The menace of the super rich in Nigeria Nigeria is the only country in the world where you will sleep as a poor man and wake up to be a super rich through connections to people in public offices. There are two categories of corrupt super rich in Nigeria; (i) those that stole directly from government (public officials) and (ii) those that used their connection and collaborated with public office holders to steal. I am discontent with both types of rogues that have destroyed our nation and its citizens by increasing number of people in abject poverty. The first category of these thieves we often celebrated is most disturbing one. I will refer to them as ‘public wreckers’ because they are the instrument of destruction. They steal directly from the money allocated to their states, LGAs, ministries or parastatals and collude with others to steal more through bogus contracts. There are numerous examples in the Senate, House of Representative, Presidency, top officials in the Ministries, etc. We Nigerians are hopelessly gullible people that can accept and adapt to anything in the shortest of time possible. The issue of stolen pension funds is something no nation or people will take lightly. Pension is the security for people’s future and bounce of idiots stole your future and there were no reactions from the public. Not even a coordinated effort by the Unions and Civil Society either to stop it from happening again and/or make sure that every penny stolen was recovered. The government and their associate ‘wreckers’ know that we only make noise in a day or two and we allow the issue to be passed under the carpet. A whopping N60 billion according to Abdulrasheed Maina former Chairman of the defunct Pension Reform Task Team (PRTT) was stolen. I can also recollect that Mr John Yesufu pleaded guilty to stealing $203 million while administering the Nigerian police pension fund. We need to ask Justice Adamu Bello the sentencing guidelines he used in sentencing John Yesufu to two years maximum prison term with an option of $1,500. Look at the mismatch in the amount stolen and the fine imposed more that $201 million difference. I am not familiar with Nigerian legal system but I will like to know if the sentencing guidelines do exist and which ministry is responsible for managing it (the ministry of Justice or ministry of Internal Affairs). The judiciary is so transparent in Scotland that you can find sentencing guidelines on the Internet. What was the basis for Justice Bello’s unimaginable leniency? Concern Nigerians will like to hear from him. We need to have the sentencing guidelines online so that we can know what is required by law and what is administer by the judges. When justice is not properly served, it becomes very tempting for others to involve in this type of unpatriotic act because of leniency of the sentence. The fact of the matter which I have no solid or hard proof on is that not all the $203 million was in John Yesufu’s account; judge Bello and other notable wreckers who managed the fall out of the leak are part of conspiracy to defraud the people. It is only in Nigeria that judges and top government officials are billionaires. Public service is to serve the people not an opportunity to enrich oneself. The thieves/wreckers in this category are Nigerian public officials who suppose to safe guide the interest of the people; rather they are safe guiding their own personal interest. The other or second category is ‘private wreckers’ which normally collude with the authority to steal billion directly from the government or indirectly from the civilians. This is not new as people of my age will remember ITT telecommunication contracts that was done shabbily by MKO Abiola and his associates. The dimension it has taken nowadays is scary especially through petroleum subsidy and Dangote monopoly. The recent monopoly of sugar, rice and cement by Dangote is another example of extortion of the public due to collusion by the public wrecker. Do you know that the Federal Government is subsidising rice importation? And only one man – Dangote is monopolising cement and sugar market. Why is the government not enforcing or enacting competition law as was called in the EU? We have office of fair trading as well in the UK, antitrust law in US and anti-molopoly in Russia and China, if I remember correctly the international business course I did in 1990s. If there are existing laws why are we not implementing them and if we don’t why can’t we enact them? I will not like to say too much about this law but the essence is to prevent anti-competitive behaviour by companies. To prevent unnecessary domination and monopoly that will affect supply and price. Is just basic secondary school economics. Let me state clearly that I have no objections if our bourgeoisie own Nigeria because I want Nigerians to own Nigeria instead of Shell, British Petroleum, Chevron and so on. And a good government will support its entrepreneurs to excel as in other countries and economies, i.e. those that are in genuine businesses. But look at the case of MTN, a South African company which I heard from reliable sources that is not capitalised in Nigeria. In economic term, it means it takes all its profits out of Nigeria. It cannot happen anywhere else in the world. A country of 5 million people like Finland and Iceland with 320,000 (thousand not even a million) are self reliant. There is no country in Europe where another country will dominate/participate in their construction works for instance. It has become so worse in Nigeria that in addition to Western companies, the Lebanese are a major player in our construction industry. In Nigeria the super rich depend solely on milking dry the government through phenomena called “subsidy”. There is nothing that is not subsidised in Nigeria from oil, to rice, to health care of the rulers, etc. Unfortunately nothing is subsidised for the most needy – the poor. What we were told after a recent oil subsidy removal was that the savings will be used to improve the infrastructure. I am not sure if that is the case in Ajase Ipo – Offa - Erin Ile road. The super rich in Nigeria are rightly or wrongly paid petroleum subsidies to the tune of billion dollars. If we are not a sick society what will one individual do with a billion dollar even in naira? Why can’t the super rich build a refinery in Nigeria? Do you know that there are ships close to Nigerian water that are refining because of subsidy? I have written about that during the saga before I joined FB. I hope I can circulate/post it on FB. What will John Yesufu and his associate do with over $200 million if they are not mentally sick? Go to their villages you will see poverty written in people’s faces. You don’t need to think of if people are struggling or in poverty, you see, smell, touch and recognise it immediately you are in their mist. When are we going to ask for social justice that will help us to build egalitarian society based on fundamental human right and rule of law? when? My brother in-law who is a Finnish citizen became miserable when I took him to my village/town 2012. He thought the life in the cities was woeful but couldn’t get any adjectives to describe the one in the village. Unfortunately our town is not different from yours and that is why poverty is widespread. As we were waiting for my uncle in my family house a group of small boys of around 8-11 years old were mingling around. What came to my mind after setting my eyes on them was a daunting question of how can these boys competes with their generation in the world. Imagine - instead of them playing with Ipads and DS they are holding maize, bare footed and dirty. I do not know what the future hold for them but what I am sure of is that they are innocent victims of our political and financial recklessness. I went to a secondary school (private) in Plantation road, Ilorin (I can’t remember the name – Chapel?) most of the ceilings were missing. The same school used to be a good nursery and primary school when I was young. In comparison, when I was working in Salford I went to Liverpool for a research meeting in a secondary school. I was told that their entire student have a laptop each supplied by the government. All the equipment for their laboratory is stored in the ceiling so that they can have what we call in construction ‘flexible space’. A press of button will set the laboratory up – imagine! I am not talking about what is in heaven; this is in Liverpool, England! I can honestly tell you that is not as good as what they have in Finland. If we are honest and have focus, a billion dollar judiciously spent can turn around all the Kwara State Primary and Secondary schools into international standard. That is why people like me cannot stop asking for change because we have seen a lot and you keep on asking yourself all the time – why not in Nigeria. The situation with these small kids in Ira wasn’t like that when we were young even though some of our parents are not well to do. Instead of the nation moving forward we are moving backward. We are so heartless people that we are blind to see people that are truly struggling to keep their heads above water. Go to Ota, Minna, Shagari village, Share, Offa, Ejigbo, Ondo town and other towns and villages the story is the same. To even worsen the case we cannot stop deceiving ourselves to be a religious nation or people and person. The wreckers both in public and private capacity are the set of people you will see in the front role in the mosques and churches. We should stop glorifying and praising them but call them what they are to their faces – thieves and wreckers. Where is the Labour Union, the civil society, the human rights lawyers who themselves are billionaires through working for ‘EFCC’. We just lost it completely Nigeria. Life is so meaningless when you know what life is all about; life is not more than six feet, i.e. ‘six feet under’. In my case I have told my family to cremate me when I pass on. Therefore life is not even up to six feet in some cases. Poverty must be a thing of past if our communities if our economy is well and judiciously managed. I don’t want to be rich as those who are close to me can testify to my position about excessive wealth. Neither do I want to be poor because poverty is a disease. What I want and I guess most sensible people of Nigeria want is to live a simple and enjoyable life. When you eat what you want, use the type of car you want (not tokunbo or used car), own your own property and have a sizeable savings to supplement your pension at old age. What else do you want? If the government can improve our institutions to a normal standard, where education and health care is free. If the government can introduce mortgage system that will enable people to buy their homes in early 20s and finish paying in 45 years. Who cares if Dangote wants to be trillionaire (trillion in naira)? How many of the super rich made their money from innovation and hard work? When I was young there are super rich that made their money in honest ways. Most of them had passed on already and those we have now are super wreckers. What do they (super wreckers) do in return for the country or what is the government asking of them? 90% of Nigerians can do the same business if we have the same connections and opportunity to do it. It will take me less than two weeks to organise a sound financing in Finland if I have correct business deal of drilling and lifting crude oil or bringing the refined oil back home. You don’t need to be a genius to do that except you need a backbone and a ‘name’ to your names like Dantata, Tinubu, Dangote, Otedola, Clark, Adenuga, Otudeko, Folawiyo among many others. Even a daft will be highly successful in such a business. My point is that the Federal Government is not getting enough for the masses from this group of super-wreckers but they might be getting enough for themselves and their political parties. I hope you will start to use the term ‘wreckers’ to describe those that made their money from our collective wealth. If you see one tell your friend – is a ‘wrecker’ – your friend will ask which one/type, ooh public. The friend will ask where? Federal Ministry of Works or where ever he/she is working. Maybe this might discourage them and others from stealing. But the best option is to speak out and use the power of social media to put pressure on the government for corrective measures. In the case of the pension case, I do not know the legal procedure in Nigeria but in the UK the Director of Public Prosecutions will refer the case to the Attorney General who has the right to review prison terms. A good example is 83 years Stuart Hall in the UK who was sentenced to 15-month for abusing underage girls scores of years ago. Due to public outcry his case was reviewed and his prison term was doubled by appeal judges. John Yesufu and associates who stole your pension could have not got away with it easily if the public ask for the review of his case through social media. But when we allow them to have easy ride many more people will embark on this illicit behaviour. Bill Gates (born 1955) is one of the richest people in the world (world richest in 2013). He made his fortune through innovation (software development - Microsoft). He established Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and since 2006 started full-time work at the foundation. Warren Buffet another billionaire who is also a philanthropist organised the giving pledge campaign in 2010 with Bill Gates. The aim of their campaign is to encourage the wealthiest people in the world to make a commitment to give most of their wealth to philanthropic causes. By 2012, eighty one (81) billionaires committed to giving at least half of their fortunes to charity. In contrast, private wreckers (e.g. Dangote, Odetola, etc.) and public wreckers (Sarakis in Kwara, Kalu in Abia and many top and middle level public officials) are making life difficult for ordinary citizens of my country. What these super wreckers don’t understand was there are super rich before them and where are they now? When I was young it was Chief Henry Fajemirokun, he died in 1978 in a hotel in one of our neighbouring countries (can’t remember – Togo?). I hope one day I will write about his business acumen most especially partnership and drama between Rank Xerox, Daily Times and his company. The point is that he had many business proposals in pipeline before his sudden demise – truck assembly plant, brewery, fishing, hotel, banking, etc. After him the likes of Dantata, Abiola MKO, Iwuanyanwu, Bank Anthony, Igbinedion, Isahaqu Rabiyu emerged (the names are not in specific order). Where are all these people today? We the patriots will always remember Bank Anthony for orthopedics Hospital in Yaba, Lagos. Look at the mirror and see how miserable you look if you are over 40 and when you are 50, 60 or more you will understand my point even better. We should shift the focus from individualism (not from social theory point of view but from economic greediness point of view) to collectivism. I will conclude by pleading with you guys to always ask for your rights and form voluntary organisations that can address most of the basic problems in our society. Let us be our brother’s keeper!
Posted on: Tue, 30 Jul 2013 10:16:10 +0000
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