The conviction of Bode George and five others
A LANDMARK judgement has been given in a case involving a notable former military governor, top politician of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), close ally of former President Olusegun Obasanjo and Director-General of the Yar'Adua Presidential Campaign Organisation 2007. On Monday, October 26, 2009, Chief Olabode George, Chairman of the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) under the Obasanjo administration, along with five other members of his board were sentenced to 28 years jail term without an option of fine by an Ikeja High court. The others convicted along with him are the former Managing Director of the NPA, Mr. Aminu Dabo, Captain Olusegun Abidoye, Alhaji Abdullahi Aminu Tafida, Alhaji Zanna Maidaribe and Alhaji Sule Aliyu, all members of the NPA Board between 2001 and 2003 when Chief George was chairman of the NPA.
The six were found guilty of conspiracy in a financial scam involving about N84 billion. They were guilty of contract inflation, splitting of contracts into smaller units to bypass the schedule of authorities, willful disobedience of lawful order and gross abuse of office. In practical terms each convict will serve a reduced sentence of two years and six months in jail as the sentences are running concurrently.
These are the simple facts of the case. The judgement has been widely hailed as a positive sign that Nigeria can improve. The implications of what has transpired have spread across the social fabric of the Nigerian nation. This judicial event can be seen from various angles.
First, Bode George is by all accounts a big fish on the Nigerian landscape. His type are not known to be prosecuted let alone sentenced for any misdemeanour whether domestic, social, political or economic. They are simply considered too big to be subjected to the mundane irritations of the rule of law. When The News, a magazine, published the story of a contract scam at the NPA, Olabode George in a pretended fit of indignation sued the paper for libel and claimed N500 million in damages. But he should have known that those who live in glass houses should not throw stones. He hurled stones at hapless journalists behind the story and demanded a formal apology in addition to any restitution. In the process, he overreached himself such that the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) already on his tail was forced to progress the story further by charging him to court.
On the morning of the judgement a rented crowd resplendent in colourful attire invaded the court premises to celebrate a victory which they were certain would come. When a guilty verdict was handed out, the mood of the crowd oscillated sharply from pathos to mulish anger. Law enforcement agencies must stamp out what is becoming a growing phenomenon in Nigeria whereby sympathisers seek to intimidate trial judges by their noisome presence. A law court is a hallowed place and anybody who does not behave himself in the premises should be arrested and charged for contempt of court.
Second, we must commend the speed with which justice was dispensed in this instance. Prosecution to conviction was achieved in less than 15 months. Both the prosecution and the defendants behaved responsibly. We did not see any frivolous ex parte orders in this case. We commend the spirit of the trial. But it is to Justice Olubunmi Oyewole that we must give the greatest praise for sticking doggedly to the law and pronouncing a verdict that is based on the logic of the law. We note that the same judge has ruled in previous landmark cases that are helping to rescue the tattered image of Nigeria. By this judgement a powerful message has been sent to the many so-called big men of Nigeria that no one is above the law. We call on other judges to join Justice Oyewole to stand up for justice and reassure all our people that Nigeria is a state governed by laws and not by men. We must also commend President Yar'Adua under whose watch we are seeing the first baby steps of the Rule of Law.
Third, the much-maligned EFCC under Mrs. Farida Waziri seems to be coming into its own with recent cases involving bank fraudsters and now the case of Chief Bode George. Whilst commending the achievements of Mrs. Waziri so far, Nigerians wish to remind her of the case against 31 governors who her office said had a case to answer on corruption. There are just too many high-profile looters walking free in the country. The EFCC should go after these people. It should also ensure that the sins for which Bode George is being punished are not being replicated by his successors at the Ports Authority and elsewhere.
Fourth, for the Nigerian public, the judgement has lifted a pervasive veil of helplessness where thousands of persons are stealing our money and lording it over us as if we were born to serve them. These men and women remain untouchable because our institutions are weak and those entrusted to bring them to book refuse to do so. Indeed every apparatus of state is used to prop up the ego of many undeserving persons in our midst.
They are rewarded with national honours instead of sanctions. Indeed Bode George once boasted in court that as a recipient of national honour, he was ipso facto an upright man. But everywhere, looters are being lionized in Nigeria. Nigerians are holding their breath and asking whether we are turning the corner and getting better with the conviction of Olabode George. Time will tell.
