Where Is Former President, Goodluck Jonathan? Dele Momodu Writes
Fellow Nigerians, I’m surprised that no one has asked about the wellbeing, welfare and whereabouts of our dear former President, Dr Goodluck Ebele Azikiwe Jonathan. Are we so wicked and uncaring that we have forgotten the gentleman who brought us fresh air so soon? Do we truly suffer from “collective amnesia” (apologies Wole Soyinka) that no one is coming up in defence of the man who brought FaceBook to Africa’s biggest nation? Where are all those acolytes who were falling all over
themselves this time last year during the Presidential campaigns? Where are the royal fathers from different parts of Nigeria who were decorating our President with all kinds of esoteric Chieftaincy titles?
Where are the experts who were churning out endless
statistics about how God had blessed us with the greatest President Nigeria
ever knew? What happened to all the economic magicians who claimed that former
President Jonathan had propelled us to the pinnacle of the temple and
proclaimed that in consequence we were Africa’s numero uno economy? Where are
the priests, pastors, alfas, Imams, marabouts, traditional worshippers, and all
manner of religious personages who trumpeted that Ebele Goodluck Jonathan was
the anointed of God at the 2015 Presidential elections?
Where are the 14 million farmers who were connected by
mobile phones in our season of unprecedented Agricultural Revolution? Where are
the plentiful loaves of cassava bread and the myriad of rice pyramids that we
were told littered everywhere? Where are the ultra-modern air-conditioned trains
that we were told travelled from Lagos to Kafanchan, to Kano and Enugu? Where
is the second Niger Bridge; and the strategic East-West road?
I have too many questions begging for answers but I will
limit myself to only that relating to former President Goodluck Jonathan. I’m
just trying to imagine the state of his mind at this terrible moment. I’m not a
psychologist but I can attempt to play the role of one by doing some
psychoanalysis of the man who left power under one year ago only to witness
that things have literally fallen apart with his legacy completely obliterated
in the twinkle of an eye.
In case you think I’m mucking around and mocking our former
President, please perish the thought. I’m more of a sympathiser who would wish
to draw sumptuous lessons from the tragedy that befell our former leader. From
what I can see so far, President Jonathan as a person is a good man who was
fortunate to have been able to effortlessly navigate and meander his way
through the murky waters of Nigerian politics to arrive at the topmost position
in Nigeria. He was obviously ill-prepared for power and governance and when it
landed on his laps he hardly knew what to do with it. He was like a student who
was too favoured and over-pampered by his lecturers until he had to write
external exams and get exposed to the real world.
I’m certain, President Jonathan could not have bargained for
the hurricane that has hit him. When he conceded and congratulated the then
President-elect, Major General Muhammadu Buhari, he must have looked forward to
a life of bliss in retirement. But what is happening now is the worst nightmare
for a man who had been compared to Mahatma Ghandi, Lee Kuan Yew and Nelson
Mandela.
I don’t know how this cacophony of allegations and babel of
counter-allegations would end or subside but I am convinced President Goodluck
Jonathan would have to speak up sooner than later. The reason is simple. I
expect his embattled foot-soldiers to put all the blame on him as the one who
authorised the disbursement of our common wealth by the most generous
government in human history. As to the sharing of the bazaar, let’s be fair,
how many people are there who would have been paid those stupendous sums and
would reject the money or ask where it was coming from.
At the end of the day, the former President would have to
bear his own cross and come out clean and accept the blame. As the saying goes
the buck stops at number one! I’m not sure apologies would suffice at the stage
things have reached especially if the Buhari government is determined and ready
to take its pound of flesh. In my view, it would be difficult to jail the
messengers and let the master who sent them on irrational errands go scot free.
That is the dilemma President Buhari would have to grapple
with in the not too distant future. Would Buhari in good conscience be able to
jail a former Nigerian President if indeed there was an agreement not to probe
and punish the man? Will he be able to ignore the fact that this was a man who,
uncharacteristically, voluntarily relinquished power after losing an election
and was heralded by the whole world as an apostle of peaceful and democratic
change in Africa? It is a tough question that only President Buhari can answer.
The other poser is, how much of the wasted or looted funds
can be recovered? I think from the experience of the past, it may not amount to
much after all. The litigations are going to go on ad infinitum and some of the
alleged culprits may actually escape punishment on technical and other grounds.
The EFCC under the energetic and passionate Mallam Nuhu Ribadu was faced with
such frustration. There is no other way to punish anyone under the law without
going to court.
That is the democratic way. It is the democratic way that
former President Jonathan embraced, leading him to loosen his hold on power.
And it is the democratic way that brought this our new President Buhari to
power. There is thus no other way but to follow the judicial process and the
principles of natural justice that flow therefrom. Those campaigning for
extra-judicial prosecution and conviction may soon reach a cul-de-sac. You can
keep the guys indefinitely in detention but how will that bring back the money.
The truth is that the worst form of corruption is abuse of
office and the impunity that it begets. That was the basis of the unbridled
corruption that enveloped the Jonathan administration. If it remains unchecked,
it will not be long before this present government also succumbs and becomes
engulfed by the corruption it is professing to fight. Then we would have come
full circle without anything to show for it, not even a wee part of our
plundered wealth.
I think the biggest mistake of this government was the
policy of saying people should not pay foreign currencies into their accounts.
This has deprived the government of springing a surprise on those who would
have kept their loot in Nigeria. It is now too late to expect those people to
pay these foreign currencies into their accounts because of the policy reversal
apparently foisted upon us by the visit of the IMF team.
I am certain most of those monies have escaped our shores
and no matter the anti- money laundering agreements we sign, those foreign
countries are not likely to repatriate the funds at a time the world economy is
almost comatose. This is another example of the need by all spheres of
government to think through policies before they are announced. There have been
too many policy somersaults by our apex financial regulatory bodies in recent
time to augur well for our ailing economy. Negative signals have been sent by
government to investors and citizens both at home and abroad and this has
further increased the pain and burden of Nigerians.
My personal advice is for government to work harder at
getting back most of the money that has been stolen or misappropriated, as a
matter of top priority. President Buhari may have to enter into unpleasant
compromises to achieve this, but such is life. There is no point wasting the
little resources now available to us on prosecuting and jailing criminals
without getting something substantial out of the exercise.
I pray and wish that President Goodluck Jonathan can redeem
his erstwhile government a bit by appealing to his men and women and convincing
them to return the atrocious sums of money which they stole without the fear of
God. He should save Nigeria from this unnecessary ordeal of trying to compel
refund of the filthy lucre and allow this government to settle down and
concentrate on the serious business of governance.
THANK YOU, LT. GENERAL T. Y. DANJUMA
I know this would come as a surprise to one of Nigeria’s
most respected and respectable retired army Generals but I believe we must
always show gratitude to those who touch our lives hoping that others would
emulate such acts of selflessness. Let me go straight to my gist.
I had called Senator Mrs Daisy Danjuma sometime last year
seeking an appointment with her husband, Lt. General Theophilus Yakubu Danjuma.
My mission was simple but not seemingly so easy to achieve. I wanted “General”
as we all call him to write a foreword to my forthcoming book titled PENDULUM:
A Book of Prophecies. “Aunty Daisy” as we call the amiable Senator told me the
General was in Abuja but should be back the following day. I promised to drop
one of the special draft copies for the General. Indeed, I had presented one
copy to President Muhammadu Buhari when he invited me to the Presidential villa
in Abuja.
I went to the Danjumas hoping to drop the book and run but
Aunty Daisy said the General just returned from Abuja and would like to see me
briefly before retiring upstairs. I entered the house and personally handed him
my book. He told me it might take him a few months to read and then decide
whether he would pen the foreword or not. The General has never been known to
hide words under the tongue; he is very blunt and straight-forward. I told him
I would wait patiently for his decision. He said he had many books to read and
that he had just bought President Olusegun Obasanjo’s latest books to add to
his reading list, that very day. I saw a man who relished knowledge and reading
and I knew I had come to the right person.
I had good reason to choose the General. I had previously
identified him as an intellectual and avid reader of my column. He had
surprised me on one occasion when I attended his annual birthday celebration on
December 9, in Victoria Island, Lagos. In the middle of the merriment, General
pulled me aside and said: “I’m a great fan of your column because you write so
well and logically… I think I missed the last two and I’ve just told my wife to
make sure she gets it from you…” I was deeply touched by the compliment.
I have been a family friend of the Danjumas for about 15
years and Senator Danjuma has become my big sister to the extent that I am
invited to and welcomed in their homes in Abuja, Lagos, Surrey and Marbella at
any time. It has been a privilege knowing the man of few words who retired from
the military with a glowing record and high esteem. Since then, he has taken to
the boardroom with consummate ease and has remained one of the most astute
financial players in Africa. What is more, the General has committed a
substantial chunk of his immense fortune acquired from his numerous businesses
to charity. He is a man of impeccable taste and academic nobility. He reads
voraciously and his libraries are well-stocked. His selection, and collection,
of world music is amazing. He carries himself with so much grace and panache.
My patience in relation to the foreword to my book
eventually paid off two weeks ago when I suddenly got a call from Senator Daisy
Danjuma after I had almost given up. She said the General would like to speak
with me and put him on the line. The General told me that he had read the book
and he had found it so “fantastic” that he had agreed to author the foreword.
There was only one word he wants me to change.
I was very grateful and excited. I have since picked up the
work from his Lagos home and, by the grace of God, the book should be ready for
publication and circulation shortly. There are a few other books that are
almost ready and we should celebrate a festival of books from me this year.
No comments