For Saraki, a Sigh of Relief
Last Wednesday judgment by Justice Ahmed Mohammed of the Federal High Court has finally cleared any shadow of doubt surrounding allegation of corruption levelled against, a former governor of Kwara State, Senator Bukola Saraki, by the police. The judge in clear terms said that the police should stop harassing the senator, his family and associates over unfounded, spurious and baseless allegations.
Perhaps, no other governor, serving or former had been subjected to serial investigation as much as Saraki. Even after several investigations by operatives of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and the police, nothing incriminating was found against him.
But those bent on hanging him at all cost did not rest. Not even the clean bill of health given to him on the floor of the Senate by the then Chairman of the EFCC, Malam Nuhu Ribadu, would stop them from harassing him. Ribadu had then identified Saraki’s administration as one of the five states government with the highest level of integrity.
During his first term in office as governor, petitions were written against him to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission. In a rare show of courage but in support of his claim that he had nothing to hide, he waived his immunity, presented himself and allowed investigators to probe the allegations. As it turned out, nothing was found against him.
It will be recalled that after he concluded his second term, some of his collegues including Gbenga Daniel (Ogun), Alao Akala (Oyo), Aliyu Doma (Nasarawa), and Danjuma Goje (Gombe) were quizzed by EFCC within a month after they completed their tenure, Saraki was not invited according to findings because there was nothing against him. Some of the former governors listed above are still being prosecuted as at press time.
For daring to disagree with the president, Dr Goodluck Jonathan, Saraki risked being witch haunted. Knowing fully well that he had nothing to hide, he chose to move to the All Peoples Congress (APC).
Indeed if there were issues of fraud or corruption, two years of investigation on someone described as one of the ‘enemies’ of the presidency would have been discovered by security agents by now. Trouble again started for Saraki in 2011 after he drew the attention of the Senate and the country to how some government officials working with some oil marketers were defrauding Nigerians in the name of fuel subsidy. As it turned out, some powerful people with links to President Goodluck Jonathan were apparently not happy with him after he exposed the fraud in the fuel subsidy scheme.
Those who felt threatened chose to fight back. What did they do? They looked for and turned a simple civil matter into a criminal case.
After EFCC that is well equipped and wellfocused had investigated him and found nothing against, the ill-equipped police were called upon to investigate him again for the same matter. It was the turn of the Special Fraud Unit (SFU) to investigate him, his wife and his associates and practically anyone remotely connected to Saraki.
Not surprisingly, their findings could not sustain any criminal charge for the past two years they have been pushing.
In a letter dated October 9th, 2012, the then Director of Public Prosecution, Mrs Olufunmilayo Fatunde, wrote to the Inspector General of Police that the Attorney General of the Federation had studied the investigation report submitted to him by the police and found nothing for which Saraki could be charged under the laws. Excerpts from the letter read: “By virtue of section 18 of the Act, a director or any officer or partner of a company can only be held responsible in that capacity for the actions of the company if the company is guilty of an offence under the Act. Since the companies in this case cannot be held to have committed any offence under section 15(1)(a), it follows that Saraki cannot be held criminally responsible only on account of having acted as promoter and director of the companies in connection with the said loan.”
The DPP said that it would be improper and unjust in the circumstances to punish Saraki based on the decision of the bank and its officials.
In another letter, the Attorney General of the Federation wrote: “I am to inform you that after a thorough consideration of the investigative report and the relevant laws applicable thereto, the criminal allegations against Saraki are unfounded and manifestly unsupportable in law.”
In other parts of the world, when the chief law officer says there is no case, the matter ends there. This has not been the case in Nigeria since the. Police are on special assignment to nail him at all cost. They again went fishing for evidence to nail him. At this stage, he was left with no choice but to seek protection from the court.
In an action for the enforcement of his fundamental rights, Justice Mohammed of the Federal High Court Abuja held: “A perpetual injunction is hereby granted against the respondents (the police) from further inviting the applicant on this case.” The judge absolved Saraki of any wrongdoing with regard to allegation that he was behind a bank loan given to a company which was the subject of investigation by the Police Special Fraud Unit since 2012.
The judge based his judgment on the legal opinion by the Attorney General of the Federation (AGF) and Minister of Justice that the allegations of wrongdoing against him were baseless and unfounded.
The legal opinion of the Justice Minister was a response to the report submitted to him by the Inspector General of Police on Police findings after investigating a complaint from Joy Petroleum Limited.
The judge consequently stopped the Inspector General of Police (IGP) from inviting or arresting the former governor over the alleged bank loan.
Justice Mohammed also barred the agents of the IGP especially the operatives in the Special Fraud Unit (SFU) from harassing, intimidating and breaching the fundamental rights of the former governor and his aides.
The court held that any attempt to commence any further interrogation of Saraki over an issue already declared closed by the Minister of Justice would amount to a breach of his fundamental rights.
Justice Mohammed said that it would be unfair for Saraki to be subjected to further interrogation by police having been cleared of any wrongdoing by the AGF in the report police submitted to the minister for legal advice.
After, the unsuccessful attempts to use the police, the presidency returned to the EFCC. In 2013, two years after Saraki left office as governor, the commission wrote to him seeking explanations on some faceless and non existing petition.The commission again did not find any corrupt act and had to let go.
When the President Jonathan, decided to have a firm grip of the Peoples Democratic Party, Saraki was one of the few members who countered him. The president’s camp obviously did not take kindly to this and embarked on a well funded campaign of calumny against Saraki.
Today, Saraki is vindicated. Had Jonathan listened to him, perhaps the PDP would not have suffered the humiliating defeat it suffered on March 28 at the presidential elections. Had Jonathan listened, he would perhaps be preparing for his swearing in. But he ignored the voice of reasons. He decided to persecute those who told him the truth. He used state’s apparatus and institutions to haunt down innocent citizens whose only offence was telling him the truth.
Sadly, where Jonathan administration failed, some unscrupulous elements are starting to thread along those lines again in order to distract the growing popularity of Saraki who is a front runner for the office of the Senate President of the 8th Assembly.