The current investigation of Rochas Okorocha, the ex-governor of Imo State by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) reaffirmed the perennial pattern of financial crimes perpetrated by governors of states in Nigeria and its national spread.
However, a review of EFCC investigations shows that Nigeria’s northeast states may have been plundered by their governors more than any region in the country.
Five northeast governors are alleged to have stolen a total sum of 355.81 billion naira from their respective state’s treasuries, making the region possibly the most plundered region by incumbent governors in the country.
While all of the 5 accused ex-governors served under the Peoples’ Democratic Party (PDP), the EFCC has been able to secure the conviction of only two of them, Jolly Nyame and James Bala Ngilari of Adamawa and Taraba, respectively. Others’ cases have either been stalled or ongoing.
The two convicts were accused of stealing a combined 1.81 billion naira, estimated at 0.5% of the total money looted in the region. James Bala Ngilari was later acquitted by an appellate court.
Who are these ex-governors?
Alimodu Sheriff
Alimodu Sheriff, an ex-governor of Borno state, leads the table as he was alleged to have embezzled N300 billion while overseeing the state affairs between 2003 to 2011. The EFCC said in February 2016 that the former Governor was being probed for over N300 billion state funds mismanaged by his government.
The chart also shows that out of the 30 alleged corrupt ex-governors, Alimodu Sheriff and Abdulaziz Yari of Zamfara are suspected to have stolen the largest state funds of N300 billion each.
Alimodu Sheriff was first arrested in June 2015 and granted bail. Sheriff also before the 2019 general elections joined the All Progressives Congress and his case with the EFCC appears to have died a natural death.
While Borno has been a hotbed of insurgency in the North east for more than a decade now, the alleged embezzled fund could provide 2,000 houses and keep on a mortgage at an average cost.
Murtala Nyako
Nyako was governor between 2008 and 2014. The anti-graft agency is prosecuting the former governor alongside his son, Abdul-Aziz Nyako; two companies – Sebore Farms and Extension Ltd and Pagado Fortunes Ltd. They are listed as first, second, sixth and seventh defendants.
Other defendants are Zulkifik Abba, Abubakar Aliyu, Blue Opal Ltd, Tower Assets Management Ltd and Crust Energy Ltd as third, fourth, fifth, eighth and ninth defendants respectively.
He was arraigned on 37 counts of criminal conspiracy, stealing, abuse of office and money laundering.
Nyako and his co-defendants in the N29 billion money laundering charges, had asked the Federal High Court in Abuja to dismiss the charges instituted against them by the EFCC.
They stated this in their no-case submission which they filed after the prosecution closed its case with 21 witnesses.
Nyako and three other defendants in the case, through their lawyer, Chief Kanu Agabi (SAN), stated in the application that “no case has been made out by the prosecution warranting an answer from them.”
Nyako had urged the court to strike out the alleged ₦29 billion money laundering charges filed against him and others by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
The case was last heard on February 26, 2021.
Danjuma Goje
Alhaji Danjuma Goje, a two-term former Governor of Gombe state (2003 – 2011), is the senator-elect, representing Gombe Central Senatorial Zone.
Goje ranks top on the list of ‘high profile persons’ being prosecuted by the EFCC. He was also featured in Country Reports Human Rights Practices for 2012, put together by the United States Department of States, Bureau of Democracy, Human Right and Labour as one of the most corrupt governors in the country.
The case which relates to conspiracy and money laundering with case number FHC/GM/CR/33C/2011 was instituted against Goje and was withdrawn on July 6, 2019 after a Federal High Court in Jos has discharged him.
Goje was accused of stealing N25 billion belonging to the people of Gombe State when he was a governor.
Jolly Nyame
Reverend Jolly Nyame is a two-term former governor of Taraba state. In November 2018, the Court of Appeal in Abuja ordered the ex-Governor to pay a fine of N495 million for alleged misappropriation of funds while he was governor of Taraba State from 1999 to 2007 to the tune of N1.64bn.
The court also reduced the 14-year jail term, earlier given to Mr Nyame by a High Court in Abuja to 12 years.
James Bala Ngilari
Ngilari is the former governor of Adamawa State from October 1, 2014, to May 29, 2015. He was the deputy Governor from 2017- 2015 under Murtala Nyako.
On March 6, 2017, EFCC secured the conviction of the former Adamawa State Governor Barrister Bala James Ngilari on a 17-count charge bordering on awarding contract without following due process.
The convicted former governor was arraigned before Justice Nathan Musa of the Adamawa State High Court sometime in 2016 by the EFCC alleging that he conspired with his former Secretary to the State Government, Ibrahim Andrew Walye and Finance Commissioner, Jonathan Lamorde, to award the contract to El-Yard Motors Company to supply 25 units of Toyota Corolla saloon cars, 2015 model, to the tune of N167,812,500 without following the procurement process. Ngilari was sentenced to five years in jail without the option of a fine by a Yola High court for corruption but on July 21, 2017, he was afterwards acquitted and freed by the Court of Appeals.
Nigeria’s Northeast – A troubled Region
In 2016, Chester Shaba, a United Nations Children’s Fund, UNICEF, Education Specialist, said 1.8 million children in Borno are out of school as a result of the Boko Haram insurgency. In a related assessment in the National Demographic and Health Survey (DHS) 2008, Nigeria’s northeast has 53% rate of out-of-school children, the highest rate in the country.
This is one of the effects of the over-a-decade insurgency rocking the region. The Boko haram terrorists have made the region their stronghold since the launch of the terror group in 2009.
The UN Refugee Agency stated that over 2.1 million people have been displaced while Hundreds of thousands have sought protection in neighbouring countries. A study by UNDP stated that the escalation of insurgency in the region has resulted in over 20,000 deaths and the widespread loss of livelihoods and access to essential social services.
The agency added that at present, the humanitarian situation is rapidly approaching famine levels and is characterized by extreme levels of food insecurity, malnutrition and exposure to disease.
Fourteen million people across the six states (out of a total population of 18 million) are estimated to have been affected by the conflict, with 8.5 million people in need of humanitarian assistance.
In the three worst-affected states (Borno, Adamawa, and Yobe), 5.1 million people are currently experiencing acute food insecurity in the phases of crisis, emergency and catastrophe/famine (with an estimated 100,000 people at famine levels of food insecurity).
Beside the lingering violence and its impact on the region, the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS)’s Labour Force Statistics for Q4 2020 revealed that nearly 3million (2,847,366) persons in the region are unemployed.
When the number of unemployed people in each state is compared with the labour force population, Adamawa presents the highest unemployment rate of 54.89 percent. That is 11 out of every 20 persons in the state are unemployed.
Yobe presents the least unemployment rate in the region with 31.26%. This means, about 6 in 20 persons in the state are unemployed.
Going by these sobering indices in Nigeria’s northeast, it behoves the elected governors in this region to commit their respective state resources to the development of their economy and the welfare of the people.