By Nelson Ekujumi
On being sworn into office on the 27th of January, 2024 as the Executive Governor of Kogi State, Alhaji Usman Ododo swore with the Quran to uphold the constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
However, since his assumption into office, subsequent events surrounding his immediate predecessor, Alhaji Yahaya Bello, who is presently on the run from the law, have exposed Governor Ododo as a leader who is violating his oath of office and by extension, pushing to the back burner the welfare and well-being of the good people of Kogi State.
On several occasions, Governor Ododo has abused his office to assault the constitution in preventing the EFCC from arresting Yahaya Bello, the latest being his ‘abracadabra’ visit to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) office in Abuja, where he was pictured, holding hands with the wanted suspect and thus, misused his constitutional immunity to prevent a man that has been declared wanted from being arrested.
Sadly, we also recollect how the EFCC stormed the Kogi State Government lodge in Abuja on two separate occasions in April 2024 and on the 18th of September, 2024 to arrest Yahaya Bello for questioning over corruption allegations while in office as governor after failing to honour EFCC’s invitations and how Governor Ododo on both occasions prevented the arrest by leveraging on the immunity he enjoys as a sitting governor.
As I write, former governor Yahaya Bello has been declared wanted by the EFCC for failing to honour its summons to explain himself on issues surrounding the misappropriation of billions of Kogi taxpayers’ money.
In addition, the ex-governor’s wanted person tag has been affirmed by the courts, though he has tried unsuccessfully to have it removed from his neck.
Fortunately, while Yahaya Bello is on the run from the law, though temporarily, one is aware that some of his accomplices who partook in the alleged illegal and corrupt siphoning of the people of Kogi state’s money are presently standing trial for the crime of corruption and abuse of public office and misuse of trust.
In addition, some of the stolen funds have been traced to where they were lodged by Yahaya Bello.
However, amid the commendable efforts of the present EFCC administration to live up to its core responsibility of fighting corruption as mandated by the constitution, one is shocked and ashamed that the Kogi State House of Assembly, which ought to be at the forefront of supporting the anti-graft agency in its war against corruption for the collective interest of the good and long-suffering people of Kogi State, is rather waging a parochial, self-serving and anti-people war against the EFCC for carrying out its statutory functions.
The Kogi State House of Assembly, which ought to put the collective interest of the people of Kogi State as its topmost priority, which is the reason why they were voted into office, by their conduct so far, has proven to be enablers of corruption by waging a campaign of blackmail and calumny against the anti-graft agency to hands off ex-governor Bello, that the Kogi people’s money is not missing!
While we are embarrassed by this condemnable and anti-people conduct of the Kogi State House of Assembly in prioritizing the interest of an individual far and above the collective good of the people of Kogi State, we are not surprised that they are following in the shameful, despicable and condemnable footsteps of the Delta State house of assembly in 2013 during the former governor James Ibori saga, when they claimed that Delta State funds were not missing, that EFCC should leave him alone, even in the face of the incontrovertible facts of James Ibori attempt to bribe the then EFCC chairman, now National Security Adviser (NSA) Mallam Nuhu Ribadu with the sum of 15 million dollars which was deposited with the CBN as evidence.
But while the show of shame by the Delta State House of Assembly as an enabler of corruption lasted, James Ibori was arrested by the authorities in London, prosecuted, and jailed for corruption, only for the same shameless Delta lawmakers to come back to public glare and demand for the return of the seized bribe money of $15 million from the convicted James Ibori to be returned to the state coffers. The same money that they previously claimed was not stolen.
It is sad that in our democracy today from the Kogi State show of shame by Governor Usman Ododo and the Kogi State House of Assembly, we are now witnesses to the violation and abuse of the constitution by persons who ought to uphold the provisions of the constitution for the collective good that they swore to on oath; but have rather turned violators because of individual, personal, self-serving and corrupt interest. This is condemnable in its entirety.
However, we must commend the EFCC for its professionalism and diligent conduct in the face of intimidation, provocation, campaign of blackmail, and calumny to distract it from performing its constitutional duty.
We urge EFCC to remain focused, law-abiding, and consistent to ensure that the war against corruption is fought to a logical conclusion with the Yahaya Bello case and others in tandem with the provisions of the law and the collective good of the people of Nigeria.
Nelson Ekujumi, a good governance advocate and rights activist, writes from Lagos.
