Nigeria’s presidential election campaign has taken a new turn between the ruling All Progressive Congress (APC) and the main opposition, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), with the duo seeking the disqualification of their respective candidates over their involvement in different crimes.
Last week, the spokesman for the APC Presidential Campaign Council, Festus Keyamo, filed a writ of summons at the Federal High Court in Abuja against the PDP’s presidential candidate Atiku Abubakar, over allegations of corruption.
In the suit, Keyamo, who named the Code of Conduct Bureau (CCB), Independent Corrupt Practices Commission and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC), and the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) as 2nd, 3rd and 4th defendants respectively, is asking the court to compel the included government agencies to investigate, invite and or arrest Atiku Abubakar.
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The suit was based on allegations made by one Michael Achimugu, a former aide of Atiku, who in the past few weeks divulged through a video circulated online, that the PDP’s presidential aspirant was involved in a series of corrupt practices whilst in office as the Vice President of Nigeria. Achimugu said Atiku used proxies, including a certain bank belonging to a company named Marine Float and other accounts of two undisclosed companies as special purpose vehicles (SPVs) to embezzle public funds.
Keyamo, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), said he had obtained the certified true copy of the said affidavit, which he is counting on to push the suit. Based on this, the Tinubu/Shettima Campaign Organization on Monday had called for the arrest and prosecution of the former vice president for stealing public funds while in office.
In response to APC’s call for Atiku’s arrest, the PDP has asked Nigeria’s anti-graft agency, EFCC, and the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), to arrest and prosecute the APC’s presidential candidate, Bola Ahmed Tinubu, for series of crimes that include money laundering, embezzlement of public funds and drug trafficking.
Tinubu’s 1993 money laundering and drug-related case was exposed by investigative journalist David Hundeyin last year, and it has become a subject of discussion as the presidential election draws nigh.
In a statement issued on Sunday, the PDP’s Presidential Campaign Council said the cases surrounding Tinubu, especially the drug trafficking, is now a matter of national concern.
“In the unfortunate event of a Bola Tinubu Presidency, Nigerians will be plunged into a drug crisis that would make the Colombia situation a child’s play. With easy access to drugs, there will be an increase in violence.
“Nigeria is battling many problems at the moment…It will be a huge disaster to add state sponsored drug trafficking into the mix,” the PDP said.
Tinubu’s drug trafficking record was amplified after the certified true copy of his case with the US authorities was released last year. Based on this, the PDP called on the NDLEA to arrest the APC’s presidential Candidate, who had to forfeit $460,000 to US authorities.
“Nigerian law is clear, Criminal cases have no statute of limitation and can be re-opened at any time especially for the sake of national interest.”
“We hereby call on the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) to immediately arrest Bola Ahmed Tinubu and prosecute him for drug trafficking,” the party said.
Besides drug trafficking, the PDP is also accusing Tinubu of using Alpha Beta to embezzle Lagos State funds. The party also said that the former Lagos State governor has cases to answer regarding his identity, age and the schools he attended, describing them as fraudulent.
The PDP quoted from the lawsuit filed against Tinubu by his business associate, Dapo Apara, who was the former managing director of Alpha Beta Consulting. The party said the former governor breached the Code of Conduct for Public Officers when he established Alpha Beta.
“In the writ of summons marked LD/7330GCMW/2020, Apara narrated how Alpha Beta was formed in 2002 when Tinubu was still the governor, in breach of the Code of Conduct for Public Officers.
“Apara noted that he was the one who came up with the idea of a consulting firm helping the state government to collect taxes. He said Tinubu accepted the proposal but gave many conditions including that his own people would own 70 per cent stakes in the company. Apara said Tinubu nominated Adegboyega Oyetola (later governor of Osun State) and one Olumide Ogunmola who would hold 70% of the shares of Alpha Beta.
“Apara stated that Tinubu as a sitting governor in 2002, controlled Alpha Beta which was receiving 10 per cent of tax collected on behalf of the state,” the PDP said in the statement.
The party added that handing over the keys of Nigeria’s treasury to a man like Tinubu or giving him the full control of the NDLEA, the EFCC, the Nigerian Army and the Nigeria Police Force, “will be the worst scandal in the history of mankind.”
The government agencies petitioned by the political parties over their respective presidential candidates are yet to respond. However, the development has fueled conservation among Nigerians on who among the presidential aspirants should be trusted with the country’s resources as president.
A large section of electorates, pointing out that both the anti-graft and drug agencies have not received any petition against Peter Obi, believe the Labour Party’s candidate is Nigeria’s best option for the March 23 presidential poll.