The whistle blowing programme is designed to encourage Nigerians with information about a violation of financial regulations, mismanagement of public funds and assets, financial malpractice, fraud and theft to report to the appropriate quarters.
The policy has led to the discovery of $9.8 million cash in a Kaduna slum residence in Sabon-Tasha and over $30 million cash in an apartment in Ikoyi, Lagos State. At an exchange rate of N350 to $1, the cash recovered so far will be over N14 trillion, just to mention a few.
The monetary discoveries made since the whistle blowing policy took root in Nigeria, left many Nigerians gasping in shock. Even Nigerians who are no fans of Buhari, grudgingly applauded this policy, while diehard opposition, continued to sneer and pick holes in the achievements. Many Nigerians have accused Buhari of not having an understanding of Nigerian economy, but nobody could fault his war strategy against the dreaded Islamic sect, Boko Haram.
One of Buhari’s campaign promises was to decimate Boko Haram. It was his turf. He knew what he was talking about. He was, after all, a former military general. Buhari’s ascension to the throne witnessed a relentless onslaught against Boko Haram members.
The once endless booming sounds of bomb explosions and suicide bombings drastically reduced. In the taillight of December 2016, at least 4,200 officers of the Nigerian Army, Air Force and other special forces took part in the operation of uprooting the Boko Haram terrorists from Sambisa Forest. In the build-up to the operation to storm Sambisa, the United States donated five mine detecting armoured vehicles to the Nigerian Armed Forces, which enabled the Nigerian Forces to clear improvised explosive devices that laced the forest.
Other powers like Germany also contributed information and logistics, which led to the capture of the forest. The forest had been used as fortress by the leader of the Boko Haram, Abubakar Shekau and his members since 2003. In spite of the decimating of the Boko Haram camps and members, Buhari said: “We cannot say that the war against Boko Haram is won until the Chibok girls are found.
The war will continue until the remaining Chibok girls are found and delivered to their parents.” In May, Buhari’s greatest yearning came to pass; about 82 of the more than 276 schoolgirls kidnapped in northeast Nigeria in 2014 were swapped for Boko Haram warlords. Details were not given about the number of suspects that were released in place of the girls or their identities.
Sources, however, claimed that three Chadian nationals, allegedly senior commanders under Boko Haram leader Abubakar Shekau, were handed over to their members in the swap deal. Buhari’s supporters applauded the move, while his critics insisted that there was no abduction of Chibok girls in the first place.
They argued that the girls were playing roles of kidnapped victims scripted for them. These critics said they couldn’t understand why secondary schoolgirls, who were about to sit for WAEC before they were abducted, could not communicate in simple English Language or pidgin.
They communicated through interpreters. The critics also argued that the girls should be allowed to have a one-on-one interview with journalists, without being shielded. Aside from the above-mentioned achievements, nothing much has changed in the security arena.
Fulani herdsmen continued to be on the rampage, slaughtering anyone who crosses their way, while the Federal Government continues to maintain the status quo of “sit down and watch.” No seemingly visible efforts have been deployed toward checking the menace of the Fulani herdsmen.
Kidnapping in most parts of the country has become a daily occurrence, completely replacing armed robbery. Two scaring crimes, however, have inched their way into the escalating and tense insecurity scene. These crimes are suicides and ritual killings. Security experts say that these new additions into the insecurity in the country are caused by the biting recession in Nigeria.
People, who have lost businesses, contracts and jobs, are believed to be committing suicide because they couldn’t cope with their financial world and stability, crumbling before their eyes. Many have become financially indebted to others, with no hope of redeeming it.
Still, a large number of people, who want to remain financially afloat at all cost and have the necessary funds, are ready and willing to kill human beings and hand their parts to herbalists. They believe these herbalists can use the parts to catapult them into unimaginable wealth.
The Special Adviser on Media and Publicity to the President
of Nigeria, Mr. Femi Adesina, giving a scorecard of his boss two years
administration, said: “In just two years, the back of insurgency has been
broken, corruption is taking a shellacking, and the comatose economy is turning
round.”
Some security analysts also have something to say
about Buhari’s two years administration.
Author of Terrorism and Crime Reporting, Mr. Frank
Oshanugo, said: “The president has done well. If you look at the issue of Boko
Haram, you’ll discover that he has achieved much. Although we still have pockets
of terrorism here and there. What he has done within these two years is good. When
he came on board, he made his stand known by asking all the service chiefs to
relocate to Bornu State, the centre of the Boko Haram war. The Chief of Defence
Staff and Chief of Army staff, all went there. They were able to capture
Sambisa Forest. Although we still have problem of kidnapping, but you can see
that the security agencies are living up to expectations in certain areas. Nigeria
is a large country; insecurity didn’t start in a day, so it’s not going to end
in a day. Nigeria is a very difficult place to rule. We now have problems of
joblessness and hunger. The government has not been able to meet up certain
electoral promises. The employment they promised to create, in two years is yet
to happen. Prices of foodstuffs are on the high side. We, however, cannot blame
him for all these. We should blame the system. There are some bad Nigerians that
do not want him to succeed; they would do everything to cripple this economy.”
Oshanugo noted
that there were many Nigerians, who have stolen billions of naira belonging to
the country; he asked what they wanted to do with such whooping amount of money.
“If not because of this whistle blowing policy, we
would not have known that N13billion or there about, was hidden in a building,
in Ikoyi. I don’t know how much has been recovered or what the government is
doing with it, but the fact is that we have recovered some money,” said Oshanugo.
He added: “If
not for poor health, I know that Buhari means well for Nigeria. The President
is also not running away from the promise of fighting corruption. The truth is
that there are some cabals that are fighting back. For instance, so many people
have been involved in one corrupt practice or another; like some at the
National Assembly. They’ll do everything to frustrate the government, to ensure
that the fight against corruption doesn’t succeed. Look at Vice President Osinbanjo;
he’s having problem with the Code of Conduct Tribunal. The Judiciary is compromised;
you see judges taking bribe. It is something that had not been heard of before
now. If judges are taking bribe, what do you want Buhari to do? That’s part of
the major challenge he is facing. Many people want him to fail because they are
corrupt and want those situations to remain. We should expect bigger things
from this administration. My only worry is whether agencies like the EFCC, fighting
white collar crimes are able to prosecute their cases and secure convictions.
In spite of the noise they make, we have not heard names of those convicted.
Nigerians are waiting to hear big names of people convicted. We want to hear that
a minister or former governor has been convicted and sentenced to prison. They
shouldn’t be releasing people through back doors. If you want to fight
corruption, let there be strong punishment that will make future offenders to shy
away from such a crime.”
The National Coordinator of Network on Police
Reforms in Nigeria (NOPRIN), Mr. Okechukwu Nwanguma said: “The key security
challenge which the Buhari administration inherited is the menace of Boko Haram
insurgency. I can safely say that the government has curtailed Boko Haram
significantly. The additional number of Chibok girls rescued, supports this
major progress in the war against insurgency. However, government does not seem
to have paid equal attention to other violent crimes which continue to plague
most parts of the country, especially kidnapping. This seems to be on the
increased.
“Although security forces have recorded some successes
in rescuing a few kidnap victims, majority of cases go unresolved and
kidnappers continue to enjoy free hands in their deadly exploits. Government
should train and adequately equip and motivate the police to effectively combat
crimes and guarantee public safety and security. Besides strengthening the law
enforcement, government needs to address the root causesof crime, which are
social inequality, unequal access to public wealth, poverty and the pressures
and frustrations that these engender.”
A former commissioner of police, Mr Tsav Abubakar
has this to say: “As far as I’m concerned, Buhari is doing well. The mere
mention of his name makes every corrupt person to quake in fear. The people
that have been arrested and vast money recovered, are great successes to us. We
pray he gets well soon. It’s clear the president can’t go out to perform
because he’s old. But the Inspector General of Police, the Army and Department
of State Service (DSS) have to carry out their activities properly. They are
doing well; but I think they need to do better than what they are doing now.
Nigerians have become sophisticated in commission of crimes.”
The publisher of Chief Detective Magazine, Mr Dipo
Kehinde, said: “We have to give him a pass mark because what he has achieved,
has gone beyond what his predecessors achieved. Before he came into power, we
were having problems with Niger Delta militants and Boko Haram. Now, these
issues are no longer in newspapers. For Boko Haram, he has been able to take
back the territories, which are the Sambisa Forest and its environs. At the point Buhari took power, Boko Haram was
having territorial expansion and were getting stronger. Today, the Nigerian
Forces have been able to curtail them. For that, Buhari deserves commendation. But
he still needs to do more. The area where I see challenges now is the issue of
kidnapping. I think the presidency should work with the National Assembly and
have a very strong legislation to discourage the act. The police are doing well,
but then, because there's no strong law backing this up, the guys behind this
continue to carry out their illegal activities. There's no day that we don't
hear about kidnapping.
“There should be a death sentence law against
kidnapping, just as the Lagos State did. It should be done nationwide and
people should see the law taking its course. For example, the kidnapper that
was sentenced to death should be killed. It will serve as a warning to others. I
heard the story of a guy in Ogun State. He was abducted and his family paid the
ransom that the kidnappers demanded. These kidnappers still went ahead to kill
the guy. This is a problem; Nigerians still don’t feel safe even though Buhari
has been able to handle militancy. We must commend him, but like Oliver Twist,
we still have to ask for more. Even the victory over insurgency is still not
total.
“The Whistle Blowing Policy is also a good move. The
government has been able to achieve a lot. Without that policy, we wouldn't
have had those kinds of monumental achievements. It’s a kind of partnership
with members of the public. Government cannot fight crime alone. I so much like
this whistle blowing policy because all those hiding money cannot do it alone.
If they are carrying bags of dollars to
keep in a place, they are not going to carry it themselves; they’ll still need assistance
from some aids. People, who assist in carrying the money to hide, can expose the
person at any time. Bankers too try to cover up some of this, but still, within
the system, there'll be some people who will get to know and now they have a
government, which is ready to listen and take actions on given information. This
Whistle Blowing Policy has been around for ages, it’s just that now government
is repackaging it. The police then use to have the PMP A22, where Nigerians can
anonymously give information, and the police would take action. At a point,
when Mr. Mike Okiro was the Lagos State Commissioner of Police, police had
information boxes, where anyone can write a letter and give out information
about any crime, anonymously. The person only just needs to drop the letter
into the box and the police would take actions. Now, it’s on economic crime and
fraud. Today, there’s a mouthwatering offer from the Federal Government, which
was not there before. Now, once you help the Federal Government to recover
billions, you can make millions yourself. This is the only thing that is making
the policy work.”
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