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Corruption has made insecurity to linger in Nigeria – General Williams
Major General Ishola Williams has asserted that ending insecurity in Nigeria is not difficult but for corruption entrenched within the political and constitutional framework.
Speaking on Channels TV’s “Inside Sources with Laolu Akande,” on Friday, the retired general highlighted how the Nigerian constitution fosters corruption, aiding politicians’ greed and selfishness.
According to him, “Any country that looks for equity, not equality, that country will have selfless leaders. But, then, you have a code that guides the followership and leadership, if that code is corruption-prone like the 1999 constitution, that constitution is corruption-prone. And why is it corruption-prone? Immunity is equivalent to impunity,”
Williams stated “In any constitution that has immunity, you are creating a situation for impunity because you bring a crook into government and you say this crook, so, because he has come into government he has become a saint, so, anything he does, leave him until he leaves. And when that happens, the governors become kleptocrats, demigods in their states, approve any amount of money they like, nobody audits them, and if you ask accountants, the accountants will tell you that everyone is auditable except God, but not in Nigeria.”
Reflecting on the systemic issues plaguing Nigeria’s security forces, General Williams emphasised the need for doctrinal change.
He said, “There’s a lot of insecurity in the country and whether for the police or the military, there is what is called doctrine, official tactics and tactics. If you’ve been doing something for the past 10 years and it’s not working, you change your doctrine. Your doctrine will now determine your operational tactics and tactics at the lower level.”
He explained, “I’ve been telling people that if you don’t change the doctrine and the tactics, we will never be able to deal with the problems.”
General Williams also criticised the outdated structure of the police and military, stressing the necessity of strategic thinking.
“The structure is completely outdated, but the police will never agree. Now, talking about the structure, not only about the police, I will come to the military later. But, in the case of coup or no coup, in the Nigeria sense, any military officer in his right sense will know that it doesn’t work and it doesn’t solve problems because it is temporary, and that is the mistake those boys in other West Africa countries, Mali and co have been making.”
The retired general reflected on past military leadership, particularly the pragmatic approach of Abdulsalami Abubakar, saying, “The only person who understood that was Abdulsalami Abubakar. Within eleven months, he handed over because he knew that he couldn’t solve the problem of Nigeria. And about that 1999 constitution, they are blaming him for that, but I’m sure, and I was told he called to look at those papers.
“But what has happened in the course of that? It was let them just go, the constitution is okay, once they go, we, politicians know how to do it, till today, they’ve not been able to.”
Highlighting the persistent inequality in Nigeria, Williams pointed to the selfishness and greed among leaders as the root causes, as he said, “Why there is a gap between the rich and the poor is this, human beings are selfish people, and not only selfish, they are greedy.”
According to him, “The Creator has created a world in which there is enough for everybody. A good country is like Denmark, Norway, Finland. Nordic countries. Why? The gap between the rich and the poor is deliberately reduced by taxes to take care of those who are not as fortunate as those who are rich. But everybody gets an equal chance, so, you have equity, not equality.”
General Williams lamented Nigeria’s missed opportunities and lack of progress compared to other nations, saying, “What has been going on since 1966 has not been good for Nigeria, and, therefore, has disrupted the progress we ought to have made by now.”
“By now, we should have been competing with South Africa in terms of infrastructure industries and so on because we have the brain power, but unfortunately, you can now see a recent country like Rwanda, see what Rwanda is doing,” the retired general said.
Major General Williams in his explosive and exclusive interview with Laolu Akande, a veteran journalist and former presidential aide submitted that Nigeria’s struggle with insecurity is fundamentally linked to corruption and outdated structures, which are perpetuated by a corrupt constitution and the greed of its leaders.
News
Reports of Justice Agim accompanying Wike to UNICAL convocation false, misleading Supreme Court
The Supreme Court of Nigeria has denied that one of its justices, Justice Emmanuel Agim accompanies the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory to the convocation at the University of Calabar in the South South Nigeria.
The denial came amid suspicion that Justice Agim who wrote a judgment of the Supreme Court in favour of the 27 lawmakers in Rivers State is close to Wike, hence, his presence around Wike has triggered speculations.
Wike is the former governor of Rivers State and a current of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) who controls lawmakers in Rivers.
In a statement issued on Monday by the Supreme Court’s Director of Information and Public Relations, Festus Akande, he refuted the claims, saying Agim attended the event on his own.
The statement described the rumour as misleading, insisting that Justice Agim attended the event as a honoree, urging Nigerians to disregard the social media lies.
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“Hon. Justice Agim attended the convocation as an esteemed honouree and an alumnus of the institution, who the Governing Council had found worthy to be conferred with an Honorary Doctorate Degree in Law (Doctor Honoris Causa),” the statement read.
“That Justice Agim was recognized for his significant contributions to the legal profession, which reflect his dedication to justice, integrity, and the rule of law.
Naija News reports that the statement highlighted that Justice Agim’s achievements serve as an inspiration for aspiring legal professionals and students alike.
The statement also addressed the claim that Justice Agim had attended the convocation ceremony in the company of Nyesom Wike.
It stressed that this was a false narrative, stating that Justice Agim’s attendance was independent of any government ministry or department and that he was not accompanying any government official.
“Any insinuation to the contrary is not only inaccurate but undermines the judicial independence that is crucial to our democracy,” the Supreme Court emphasized.
Additionally, the statement noted that Justice Agim had been scheduled to attend the burial ceremony of Hon. Justice Stanley Alagoa in Bayelsa State but had sought permission to attend the convocation ceremony instead.
In conclusion, the Supreme Court urged the media and the public to verify information through credible sources before dissemination.
“We encourage the public and media to verify information through credible sources before sharing or publishing to prevent the spread of misinformation,” the statement concluded.
News
State of Emergency in Rivers: $5,000 shared to Reps as ‘Sallah gesture,’ not bribe – Hon. Betara
Member representing Biu/Bayo/Shania/Kwaya/Kusar Federal Constituency of Borno State, Hon. Mukhtar Aliyu Betara has disclosed that he shared $5,000 with members of his committee as a “Sallah gesture”.
Betara who is the Reps Committee Chairman on FCT said the money was not a bribe to pass resolution declaring a state of emergency in Rivers as being insinuated.
The was posted by a Nigerian investigative journalist, Jaafar Jaafar on his X handle.
Jaafar said Betara explained this to him after the lawmaker reached out to clarify that the $5,000 given to lawmakers was merely a “Sallah gesture” and not an inducement.
He quoted Batara to have said the gesture was a long standing g tradition and has nothing to do with the state of emergency I Rivers.
Jaafar wrote:
“The chairman of the House Committee on FCT, Mukhtar Aliyu Betara, has clarified to me that he only shared $5,000 with each member of his committee as a ‘Sallah gesture,’ not as an inducement to support emergency rule in Rivers State.
“According to him, he maintains the tradition—like Santa Claus—every year.
“As we say in Hausa, not thigh but hind leg.”
The clarification by Betara came amid strong speculations that Senators received $15,000 bribe to pass a resolution to sustain declaration of state of emergency rule in Rivers.
The bribe was reportedly shared on Tuesday before they voted on Wednesday.
News
INEC holds crucial meeting to look into petition recalling Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan from Senate
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has proceeded into a crucial meeting to study and look into a petition submitted to it by constituents of Kogi Central Senatorial District.
CAPITAL POST gathered, it a top management meeting as it was claimed that over 250,000 constituents signed the petition out of 480,000 registered voters.
The meeting was confirmed on Monday by the Acting
Director of Publicity, Esther Chibuikem, stating that the meeting held at a committee room at the INEC headquarters in Abuja.
It was also confirmed that the Secretary to the commission, Rose Oriaran-Anthony, on received the petition against Natasha on Monday.
The petition follwed the nod given by the Federal High Court sitting in Lokoja on Friday where the earlier judgement restraining INEC from accepting the petition was set asid3.
Last week, constituents from Kogi Central were said to have i initiated a recall of Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan representing Kogi Central Senatorial District, but some constituents claimed that they were d3ceived into exercise as they were told to gather with their voters card for 3 powerment.
However, the Court, in a judgement delivered in Lokoja, affirmed that the recall process is constitutionally valid and aligns with the civic rights of the constituents.
The court urged the constituents to continue exercising their rights in an orderly and peaceful manner.
The development was after the court on Thursday granted an interim injunction restraining INEC, its staff, agents, privies or assigns from receiving, accepting or acting on any petition containing signatures of members of Kogi Central Senatorial District.
As at press time, INEC hasn’t release information on the next action as signatures may have to be critically compared with its register to determine validity.
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