*Urges Bello To Submit, Surrender To Court
LEADER of the Pan Niger Delta Forum (PANDEF), Chief Edwin Clark, has charged the Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Mr. Ola Olukoyede, to muster enough courage to fight corruption in the country headlong and be ready to confront some Nigerians regarded as sacred cows.
The elder statesman, who gave the charge in a letter addressed to Olukoyede, titled, ‘Re: The Reviving of all abandoned high profile corrupt cases against politician by the EFCC,’ after dissecting the various corrupt cases in the country, advised the embattled former governor of Kogi State, Yahaya Bello, to submit himself to the authority rather than continue to hide.
The Ijaw leader urged the new EFCC boss to perform his duties “effectively, impeccably, fair and just and without any discrimination, political victimisation or witch-hunting of political opponents and have the courage and ability to confront the so-called sacred cows in our society.”
While bemoaning the alarming scale of corruption in the public service and even in private business, Clark said: “It has become a recognised way of our daily lives.
“While the ministers, permanent secretaries and directors in a ministry carry out corruption and abuse of office at a large scale at higher level, the lower ranks in the ministry, including the clerks and messengers, are also involved in minor ways of corruption by hiding files and documents and asking for money before releasing them.
“A new trend has now increased the temple of corruption. It is ridiculous to say that some of the officers and assistants have increased the level of corruption in the public service.
“Some of those in the Presidency, ministers’ offices, President of the Senate and so on demand money, particularly in US dollars, before allowing you to see their principals.
“Corruption and abuse of office, which unfortunately has become our way of life, can only be reduced if there is political will on the part of the government to prosecute all those found corrupt as emergency cases and given accelerated hearing or the Federal Government should create a special court for a period of time to treat high-profile corrupt cases and not to allow such corrupt cases to be announced over the media and no further action taken.”
Clark, while appreciating Olukoyede’s courage and will power in reviving high-profile corrupt cases involving former governors, some of whom are currently senators or ministers in the present administration, he stated: “It is, therefore, with great pleasure I read with satisfaction, your recent release, wildly published in the Internet and some newspapers.
“You spoke the mind of all patriotic Nigerians who seriously believe in the eradication of corrupt practices in our body polity. You revealed the names of these unpatriotic culprits who embezzled the sum of about ₦772billion, enough to rejuvenate our ailing economy.
“I join other Nigerians in supporting you to carry out and to complete the investigations of these cases and to expedite the trial of all those charged to court since 2007, who are not only in the senate and government, dining and wining with Mr. President, but are also living lavishly at the expense of volatile and vulnerable Nigerians.
“I also wish to advise you that all former governors who served the country and some of who looted their state’s treasury, as it is alleged in Yahaya Bello’s case, should be investigated by your Commission with rapidity to enable Mr. President, Bola Ahmed Tinubu, to carry out his anti-corruption crusade.”
He had some words of encouragement for the EFCC boss: “Mr Chairman, as usual, some unpatriotic and misguided Nigerians have criticised you, branding your appearance on the television as media propaganda. I totally disagree with them; you are on the right path.”
Clark urged Bello to surrender himself to the court with dignity and stop pursuing procedural issues, saying after all that the offence he allegedly committed is bailable.
“The real issue is that Bello paid some amount of money to the American school, which was paid with the Kogi State Government’s funds. It is also true that the American school has refunded $760,910 to the EFCC, which demanded for it.
“It must be noted that the issue of bench warrant has always been an instrument used by Nigerian courts to draw the attention of high-profile government officials, that no one is above the law. It is not new by the court and Bello’s case should not be treated differently,” he stressed.
