On Wednesday April 12, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) searched a private apartment in the high brow Osborne Towers, Ikoyi, Lagos, and recovered an astonishing amount of cash in three currencies: US$43.4 million, £27,800, and N23.2 million. This is the biggest single haul since the inauguration of President Muhammadu Buhari’s government and its anti-corruption crusade. 

The Osborne Towers cash is remarkable in one other respect – the rush by claimants, unlike some recent recoveries which no one claimed.  The Rivers State Government alleged that the amount was the remnant of the money stolen from its treasury by a former governor.  The National Intelligence Agency (NIA), however, shocked Nigerians with its claim that it kept the recovered money, which was meant for a covert security operation, in the Ikoyi apartment that it uses as one of its “safe houses.”

The Director General of NIA, Ambassador Ayo Oke, was subsequently suspended, while the EFCC sought and obtained a court order for a temporary forfeiture of the money to the Federal Government, pending when a rightful owner might be able to prove legitimate ownership.

President Buhari has set up a high profile three-man investigative team to unravel the circumstances in which the NIA came into possession of the funds, how and by whose authority the funds were disbursed to the agency and whether there has been a breach of the law or security procedure in taking custody and use of the funds.  The team is headed by Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, with the Attorney-General and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami, and the National Security Adviser, Major-General Babagana Monguno (rtd), as members. It is expected to submit its findings to the President in a fortnight.

The dispute over the ownership of the money has provoked intense debate which is almost beclouding the original intent of the effort to fight corruption: which is to recover ill-gotten wealth, as well as identify and prosecute the perpetrators.   The whistle-blower policy challenged patriotic Nigerians to help in the fight by giving useful information on how stolen monies could be recovered.

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When last year the then British Prime Minister, David Cameron, described Nigeria as “a fantastically corrupt country,” many Nigerians   were expectedly indignant at this negative portrayal of their country.  But, events in the last few months are proving that, indeed, Nigeria is by far the most brazenly looted country in the world. 

The government must realise that the overwhelming majority of Nigerians support the fight against corruption.  The suspension of Ambassador Oke is a necessary step in the effort to unravel the mystery of the recovered billions.  We have no doubt also that in the fullness of time, some of the details relating to the ownership of the flat in which the money was recovered, and its last occupant, will be known.  The EFCC should leave no room for errors in this particular case. But, Nigerians are at a loss on how the NIA has heightened the already   high drama of this case.  Although it is the least known of the security organisations in Nigeria, this case has called its credibility into question.

We urge Nigerians to have consideration for the country and not loot it into oblivion.  It is gratifying that the government intends to strengthen the whistle-blower policy.  But, equally important is the strengthening of the judiciary to enable expeditious conclusion of cases of corruption.  The puny sentences that our courts give to convicts sometimes look more like an incentive than a deterrent.  This does not show any seriousness in Nigeria’s fight against corruption.

The Federal Government should use this case to showcase its firm resolve to curb corruption and punish its perpetrators. All those who are identified to have been involved in any illegality relating to the Osborne Towers billions should be brought to justice to unequivocally demonstrate that such inimical acts of corruption will no longer be tolerated in the country.