Surely, a nation intending
to develop in concrete terms cannot overlook or be pretentious of the danger
inherent in such permissive arrangement. It is in this regard that Nigerians
are genuinely interested in a total unraveling of, not just the arms contract
in issue, but all other government transactions presumably done in the public
interest without commensurate effects.
Notwithstanding its interim
nature, the report, along with its revelations are disheartening in a country
where citizens are being ravaged by excruciating poverty. This is one more
indication of the raised level of abuse of office, greed, insensitivity and
depravity prevalent among some public officials. The investigation should be
thorough, and whoever is indicted should be made to answer for his/her
misdeeds.
The interim report on the
arms supply contract, according to the Presidency, highlighted failed
contracts, fictitious and phantom deals, items not supplied but captured in
payments, missing items in inventory, transfers for unascertained purposes
without contract documents to explain transactions.
The report also uncovered
“illicit and fraudulent financial transactions” on a grand scale. This involves
hundreds of billions in foreign and local currencies. So far, the committee has
verified extra-budgetary inventions of approximately N643.817 billion. The
foreign currency component is put at $2.193 billion – amounts which excluded
grants from state governments and funds collected by the Department of State
Security (DSS) and the police. In spite of the huge financial interventions,
“very little” was allegedly expended to support defence procurement.
What is clear now is that
there is a need to institute due process in governance and in public dealings;
the country has suffered much international disrepute over the activities of
unscrupulous public officials who are preoccupied with the mindless graft of
public resources.
President
Muhammadu Buhari has
reportedly ordered the arrest of the indicted persons. This is the least
expected, provided the investigation is credible and exhaustive; such that it
leads naturally to arrest and trials. The president is right to chase culprits,
but he should ensure a comprehensive and transparent inquiry by the agencies
saddled with the task. The president’s anti-graft war should not be seen to be
selective but all-encompassing and diligent.
The arms deals report
should serve as a lever for the president to fully activate his quest for
sanity in the financial system as part of the general cleaning of the stable.
The promise of a new dawn in public probity formed the plank of his political
covenant with the people prior to his election mandate. Government’s ultimate
objective should be to restore confidence in the polity and re-enact the
Nigerian dream. The past few months have unveiled many untidy, sordid,
mind-bending public financial transactions; showcasing the country as a
corruption-riddled one.
The observation that the
foreign component spent on failed contracts was more than double the one
billion dollars loan approved by the National Assembly to fight the insurgency is
alarming. Notably, the loan was endorsed at the height of protestations by some
soldiers of being exposed to danger on the front lines without weapons. These
allegations, narrowed down to the watch of the immediate past National Security
Adviser (NSA), are worrisome. Notably, the officer has protested his
non-invitation to the proceedings of the committee to defend himself.
Government has equally denied his claim. However, the window is open to
establishing the veracity of both claims and to prevent the miscarriage of
justice.
Col.
Sambo Dasuki has
reportedly promised to reveal much in court if and when his trial begins, even
as he denied the weighty allegations against him. The public cannot wait for
his disclosures in the interest of the nation. Besides the exposure of the
military to international ridicule in the war against insurgency, the listed
infractions were “without prejudice to the consistent non-performances of the
companies in the previous contracts awarded.”
There must be
accountability in public service. President Buhari has a duty to get to the
root of the arms procurement contract scandal. There is no reason to suggest
that he cannot do that. He should also sustain the tempo of recovering the loot
from the treasury as much as he could during his tenure. He has history on his
side. (Guardian)
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