Assistant Politics Editor, DANIEL KANU, situates the latest allegation of embezzlement against Nyako as falling in line with his ordeals lately
The travails of former Adamawa State Governor, Admiral Murtala Nyako, seem not abating in any way. If anything, rather, they seem to be widening, as the corruption charges against him continue to get messier by the day.
Nyako Murtala
Nyako was impeached on Tuesday, July 16, in an action that his party, the All Progressives Congress (APC), described as a “war against Nigeria” by President Goodluck Jonathan and to weaken the opposition’s strongholds ahead of the 2015 general elections.
Insinuations since his impeachment had been that the retired naval officer had gone underground, as reports had it that he was under close watch by both the security operatives and agents of the Economic and financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
Though he was removed by the Adamawa lawmakers on allegations of gross misconduct, there were indications that the former governor may have stepped on powerful toes that were bent on destroying his political career.
“He (Nyako) thought he was smart. He was playing a dangerous political game he never knew would swallow him. By the time he is through with what is happening to him, he will know the high wire political intrigues that are beyond him,” a source that pleaded anonymity told TheNiche.
Fintiri bares fangs
In what appears the continuation of agenda to finish Nyako, the House of Assembly Speaker, who is now Acting Governor of the State, Ahmadu Umaru Fintiri, last Tuesday, accused him of stealing N82 billion state funds.
To confirm the figure and recover the said sum, Fintiri disclosed that he would not only set up a judicial panel to probe Nyako, but would also invite the security agencies into the issue.
It was disclosed that the figures released to the public against Nyako were arrived at after series of meetings with the former governor’s bankers from whence he picked his financial adviser, who, it was gathered, has been a frequent guest of EFCC.
Fintiri had, in making the accusation, lamented that no administration had robbed Adamawa of its funds, since its creation, like that of Nyako.
He explained that N12 billion of the said stolen sum was debt statutorily owed, while N70 billion included amounts expended on “non-viable projects”.
According to Fintiri, “The task before this administration is daunting, more so with a debt profile of more than N12 billion in the Statutory Revenue Account, apart from liabilities amounting to N70 billion in the state funds that have been diverted to non-viable projects.”
Nyako’s response
Nyako has, however, debunked the allegation against him, stressing that the current government had not hidden its level of desperation to come to power.
In a statement signed by his spokesman, Ahmed Sajoh, the former governor claimed that the recent treatment meted against him was a proof of the fact that those behind his illegal impeachment were not tired, as they were hell-bent on punishing him for exposing their fallacies, describing the allegation as ridiculous.
Nyako wondered why the House of Assembly never raised the alarm before now.
The statement read in part: “To say Nyako left a liability of N82 billion is, to say the least, ridiculous. How much did the state get as income over the period? It is not even half of the amount quoted. What role did the House of Assembly play in accumulating such a huge debt profile?
“How much alarm was ever raised by the House of Assembly through oversight functions over the budgetary process all these years? The 2012 budget of the state was presented to the House of Assembly by the speaker who is now the acting governor and nowhere was such an alarm raised as to the absence of projects or a litany of liabilities.”
National Chairman of APC, John Oyegun, had at a world press conference held at the party’s national secretariat in Abuja recently, faulted Nyako’s impeachment, saying due process and proper judicial procedures were not followed.
Nyako’s sin
Some political watchers are of the view that Nyako walked into political tight rope when he defected from the PDP to APC. His case, it is further alleged, was worsened by his effrontery in authorising a controversial letter to fellow Northern state governors in which, among other issues, he accused President Goodluck Jonathan of orchestrating the current regime of insecurity in the North East.
He also accused the president in the letter dated April 16, 2014 of carrying out genocide against Northern states with impunity.
Former presidential candidate of the Action Alliance (AA), Martin Onovo, said what happened in Adamawa can only be possible in a dysfunctional environment.
“What we are witnessing in Adamawa could only take place in a corrupt and dysfunctional system where the rule of law is flaunted with impunity. I see what is happening as retaliation by President Jonathan. What the House of Assembly did was illegal, but this is not in any way commending Nyako because he is part of the Nigerian problem too. The forces against Nyako are enormous and forceful, and you can see the abuse of the constitution in all that is happening,” Onovo submitted.