PALLIATIVES: Nigeria needs to recover at least $50bn fraudulent flight capital stolen by subsidy thieves

By Oluwatoyin Fatukasin

MaTaZ ArIsInG

On my secondary school class forum, a classmate expressed serious disappointment with the palliative program, expressing the hope that the review will result in a significant improvement. He insisted a couple of us should offer suggestions. Below is my response:

I am not sure I know what to say.

Nigeria needs to recover at least $50bn fraudulent flight capital stolen by subsidy thieves, civil servants, government contractors, bank round tripoers, and political office holders. The same courage that was used to take subsidy away from us should be used to retrieve our pillaged patrimony. That’s a good place to start.

Why are we in this situation? A combination of the most corrupt, reckless, and inept fiscal and monetary regime over 8 years. On the fiscal side, Buhari presided over cronies, ministers, and officials who looted us in unprecedented measure. His recharge card seller nephew is a multi billionaire, Malami attempted to take $9bn from reserves to settle a fraudulent judgement, Sirika launched Eagle Air twice or thrice without any aircraft etc. The subsidy thieves continued with their party. We are told the Comptroller of Customs transferred N300bn to Guinea Bissau, the same Ahmed Ali of austere Peugeot 504 fame. Minister of Humanitarian Affairs in aggregate allegedly distributed hundreds of billions in cash. Meanwhile Ishaq Oloyede, the exemplary JAMB DG who returned billions to government every year, something which had never happened, was never recognised, commended, or rewarded with higher responsibility.

On the monetary side, CBN went beserk, maintaining a 70% difference between official and street rates. The easiest way to be a BILLIONAIRE is to be close enough to CBN to be allocated $10m. You will have a bank balance of N1bn without leaving your bedroom, just pass on the $10m to a genuine importer and get N200 per dollar.

Sadly, the average Nigerian is actually protesting not because he abhors these things. His real grouse is that he is not sharing in the booty. He will shut up once he is admitted to the chopping party.

For almost 2 decades, Alpha Beta has taken billions from Lagos every month. I was somewhere where I eavesdropped a conversation that all APC governors save 2 who declined got $2m cash as compensation after the primaries.

It is my desire and hope for Asiwaju to succeed handsomely. It is in my enlightened self-interest. Things are tough in our clime, and all feel the pinch. I pray he succeeds.

But deep down, I fear we are expecting magic. Our values as a people favour wealth without work, commerce without morality, worship without sacrifice, pleasure without conscience, knowledge without character. Our leaders reflect all of these and add politics without principle.

My concern with the current regime is that our leader personifies the worst of our vices. He is known to regularly tell his disciples that “what money can not do, more money will do.” Everyone and everything has a price, and he pays it. That is his modus.

We somehow expect progress while the average Nigerian remains like this without changing, and our leaders also remain so. And that somehow, Asiwaju will achieve significant progress in spite of his values.

I also pray and desire progress. This pain is getting off limit. But deep down, I doubt if things will improve without change in us and in our leaders.

The best policies are muted in outcomes by a corrupt and perverse milieu.

On a prescriptive note, some things are obvious, though not easy. If I’m suffering today and I know someone who stole my N10 million and still has it, I will do everything to retrieve it.

Nigeria needs to recover at least $50bn fraudulent flight capital stolen by subsidy thieves, civil servants, government contractors, and political office holders. The same courage that was used to take subsidy away from us should be used to retrieve our pillaged patrimony. That’s a good place to start.

Can you imagine the impudence. Amidst this suffering, N70bn is offered to legisLOOTERS and N35bn to judiSHARING while offering the poor N8000. Did you note that Dele Alake’s press release on the review didn’t say a word about these two items. Those ones are off-limit……

MaTaZ ArIsInG

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