Agence France-Presse (AFP), a European news agency declared Saturday that President Muhammadu Buhari’s war against corruption can only succeed if he zeroes in on former president Goodluck Jonathan.
An editorial written by the AFP recalled that Buhari had previously warned Nigeria’s monied elite that it was “no longer business as usual.
“But with Nigeria in economic crisis as a result of the collapsing price of oil, analysts say Buhari can ill-afford to alienate Jonathan and his allies, even if it threatens success in court,” the international news agency warned.
The news agency said though acknowledged that many anti-graft trials were ongoing by the administration of Buhari, they may spin off to imperil his war against corruption, if Jonathan was not brought in as a key witness to the alleged crimes of the persons standing trial at different courts of law in the country.
AFP stated: “It would be easy to believe that Nigeria’s President Muhammadu Buhari is winning the war against corruption since his landmark election victory nearly a year ago. Hardly a week goes by without the country’s anti-graft agency announcing new arrests and investigations to add to the prominent politicians already in the dock.
“But the longer the cases already brought to court drag on, the clearer it becomes that a potential setback could prevent Buhari from securing the convictions he has promised — and Nigerians demand”.
In the article titled, Called, “The Goodluck Jonathan Alibi”, AFP said, “Certainly, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has not implicated the former head of state in any of its ongoing investigations.
“But his glaring absence is increasingly posing problems for state prosecutors as the preliminary stages of cases are heard in court and trials get under way”.
Citing the case of Olisa Metuh, the spokesman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), who is on trial for money laundering as an instance, AFP quoted him as claiming he “was only acting on Jonathan’s orders” and last week argued he should be acquitted because the former president has not been called to the stand.
“The former president forms an indispensable witness,” Metuh’s lawyer Onyechi Ikpeazu told AFP.
The agency also quoted Ikpeazu as saying, “We are saying the failure to investigate what really amounts to an alibi is fatal to their case.”
According to AFP, “one lawyer working for Sambo Dasuki, Nigeria’s former national security advisor, has also hinted at pursuing a similar defence.
“Dasuki, who is accused of diverting the weapons procurement cash through his office via bogus defence contracts, has himself said he was only doing the bidding of the then-commander-in-chief – Jonathan,” it further stated.
Dasuki’s lawyer, Ahmed Raj also told AFP, “The national security advisor will normally carry out the instructions of his president.”
Raji was also quoted by the agency as saying, “You cannot talk about this matter without talking about president Jonathan.”
AFP has warned, “If the “Goodluck Jonathan alibi” works, many high-profile accused could potentially walk free, dealing a serious blow to Buhari’s pledge to root out endemic corruption and impunity.”
The agency added, “Buhari has previously warned the country’s monied elite it was no longer business as usual, but with Nigeria in economic crisis as a result of the collapsing price of oil, analysts say Buhari can ill-afford to alienate Jonathan and his allies, even if it threatens success in court.”
-Leadership
