Human rights activist and lawyer, Mr
Femi Falana (SAN) has commended
President Goodluck Jonathan for
responding to the allegations raised in
chief Olusegun Obasanjo’s 18-page letter
but lamented that it failed to address
key issues raised by the former
president.
Falana, who spoke yesterday in Warri,
Delta State, also urged the president to
review the letter and tidy up loose ends,
on issues bordering on corruption, abuse
of power and extra-judicial killings.
He said: “There are areas of the reply
that are rather woolly. I think it is not
enough to attempt to engage in
blackmail; the President must now go
further to cause an investigation and
prosecution in some of the cases he
mentioned rather tangentially (in his
reply).
“At the international level, this country
has been exposed to ridicule, with the
handling of the cases of Halliburton,
Wilbros, Siemens and the rest of them.
To the best of my knowledge, with the
information at my disposal, the US
government has made not less than $
2bn in terms of fines imposed on those
companies for bribing Nigerians.
“It is not enough (for President) to say
Halliburton, Siemens and all that did
not happen under his regime. Since there
is no statute of limitation and these
cases exposed Nigerians to ridicule,
President Jonathan must now go the
whole hog, no matter whose Ox is gored”.
Besides, the former President of the
West African Bar Association (WABA)
gave Mr. Jonathan knocks over the way
he handled the Stella Oduah bullet proof
car scandal and the alarm of missing $
49.8 billion NNPC unremitted fund,
raised by the Central Bank of Nigeria
(CBN) Governor, Malam Sanusi Lamido.
He also dismissed the Minister of
Finance, Dr Ngozi Okonzo-Iweala’s
explanation that there was a
misunderstanding on the purported $
49.b billion missing crude oil proceeds
and that the only a fraction of that
money ($16bn) was yet to be reconciled.
Falana maintained that President
Jonathan must adequately clear the
mist over similar cases to assure
Nigerians that his administration was
not cuddling corruption as he was
accused of in the letter.
He said: “I also find that area in the
letter disturbing where the president
said the Governor of the Central Bank
didn’t mention his name. He (CBN
Governor) came out publicly to say $
49bn is missing and now he has
apologised.
“It is not enough to apologise; if the
Governor of CBN could go all out and tell
the whole world that $49bn is missing, it
is not enough for Minister of Finance to
call a meeting and after the meeting
and say ‘we are reconciling, only $12bn
has not been traced’.
“No; the Minister of Finance is not the
Auditor General of the Federation; it is
not her business to audit the accounts of
the federation or any account belonging
to the Federal Government.
“So President Jonathan must direct the
Auditor General of the Federation to
audit the account of NNPC, CBN and
Ministry of Finance and ensure that we
get to the root of criminality in our
country or the grand looting of the
treasury of our country.
“A minister has been indicted by a panel
set up by the President, by the House of
Representatives and by the EFCC. What
rule of law, what due process are you
(President) waiting for? You must fire
her; you must also fire other corrupt
ministers and government officials that
are giving the impression that the
regime is comfortable with corruption,”
he said.
The lawyer is not pleased with
Jonathan’s response to extra-judicial
killings, noting the president’s position
that the killings occured before he came
to power, was not tangible.
“He must now set up proper investigation
– because they were covered up in the
past – to ensure that we get to the root
of these killings, including the killing of
the Attorney General and Minister of
Justice under President Obasanjo, the
late Chief Bola Ige (SAN)”, Falana said.
Femi Falana (SAN) has commended
President Goodluck Jonathan for
responding to the allegations raised in
chief Olusegun Obasanjo’s 18-page letter
but lamented that it failed to address
key issues raised by the former
president.
Falana, who spoke yesterday in Warri,
Delta State, also urged the president to
review the letter and tidy up loose ends,
on issues bordering on corruption, abuse
of power and extra-judicial killings.
He said: “There are areas of the reply
that are rather woolly. I think it is not
enough to attempt to engage in
blackmail; the President must now go
further to cause an investigation and
prosecution in some of the cases he
mentioned rather tangentially (in his
reply).
“At the international level, this country
has been exposed to ridicule, with the
handling of the cases of Halliburton,
Wilbros, Siemens and the rest of them.
To the best of my knowledge, with the
information at my disposal, the US
government has made not less than $
2bn in terms of fines imposed on those
companies for bribing Nigerians.
“It is not enough (for President) to say
Halliburton, Siemens and all that did
not happen under his regime. Since there
is no statute of limitation and these
cases exposed Nigerians to ridicule,
President Jonathan must now go the
whole hog, no matter whose Ox is gored”.
Besides, the former President of the
West African Bar Association (WABA)
gave Mr. Jonathan knocks over the way
he handled the Stella Oduah bullet proof
car scandal and the alarm of missing $
49.8 billion NNPC unremitted fund,
raised by the Central Bank of Nigeria
(CBN) Governor, Malam Sanusi Lamido.
He also dismissed the Minister of
Finance, Dr Ngozi Okonzo-Iweala’s
explanation that there was a
misunderstanding on the purported $
49.b billion missing crude oil proceeds
and that the only a fraction of that
money ($16bn) was yet to be reconciled.
Falana maintained that President
Jonathan must adequately clear the
mist over similar cases to assure
Nigerians that his administration was
not cuddling corruption as he was
accused of in the letter.
He said: “I also find that area in the
letter disturbing where the president
said the Governor of the Central Bank
didn’t mention his name. He (CBN
Governor) came out publicly to say $
49bn is missing and now he has
apologised.
“It is not enough to apologise; if the
Governor of CBN could go all out and tell
the whole world that $49bn is missing, it
is not enough for Minister of Finance to
call a meeting and after the meeting
and say ‘we are reconciling, only $12bn
has not been traced’.
“No; the Minister of Finance is not the
Auditor General of the Federation; it is
not her business to audit the accounts of
the federation or any account belonging
to the Federal Government.
“So President Jonathan must direct the
Auditor General of the Federation to
audit the account of NNPC, CBN and
Ministry of Finance and ensure that we
get to the root of criminality in our
country or the grand looting of the
treasury of our country.
“A minister has been indicted by a panel
set up by the President, by the House of
Representatives and by the EFCC. What
rule of law, what due process are you
(President) waiting for? You must fire
her; you must also fire other corrupt
ministers and government officials that
are giving the impression that the
regime is comfortable with corruption,”
he said.
The lawyer is not pleased with
Jonathan’s response to extra-judicial
killings, noting the president’s position
that the killings occured before he came
to power, was not tangible.
“He must now set up proper investigation
– because they were covered up in the
past – to ensure that we get to the root
of these killings, including the killing of
the Attorney General and Minister of
Justice under President Obasanjo, the
late Chief Bola Ige (SAN)”, Falana said.
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