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| Fani-Kayode, Obanikoro |
The visit is an indication that there is
an emerging political trend. Some politicians seem to be disinterested
with the All Progressives Congress and the Peoples Democratic Party. The
fact that they showed solidarity means that something is in the offing.
They are either thinking of forming a new political party or there are
new forms of alliances and solidarity.
It is also an indictment on the
anti-corruption war embarked upon by the Federal Government. It seems
people are not happy and it seems the anti-corruption war is not
holistic. It shows people are beginning to be disenchanted with the
anti-corruption war.
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| Prof. Dauda Saleh (Lecturer, Political Science and International Relations, University of Abuja) |
Visiting these people in custody by the APC leaders portrays a kind of collusion. These people have been indicted; they (the visitors) should steer clear of them. It means they are not practising the anti-corruption tenet they are preaching. Visiting the suspects in EFCC custody means encouraging them, either psychologically or morally. So, it is a very wrong thing. As a matter of fact, the EFCC needs to investigate the visitors as well.
For us to get this anti-corruption war
right, no stone must be left unturned. Our character and attitude must
be corruption-free. Whether the APC, the PDP, civil society or civil
service, we have to be thorough. There must not be sentiments. Or else
we won’t achieve anything.
For us to get this anti-corruption war
right, no stone must be left unturned. Our character and attitude must
be corruption-free. Whether the APC, the PDP, civil society or civil
service, we have to be thorough. There must not be sentiments. Or else
we won’t achieve anything.
- Agatha Osieke (An activist).
- The visit of the APC leaders to those in the EFCC custody is
not wrong. They may want to ascertain the facilities in the EFCC.
Journalists or members of the civil society can also visit facilities
such as prisons or rehabilitation centres. Right groups visit cells to
ascertain their conditions. But I hope they (APC leaders) don’t have any
ulterior motive for this visit.
All those who are visiting the custody should be put under watch in order to monitor the objectives of their visit. But there is nothing bad in visiting inmates.Politicians are partisan. There is no way a partisan person will not have a partisan interest. We are in a democracy. So, if there are partisan interests, we may not bother ourselves. But partisan activities must be monitored to see if they conform with the rule of law which we are all agitating for. - Idris Miliki (Director, Centre for Human Rights and Conflict Resolution)
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| Idris Miliki (Director, Centre for Human Rights and Conflict Resolution) |
It is quite unfortunate this is
happening. People, who support the visit to the ‘celebrities’ in
custody, will pontificate that they have the freedom to visit anyone
they desire anywhere. I think it is against the spirit of our nation at
this time to so do. What message exactly are they passing – that those
in custody are victims of circumstances or that they are in the
opposition?
They are being held in custody because
they allegedly squandered funds meant for the procurement of arms to
fight terrorism, which has resulted in the loss of civilians’ lives and
loss of our soldiers. For the sake of the current poor condition of our
country, people should allow them to face their cases. When they go to
the courts and the courts discharge and acquit them, we can then
celebrate them. There is too much impunity in this country.
- Oladiran Ajetumobi (A civil servant)
Very soon, the APC will not exist again
as a political party. The party, from the look of things, lack direction
and any individual or group that lacks direction will collapse. You
cannot give what you don’t have. In an attempt for them to pretend as
being holier-than-thou, they are messing themselves up. What is
happening in Nigeria today is that the anti-corruption struggle has been
lost long ago by President Muhammadu Buhari.
People are looking at the
anti-corruption campaign from two angles. One angle is that it is meant
to cut the enemy of the government, and the other angle is to that it
is being used to cut former office holders who looted our treasury.
In the next general election, there
would be a realignment of forces. The process of the realignment is what
we are seeing now in terms of the visit. We need to caution ourselves,
and the President needs to direct the EFCC to tell Nigerians what has
been realised from looters. Don’t be surprised if those presently on
trial become leaders of political parties that would soon be formed.
The APC is the same as the PDP. It is the same wine, the bottle was just
changed. We are yet to get there. I don’t see Buhari taking us to the
Promised Land. He is preparing the ground for a new Nigeria.
- Amitolu Shittu (National Coordinator, Committee for Democracy and Rights of the People)
They must have a reason for the visit.
There are different kinds of plea bargaining going on. They might want
to discuss with them to see how they could vomit whatever they have
allegedly eaten. I don’t think it is antithetical to anti-corruption for
such a meeting to be held. It might be for a different reason. I think
as time goes on, there will be more information as to why they met with
them.
But the most fundamental thing to the
members of the public is how the moves would improve the welfare and
security of the people.
The 1999 Constitution says that the
welfare and security of the people shall be the primary aim of the
government. So, even if one million people are arrested, as long as it
does not translate to the welfare of the people, then it is a waste of
time.
As long as inflation continues the way
it is, as long as the naira is on a free fall against the dollar, as
long as we remain a consuming nation without any impetus for creativity,
productivity and manufacturing, as long as the leadership does not
explain to the masses what the state of affairs is, as long as people do
not know the direction in which the government is taking the nation,
whatever effort is being made will remain a distraction to the hope and
aspiration of people, who believe that the essence of governance is
their welfare.
- Taiwo Akinlami (A lawyer)
The visit shows that the APC’s fight
against corruption is not different from what we saw during the PDP era,
and that the two parties are one and the same in character, content,
ideology, strategy and principle. It means that it is just their names
that differentiate them.
The Economic and Financial Crimes
Commission has been reduced to an instrument to cow perceived enemies of
the government. Once an opposition party member agrees to be loyal and
join the government of the day, his sins would automatically be
forgiven. So, we know the hidden motive of the visit and we are waiting
for the expected results.
Source: Punch Newspapers
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