By Lillian Okenwa
Until days ago, when Nigeria’s embattled Central Bank Governor, Godwin Emefiele, noiselessly returned to the country, many thought he had fled the country amidst fears he would be arrested by operatives of the State Security Service (SSS) who are investigating several allegations against him, including corruption and terrorism financing.
On December 15, 2022, Hon. Gudaji Kazaure, a serving member of the Federal House of Representatives, representing the Kazaure, Roni, Gwiwa, Yankwashi Constituency of Jigawa State appeared on a special programme of Human Rights Radio and Television and made allegations of unprecedented sleaze on the part of the Central Bank Nigeria (CBN) Governor Godwin Emefiele.
Hon. Kazaure also alleged that some persons in the Presidency are intentionally denying him access to President Muhammadu Buhari to present a preliminary report of a committee he (Buhari) set up to look into the alleged stamp duty funds being withheld by the CBN. Kazaure is the secretary of the committee with Adetola Adekoya as the chairman.
Now aside from the Presidency through the Senior Special Assistant on media and publicity to President Buhari, Malam Garba Shehu, describing Kazaure’s committee as illegal in a statement, while maintaining that the committee was dissolved on the directive of Buhari, more than 2000 Civil Society Organizations, CSOs, under the auspices of Coalition of Civil Society Organizations on Good Governance, CCSGG, have castigated critics of CBN Godwin Emefiele.
The Organizations in a statement jointly signed by its president, Etuk Bassey Williams, and Secretary, Abubakar Ibrahim, observed that those speaking to some media houses to emit lies against Emefiele are those whose evil deeds of corruption are being exposed and strangled by the recent Naira Redesign and Withdrawal policy.
All said, the SSS has reportedly vowed to arrest Emefiele upon his return to the country despite a subsisting court order restraining them from doing so.
And while the drama continues to unfold, retired Supreme Court Justice Ejembi Eko lent his voice to the debate. In a chat with Law & Society Magazine, Hon. Justice Eko (rtd.) had this to say— “Hon Kazaure claims to be the secretary of a presidential committee. Who is the chairman? And it is Kazaure, the Secretary, making, but frustrated, efforts to submit the report to the president directly, without the Secretary to the Federal Government of Nigeria (SFGN)? My experience is: Commissions of Inquiry are funded from votes of the SFGN. The President has not received the report, yet Kazaure and the DSS are implementing the report. Tsoho, Chief Judge of the Federal High Court, comes under Kazaure’s severe criticism for not granting DSS application to arrest and detain Emefiele (who was part of the presidential entourage to the USA- a fact known to DSS/DIA). Why is DSS, not EFCC or ICPC, overtly involved in the investigation and prosecution of a financial crime?
“If the President is not involved in the scheme, why is the presidency very quiet over an enormous scandal that can ruin the economy and bring down the government? Already, Kazaure is indicting the Judiciary, CBN, Legislature, and even the Executive (those preventing him from submitting his report).”
“This is a clear case of a corrupt politician calling a corrupt banker a sinner, while the corrupt executive is incapacitated to clean up or judge the two because she has either soiled her hands or inept”, Christian Aniekwena a Business Development Consultant told Law & Society. “However, you can only get this kind of scenario in an environment like ours with old and morally weak leaders that have no capacity to lead.
“Emefiele is not the only problem, all our politicians created the monster corruption we are experiencing today. A few questions to ponder here:
1. Is Hon. Gudaje Kazaure just getting to know of this Mr. Adetola story?
2. Would he have spoken up if the concept of Naira redesign was not introduced by the CBN-led emefiele?
3. Is Hon Gudaje truly sincere in this quest to fight corruption in the CBN and on the side of the masses or is he fighting to stop the cashless policy so that those in power will continue the business of ‘cash money’ politics as usual, especially as the 2023 election is close?
“In conclusion, we need a true leader(s) who is/are not known with any corruption case to cleanse the corruption in our system. So help us God!” He concluded.
