By Emmanuel Ogebe
Dear President Ajaybanga,
ISSUES OF CONCERN DURING YOUR VISIT TO NIGERIA
Welcome to Nigeria. I hope your visit has been productive. Like you, I am currently visiting from Washington and am thus reaching out regarding current issues arising in Nigeria.
Issue one: Appointment of Abacha looter into Nigeria’s cabinet
You’re no doubt aware of the infamous Abacha Looted funds, whose recovery was facilitated by the World Bank and in respect of which your STAR program was established.
As a concerned Nigerian citizen, and a victim of General Abacha’s misrule, I believe it is crucial to inform you that during your visit to Nigeria, Atiku Bagudu who was responsible for laundering the looted funds abroad was confirmed a Federal Minister by the senate.
Mr Atiku Bagudu who is currently embroiled in money laundering forfeiture litigation in the US District court of DC, over his involvement in the grand larceny, has spent millions of dollars fighting the US government’s efforts to return the money back to Nigeria.
At this time, the Bagudus have reached a settlement agreement to share Nigeria’s stolen €200 million between themselves and the US government without the Nigerian Federal, state and local governments who are joint owners of said funds under the constitution.
This negates the principle of integrity in governance as it clearly rewards criminal behavior. Political office holders should be of impeccable record to ensure that the welfare of the state is not jeopardized for personal interests. The current government by its actions have shown that it does not prioritize transparency and accountability by political office holders and this portends danger for us as a nation.
It is also a slap on the face of the world bank and other countries and entities who have worked assiduously to reclaim these funds for Nigeria and to stem illicit financial flows over the past decades.
It is clear that the Tinubu administration is not interested in having people of integrity in office.
More so he has nominated 48 ministers, a dozen more than the constitution requires, making for bloated overheads for political appointees.
Issue two: War Threat
Secondly, the President’s letter, also while you were here, seeking parliamentary war approval for engaging the Niger Republic, is disturbing.
The outgone Buhari administration undertook the construction of a 284-kilometre railway line linking Kano with Maradi, in Niger, part of whose $2Billion funding was borrowed from the World Bank.
This debt is a systemic economic atrocity inflicted on the nation.
The southeast cannot use PortHarcourt to import their goods though they’re the biggest entrepreneurs in Nigeria but the north that imports and distributes beggars and terrorism is getting a $2 Billion railway to Niger at our children’s expense.
Boko Haram used to hire mercenaries from Niger to come into Nigeria to kill and go back. Arms proliferation from Qaddafi’s armories permeated Nigeria through the Niger border (the Killer foreign Fulanis militia as well.)
The deadliest border front in Nigeria is Niger. Instead of securing it with a wall, we’re rendering it even more porous with a train.
Yet the most valuable economic road in Nigeria, the Apapa Wharf road is impassable. The value of cargo that traverses Apapa road makes it the highest economic value road!
Even the British colonialists had envisioned a railway from the port inland but it was sabotaged. No wonder the cost of moving goods from the port inland is higher than the cost of shipping a container from China to Nigeria!
Every delayed cargo incurs costs. The importers transfer these costs to the end user so the total landed cost in the supermarket includes the trailers languishing on Apapa road.
However, Buhari borrowed $2Billion for a railroad to Niger for the benefit of Niger not Nigerians. Niger itself is not the one borrowing the money. We borrowed to build in someone else’s country and our children’s children will be paying for it even when that country did not approve the project!
Furthermore, rice is being smuggled in broad daylight on bikes from the landlocked nation of Niger.
Yet as nations are building border walls Nigeria is building cross border rail. While the borders were purportedly closed some years ago, kidnappers brought an American hostage from Niger to Nigeria. US Navy Seals had to rescue him from Nigeria. Nigeria now unofficially has a transnational crime corridor that will escalate via this railway line.
But more importantly, rather than import underage voters from Niger by trailer, they can now be brought in en mass by train. This is the grand strategy to consolidate the hold of power by one region over and above all others by demographic gerrymandering and electorate re-engineering. Rather than use campaign funds to truck in non-citizen voters like before he has shrewdly utilized borrowed public resources to fund his hegemonic designs.
These ulterior agenda undermine the contributions of the World Bank in this project prior to even this present crisis in which Niger has cut ties with Nigeria. How could the World Bank have approved this loan knowing that Niger had not given approval for it?
Any attempt at aggression in Niger lays waste the financial efforts of the World Bank.
Issue Three: Post Fuel Subsidy palliative loan
The Tinubu government obtained approval of an $800 million loan from the World Bank to distribute to 12Million families although you reported that over half Nigeria’s population is multidimensionally poor. While each family would receive only $10 (N10,000) monthly for six months, new members of parliament would get N70 Billion.
Sen. Tinubu had declared, the week you arrived that he has saved N1 Trillion. If that is the case, why does he need to borrow $800 million from you for mere consumption?
Sadly a former governor declared on national TV that a subsidy fraud beneficiary advised them to stop the subsidy because they were “tired of making money”. Instead of arresting this fraudster, the ex-governor was proudly bragging about his friendship with him. What this tells us is that the real problem in Nigeria is failure of governance and the rule of law. Why should the majority of Nigerians be punished for the crimes of a few instead of the known criminals?
This much was illustrated by breaking news that occurred while you were in country that a ship with stolen crude oil being escorted by the Navy was captured by local boys. This is the stark reality that while institutions of government have become organized crime syndicates, citizens have become private and personal governments.
I urge you, as the President of the World Bank, to take immediate action to thoroughly investigate the rationale and activities regarding the use of these loans.
I suggest you suspend the $800 million loan to be frittered away on false palliatives; suspend the $2 Billion loan for a terror transit and smuggling train and require an audit of all Abacha loot repatriated to Nigeria in light of the above (as recently also ordered by a Nigerian court.)
By doing so, the World Bank can demonstrate its commitment to transparency, integrity, and good governance, which are fundamental principles for achieving sustainable development.
Furthermore, I kindly request that the World Bank strengthens its monitoring and evaluation mechanisms to ensure the effective utilization of funds throughout the project lifecycle. By implementing robust oversight measures, the Bank can proactively identify and address any potential misuse of funds, thereby safeguarding the interests of all concerned.
Lastly, I would like to emphasize the importance of transparency and public awareness in this matter. In a World Bank report in July, 4 million Nigerians were said to have been pushed into the poverty trap in the first six months of this year, with an estimated 7.1 million to join if the subsidy removal is not managed properly.
These are tough times for Nigerians and the government should be discouraged from making political decisions that worsen the plight of the citizens. The funds from the Abacha Loot, belong to Nigerians thus, any direct or indirect attempt to divert same, should be met with stiff penalties.
The World Bank should proactively communicate its actions and progress in addressing the misuse of funds to its stakeholders, including recipient nations, civil society organizations, and the general public. By doing so, the Bank can rebuild trust and reinforce its commitment to achieving sustainable development goals.
I am confident that, under your leadership, the World Bank will take swift and decisive action to prevent the misuse of funds and ensure that every dollar given out, is utilized effectively for the betterment of communities worldwide.
Thank you for your attention to this matter. I look forward to hearing about the steps taken by the World Bank to address these concerns and restore confidence in its operations.
Emmanuel Ogebe
US NIGERIA LAW GROUP
Washington DC
