Where Is Our Missing $20Billion? -By Kabiru Tsakuwa

Mar. 7, 2014

Nigerians can easily recall the last nationwide fuel subsidy strike embarked upon to protest against fuel subsidy increment by the federal government which was abruptly terminated by the devastating January 20, 2012, Boko Haram terrorist attack in Kano.

Many will remember how the attack succeeded in diverting our attention away from the burning issue of the moment. But that should naturally be understandable given that when it comes to the matter of life and death, other issues of course tend to be relegated to the back bench.

The memory of the former Bayelsa State governorâs corruption saga is still fresh in our mind. And if we chose to ponder critically, we can refresh our thought with what transpires when Mr. President ill-advisedly granted presidential pardon to Mr. Alamasiegha, who was convicted of massive corruptions and looting of Bayelsa state treasury.

That singular act, throws the federal government into quandary, because massive condemnations follows immediately both within and outside the country. It became so unbearable and embarrassing to the government that something urgent needs to be done. But as the heat was on, bomb blast reoccurs in Kano Motor Park at Sabon Gari, killing countless number of defenseless Nigerians, thereby shifting the attentions of Nigerians almost instantaneously away from the Alamieyesiegha corruption scandal.

To many discerning observers, such has been the trends ever since. Whenever government commit political and/or administrative blunder, something calamitous usually follows. All these however might be mere happenstance and/or coincidence. It still remains in the realm of conjecture because except those who should know; nobody can convincingly decipher the truth. What was however certain were the successes recorded again in diverting the attention of Nigerians and the international community away from the failure and grievous mistake of the federal government?

Unfortunately, what is happening in the North Eastern Nigeria currently in which innocent students, defenseless villagers, towns and hamlets are being destroy CONTINUOUSLY and mercilessly by insurgents has as yet lend strong credence to the above school of thought? The bloodbath is too much. Even proponents of disaster capitalism cannot be more gruesome and heartless!

Come to think of it, few days after the controversial sacking of the CBN governor, which generated wide spread condemnations both within and outside Nigeria; the rate of killings, its severity, scale, spread, and frequency in the north east had increased manifold. And before one could say âjack Robinsonâ, the subsisting issue of the illegal suspension of the CBN governor against provision of the CBN ACT has been relegated to the SIDELINE! The issue has been forcefully erased out of the memory of traumatized and bastardized Nigerians!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Now, few people remember that a scandal of monstrous proportions had occurred in the NNPC. The suspension of the Sanusi Lamido Sanusi whose negative effect to the economy, low investorsâ confidence, high inflation rate, dwindling fate of the naira and other disastrous consequence arising therefrom is of no particular consequences to those at the helm of affairs.
Worse, body language of Mr. President so far tends to depict non-committal to the fight against corruptions, at a time when the scourges has become so wide spread, so institutionalized, and so brazenly perpetrated. And instead of allowing forensic audit to be carried out to unravel the mystery behind those who perpetrated such gargantuan heist; the former CBN governor is being punished for patriotically doing the right thing!

No doubt, ongoing massive killings of Nigerians by BH as condemnable as it has always been should not stop us from asking vital questions about the missing $20 Billion dollars in unremitted fund to the federation account by the NNPC. Nigerian should not be hoodwinked into silence in the face of these atrocious and monumental sleazes! And in this, civil liberties organizations, labour movement, the media, students union and all other pressure groups have a mandate to join hands; until our missing 20billion dollars are recovered and those behind the crime appropriately dealt with.

Ts*********@***oo.com

The views expressed in this article are the authorâs own and do not necessarily reflect the editorial policy of SaharaReporters