinges on people’s fundamental human rights by not adhering to due process and turning the law on its head, which again amounts to corruption.
Ideally, every attempt to deal with corruption ought to be based on concrete evidence that would serve as irrefutable ground for the prosecution of the accused. Otherwise, the aim would be defeated if the exercise turns to witch- hunting.
Emefiele was arraigned on the count of arms possession on July 25, 2023 and was granted bail. But despite the bail granted to him by the court, the DSS brazenly ignored the court order even as Emiefele and his family struggled to meet the bail conditions. He was still subjected to a humiliating detention, which attracted condemnation in some quarters both locally and abroad.
While a U. S. group, the Conference of Nigerian Intellectuals in the United States alleged human rights violations against Emiefele, Maxwell Okpara, a human rights activist said
Emiefele was no longer facing prosecution but persecution.
While all these were going on, President Bola Tinubu in July 2023, appointed Jim Obazee as special investigator to probe the activities of the CBN and other related entities. Tinubu said the action was part of his anti- corruption fight. The appointment was with immediate effect and Obazee was to report directly to the president. Obazee, it would be recalled, was the chief executive officer ( CEO) of the Financial Reporting Council of Nigeria ( FRCN) before he was fired in 2017.
Among other things, President Tinubu specifically directed Obazee to take immediate steps to ensure the strengthening and probity of key Government Business Entities ( GBE) and block leakages in the CBN and related GBES; provide a comprehensive report on public wealth currently in the hands of corrupt individuals and establishments ( whether private or public).
Finally, to investigate the CBN and related entities using a suitably experienced, competent and capable team and to work with relevant security and anti- corruption agencies to deliver on the assignment.
Obazee was expected to brief the president on weekly basis on the progress being made concerning the assignment. Without wasting time, Obazee swung into action. His first assignment was to suspend Emiefele as directed by the President.
Having been empowered to probe the CBN and Emiefele’s activities, Mr. Obazee apparently set out to dig out every information that, in his judgment, served the purpose of his assignment. While he has not submitted his report officially, the social media is awash with the report that appears to have been leaked to the media by default.
The following are the 17 allegations the investigator has leveled against Emiefele reportedly forming part of the report. Emefiele without authorisation funded 593 bank accounts located in the USA, UK and China.
Fraudulent cash withdrawal of $ 6.23 million from the CBN vault purportedly approved by the president to pay foreign election observers.
Gross financial misconduct by Emiefele and at least 15 other individuals, including his deputy commissioners.
Others are that Emiefele kept 543.4 million pounds in fixed deposits.
Manipulation of the naira exchange rate and perpetration of fraud in the e- Naira project of the CBN.
As well as, that the naira redesign was neither recommended by the board of the CBN nor approved by the president.
That the CBN printed the new N200, N500 and N1000 notes at a cost of N61.5 billion out of which N31.8 billion has been paid to the contractor.
That the sum of N1.73 billion was spent on questionable legal fees on cases that are directly traceable to the naira redesign and reconfiguration agenda.
That the sum of 205,000 pounds was paid to a UK firm for naira redesign effort including positioning of watermark, presence of QR codes, different numbering style, and other complex security features.
Fraudulent use of Ways& Means to the tune of N26.627 trillion.
Fraudulent intervention programmes. Fraudulent expenditures on COVID- 19. Misrepresentation of presidential approval on the NESI Stabilisation Strategy Ltd.
Padding of former president Buhari’s approval with N198.96 billion approximating N801.04 billion to N1 trillion.
No approvals were received from the former president and yet N500 billion was taken and debited Ways& Means.
And that the former CBN Governor and four deputies connived to steal outright in order to balance the books of the CBN.
No approval for the breakdown of N22.72 trillion presented to the 9th National Assembly to illegally scrutinise the Ways& Means financing.
The foregoing represents the basket of allegations that have been heaped on the head of Emiefele. The whole thing gives the impression that the CBN under Emefiele was being run like a one man business enterprise where the CBN Governor had limitless latitude to do whatever he wanted without any form of restriction. But that cannot and should never have been the case for an elite institution like the CBN that has a board of directors.
The board is supposed to be made up by egghead that are versed in financial engineering of which the CBN Governor is just a primus interpares ( one among equals). That is to say, although Emiefele was the head, he had no overriding powers to sway over the entire board members to do his bidding at all times except they all betrayed their integrity and compromised the elevated trust reposed in them. And that would have been unprecedented. Therefore, all the allegations bordering on no approvals and yet the action was implemented raise serious doubts.
In this sort of forensic investigation, Mr. Obazee ought to ensure that every single revelation he brings out to the public domain is buttressed by irrefutable and concrete evidence that leaves no one in doubt. It is not good to give a dog bad name just to hang it. Otherwise any spurious allegation dished out tarnishes and taints not only the image of Emiefele as a person but the entire CBN as an institution and Nigeria as a country.
One can imagine how the world is laughing at us wondering what sort of CBN organisation is run like this where only the Governor has overriding powers. It is such public image battering that raises the corruption status of Nigeria.
The Obazee allegations have taken the form of corruption court cases involving politicians whereby an individual is arraigned and leveled with multiple counts that end up not being proven. We have had many of such unsubstantiated allegations in court that simply evaporated either because they were hurriedly put together without thinking through or simply out to blackmail the individual. But no one is simply punished on account of allegations leveled against him without being proven in court.
It is therefore not surprising that Emiefele has denied the allegations and has instructed his lawyers to challenge it in court.