“If you shut up the truth and bury it underground; it will but gather to itself such explosive power, that the day it burst through, it will blow up everything in its way” – Emile Zola, 1840-1902, VANGUARD BOOK OF QUOTATIONS, VBQ, p 255
In 2014, a series of articles were published on this page titled: IS APC THE ANSWER? The last line of the two-part series said: “I doubt it”. Today, certainty has replaced doubt. Buhari-led APC government was an unmitigated disaster. Even Tinubu confirmed the verdict of history on his predecessor. “I inherited a country on the brink of bankruptcy” was an absolute indictment. But, Tinubu is still reluctant to admit that the previous APC government was monumentally corrupt as well. This article will reveal the truth.
In January 2023, another article was published, just before the elections titled: WHY NOBODY SHOULD VOTE FOR APC. Below are the opening paragraphs.
“To me, the Muslim-Muslim ticket controversy is a needless distraction. The 2023 election should be a referendum on the performance of the Buhari-led All Progressives Congress, APC, government. The most important question every patriotic voter should ask on the day of the presidential election is simple: Has Buhari and APC performed well enough to deserve another four years in office?
“Let me start with some observations on Vice President Yemi Osinbajo – with whom I have a lot in common. He is a Yoruba, Ijebu-Remo man, a Christian, a Southerner, a progressive thinker and an old boy of Igbobi College, Yaba my alma mater. If Osinbajo had clinched the APC ticket and fielded a Christian-Christian ticket, I would still not vote for him. In fact, if he had moved to another party, like Obi, I still would not vote for him. The reason is simple. Nobody who was part of the ruinous Buhari administration should benefit from the atrocities of that government. Osinbajo even had the audacity to pronounce that he would continue where Buhari left off.
“It is not Osinbajo alone who would be totally unacceptable to me. None of the other candidates – irrespective of religion – would have received my vote. They have all become wedded to the lies being told by the Buhari administration. People like Fayemi, Amaechi, Okorocha, Umahi etc, actually think that Buhari has performed wonders”.
The article ended with a firm prediction: “If Nigerians ignore my appeal, they will discover two things. One, Buhari has ruined the Nigerian economy beyond redemption, while all APC members clapped. Two, his APC successor will ruin our lives even more. Take my word; Buhari ran the most corrupt government in history. That is why nobody should vote for APC.” Psychiatrists must be wondering if Nigerians are born with a gene that induces amnesia. Otherwise, how can most of us have forgotten that Buhari had a vice president, who, as we can see from the 2022 article, joined in the grand deception of Nigerians regarding the Buhari administration? Professor Osinbajo, SAN, was a willing and loyal accomplice in the management of the country which ended up on the brink of bankruptcy. He even vowed to continue where Buhari left if elected president. Obviously, he saw nothing wrong with the way Buhari was ruining the country. The VP was thus a willing accomplice in the government.
“You cannot adopt politics as a profession and remain honest” – Louis MacHenry Howe, 1871-1936, VBQ p 192.
EMILOKAN
“Every government is run by liars; and nothing they say should be believed” – I F Stone, 1907-1989, VBQ p 80
Today, very few of those who voted for APC candidates in 2023 can fail to feel the lashes of deepening poverty, deprivation and hopelessness – despite the bogus RENEWED HOPE Agenda. In fact, I read the RENEWED HOPE document three times before the article was written. The authors of the RENEWED HOPE document must have utter contempt for Fellow Nigerians. They must have laboured under the impression that they were addressing morons. Otherwise, how on earth could Tinubu/Shettima have promised to grow the Gross Domestic Product, GDP, by ten per cent every year – starting in 2023 and 2022 GDP growth of less than three percent? Go and read the document and find out if the economic targets have been achieved. Read again; and see if you will find anything about increasing national debt by N70 trillion in three years and three months.
This article is, however, not about Tinubu’s unfulfilled campaign promises and fake news by his government. It is about Malami, SAN, ex-Minister for Justice under Buhari.
NEPOTISM BREEDS CORRUPTION ANYWHERE, ANYTIME
“When those in office regard the power vested in them as personal prerogative, they inevitably enrich themselves, promote their families, favour their friends…” – Lee Kwan Yew, 1923-2015 (the late Prime Minister of Singapore).
Yew is to Singapore, what Ataturk is to Turkey. They were two leaders who, against all expectations, forged modern nations virtually out of nothing. If asked which nations I would like to visit, Turkey and Singapore will be first and second. The two countries have been fortunate not to have the leaders Nigeria has had since 1960. The curse of bad leaders has been Nigeria’s greatest misfortune, and there is no end in sight even now.
Malami, most Nigerians might not know, was Buhari’s son-in-law. So he was family; and the nepotism, which nurtures corruption in organizations, particularly governments, started from appointing untouchable people to high office. In every government, all Ministers are equal, but, some are more equal than others. The president ranked first, the vice president was, apparently, number two. Malami was number three in rank, but, he was actually a member of the Bedroom Cabinet – from which Osinbajo was firmly excluded. That is the real seat of power. Others are glorified errand runners.
“Power tends to corrupt and absolute power corrupts absolutely…” – Lord Acton, 1834-1902, VBQ p 195
A Minister of Justice, who is not a son-in-law, might be sacked and even tried. But, Malami controlled the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC; in addition to being a cabal member – meaning that he could not be investigated by the crime commission or dismissed. He was immunity and impunity personified. Only the most personally disciplined individuals can resist the temptation to abuse such powers.
There are laid down procedures for disposing of FG’s properties, though regularly violated by self-seeking government officials. But, it would be expected that the nation’s chief law-enforcement officer would be the last person to do so; because, he was expected to be above suspicion.
When he was authorized to dispose of all properties forfeited to the FG, the first step should have been to account for all of them – buildings, undeveloped lands, farms, hotels, filling stations, shopping centres, ships, oil tankers loaded with stolen crude, vehicles, jewelry, shares, cash, deposits in banks etc. Queries issued by the Auditor General of the Federation were allegedly ignored. Senate and House Committees’ summons to come forward and account for the properties in the custody of the Ministry were allegedly treated with the contempt they deserved. Nobody in the National Assembly, NASS, had the courage to insist on accountability. Two sources in the Ministry, speaking on conditions of anonymity, said over 300 real estate properties were forfeited in the eight years of Buhari administration. Till today, nobody knows how those properties were disposed of, although, the same sources have indicated how most of them vanished.
FORFEITURE OF 48 PROPERTIES OPENS PANDORA BOX
“It takes 20 years to build a REPUTATION and five minutes to ruin it. If you think about that, you will do things differently” – US billionaire Warren Buffett, 2022.
When on July 15, 2026, Justice Joyce Abdulmalik of a Federal High Court in Abuja ordered the forfeiture of 48 properties, said to be worth about N220 billion, and linked to Abubakar Malami, based on reasonable suspicion that the properties were illegally acquired, she made it clear that this was not a criminal proceeding. The prosecution for criminal offences was going on elsewhere. That involved Malami and his family being charged with alleged money-laundering scheme totaling N8.7billion.
Nothing has been proved yet. But, one major reason for a comprehensive probe of the management or mismanagement of the forfeited properties is now before us. Is it possible that some of the forfeited 48 properties were originally forfeited to the FG? In other words, have looted properties seized by the FG been re-looted? Only a deep probe can answer that question.
And there is a follow up to the first question. How many other forfeited properties were allocated to other top officials of the Buhari government? My sources informed me that several well-connected individuals received properties as parting gifts in 2023.
However you look at it, never in the history of Nigeria has the Ministry of Justice been brought into such disgrace as under Buhari.
•Follow me on Facebook @ J Israel Biola
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