Abacha henchmen under scrutiny in Nigeria
Adey Oyenuga
11:13 a.m. Aug 05, 1998 Eastern
By Matthew Tostevin
ABUJA, Aug 5 (Reuters) - Nigerian government sources said on Wednesday
military ruler General Abdulsalam Abubakar had quietly begun a corruption
probe into the discredited regime of late dictator Sani Abacha.
Official sources in Abuja said Abachas feared security adviser, Ismaila
Gwarzo, had been arrested at his village for questioning over the
disappearance of an estimated $2.45 billion.
"Gwarzo has been arrested and is presently being investigated to give
account of the huge sums of money he withdrew from the CBN (central bank),"
one senior government source told Reuters in Abuja.
"Gradually people are being picked up who we know illegally enriched themselves."
Different officials said other advisers, particularly from the security agencies, were also answering questions.
Members of Abacha's family, including his influential wife Maryam, are
under close watch and have been stopped from travelling abroad. Most
remain at their northern home city of Kano where Abacha was buried on
June 8.
Since assuming power following Abachas death, soft-spoken Abubakar, 56,
has step-by-step demolished the chaotic and very personal system bequeathed
to him -- sacking, retiring or redeploying those who made Abachas rule
possible.
Lucrative contracts for both importing fuel and exporting Nigerias crude oil have been taken from the hands of Abachas family and political followers.
"Abacha himself bought numerous properties at ridculously low prices around
the country. Those purchases are one of many areas which is under investigation," the senior source said.
Corruption is nothing new in oil-rich Nigeria, where almost all previous military and civilian leaderships have been accused of corruption and where former rulers tend to be at least comfortably well off.
But officials and diplomats say that under Abacha, the biggest slice of the
cake was reserved for immediate family and the directors of a repressive security apparatus which kept other forces in check.
"What Abacha didnt do was share. He was widely regarded as stingy and would
only look after his own," said one middle-ranking officer.
All those closest to Abacha have now gone.
His long-standing friend Lieutanant-General Jeremiah Usenis retirement was gracefully accepted by Abubakar last week. Useni was minister for the
capital Abuja and sometimes arranged parties for Abacha.
Diplomats said Major Hamza Mustapha, Abachas former chief security officer,
is answering a number of questions before he will fully take up his position
as intelligence officer assigned to the 82nd division in southeast Enugu.
Director of Military Intelligence Brigadier-General Ibrahim Sabo has been quietly retired. Brigadier-General Yakubu Muazu who headed the elite Brigade
of Guards has been redeployed.
Many Nigerians, including many of Abachas opponents, as well as Western countries have welcomed Abubakars reforms and his promise to restore
civilian rule next May having scrapped the discredited political programme
which Abacha had guided.
Now public pressure is growing for an open investigation and trial of those
who profited under Abachas regime to discourage future rulers, whether
military or civilian from thinking they can get away with large scale
theft.
"Nigerians are impatient and waiting to know how much was spent on the transition programme and the self-succession bid of late General Abacha," politician Lawan Dambazzau told the independent Vanguard newspaper.
"Let us know what happened and money found to have been misappropriated
or stolen should be recovered and returned to the treasury."
Copyright 1998 Reuters Limited. All rights reserved.
Babalola Olalekan
Chux
We welcome General Abubakar's new government's attempts to determine the
extent of corruption under Abacha and to try to recover whatever may still
be recoverable. General Abubakar should be encouraged to pursue justice in
this matter.
However, as the eyes of Nigerians and the rest of the world are turned on
the excesses of Abacha, General Abubakar should ensure that no members of
his regime get the opportunity to commit the same or similar crimes against
Nigeria. In other words, while Abacha's crimes are now of historic
significance, the important lesson for the country and for any sitting
government is to prevent such corruption now and in the future.
God bless Nigeria. Amen!
Sincerely,
Justin Ajufo
Adey Oyenuga <oye...@chapman.edu> wrote in article
<3.0.3.16.1998080...@chapman.edu>...