The user participation section of the , Have Your Say, asked for the public opinion on the impact of poor deals with the private sector and foreign firms on the economy of African countries. I found the 156comments left by readers, quite interesting. Before now, this phenomenon was not viewed as a major problem, since 'help' was basically handed down to African countries. However as African economies have opened up and privatization and take overs have become more prevalent. Who gets what, and how they get what they get has become a major source concern. Many of the comments on the to the usual suspect, corruption. Below I have pasted clips of the that caught my attention. Kootee:
Let me propose a solution to these poor deals including all other issues affecting mother Africa today. The solution to all of Africa's burning issues is Good Governance. African including their leaders should decided to be honest.
Muta:
Quite simple. All deals done should be open to the publics scrutiny, meaning that contracts signed should be easily available and not the governments secret.
JohnMary even thinks it is illiteracy;
The African public can not be relied upon to make informed decisions on matters of such magnitude, given the illiteracy levels and the hugely pseudo education that has been received over decades.
Efuk traces it to God;
Oh our brothers in Africa all the time carry their accusation on the west for NOTHING. It is the weakness of African leaders, others are too egocentric, selfcentered that is why every time these foreign companies leave our continent with lumsome of money. What about the Arab world ? Today Salva Kiir is in Egypt to discuss such deals.I am not supprised, it seems God has punished Africa as indicated in some champters of the bible !
Briggs opines that all deals should be funneled through the Mo Ibrahim Foundation;
How about getting the Mo Ibrahim Foundation to scan all deals that are offered in Africa, and get the Foundation to scan the governments regarding deals as they already do with regard to transparancy
. Tunde believes it is because people do not feel like owners;
Thanks, in this part of Nigeria that i am leaving, people are really killing this country cos they believe that everything belong to govt.
Farkas thinks deals aren't the problem but leaders;
Good deals" have been cut in Africa for decades! The late Mobutu of Zaire apparently cut some excellent deals, because he was reputed to have over 70 billion dollars personally stashed, as part of his cut on the mineral extraction going on in his country. It is good leadership, not deals that are in short supply.
Gbatu blames the foreign companies, since the playing field isn't level; What happen is these foreign firms that sign contracts with African governments come to the negotiating table with dossiers on those they will be dealing with, So when they offer incentives to these "poor, penniless African ministers and honorables" it becomes hard to be rejected; BOOM there goes the signatures! There are many interesting responses on the BBC page. I believe transparency in the short term and good governance as a long term objective which can only be achieved through proper engagement of the populace will put a dent in the shroud of secrecy that surround this deals.
There are times when I find it difficult to keep up with blogging positively about Nigeria, please indulge me this one time. Last September Mr Nuhu Ribadu while speaking in New York said he was . Recently I watched Mr. Nuhu Aliyu, make allegations against his colleagues in the Nigerian Senate, promising to name names. I watched with a friend, (thanks to ) and we declared that Mr. Aliyu was one of a kind, the acting-outside-the-box type. His getup was unprecedented and an utter display of bravery. Yesterday, when Senator Nuhu Aliyu had his opportunity to name the names, , ranging from outright selfish ones, to "really I will say anything to get out of the hot seat right now". Some have wondered aloud where the pressures may be coming from. , . I am not fit to make accurate conjectures of my own, I know too little to make deductions from the information reported by the newspapers, though my suspicion is that Nuhu knows something I do not know. One thing is certain though, Nigeria is no country for brave men. Brave men that can stand by their utterances, be it right or wrong. Not men that are quick to explain away prior utterances, the moment they get a phone call from the 'powers'. For Nuhu Ribadu's EFCC, the one good 'thing' that was working for us. I respect the good work this man has done. He put the fear of God into all that had any remote connection to the Nigerian government. . Like in the case of senator Aliyu I may not be able to make specific statements about the delicate dance of being brave in Nigeria. If I were in their shoes, I may even cave in just like they have done, as the pressures become unbearable. However one thing remain true. In the case of these two Nuhus, Nigeria has proven to be a country that is not welcoming to out of the box brave acts.
Forbes magazine a list of the world's most corrupt countries for this year. The list appears to be tied more to human rights violation than business freedom. This list is not to be confused with the ease of doing business list. In the past I have discussed the limitations of cross-country comparisons, so reports like this ought to be taken with a pinch of salt. Though the relationship between corruption and economic growth often appear to be weaker in the literature than one would expect it to be. However it is safe to conclude that all the countries on this list will have to put in some more effort at cleaning their acts up. African countries were well represented on the list and Nigeria came in at #18.
In May, 2007 I suggested that EFCC would come full circle to bite Obasanjo's behind. It seemed far fetched at that time. In just a few months we have this scenario playing before our very eyes. .
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has established contact with M. Schneider GMBH and Co, the Austrian firm at the centre of the N3.5 billion contract row with Senator Iyabo Obasanjo-Bello, daughter of immediate past President Olusegun Obasanjo.EFCC is asking M. Schneider GMBH to furnish it with information which would assist it in uncovering more details about the scam.
Nigeria's approach to fighting corruption needs a make over. I believe it is no longer sufficient to catch looters and then make them pay up. The EFCC or the relevant body ought to start looking into putting checks in place. That is, reduce access to these funds, or a form of quality control. The type of program Ngozi Iweala was trying to put in place before she got kicked out. It is not enough to see these thieves behind bars. It is time to create a system that reduce the tendency to steal in the first place. EFCC has done a fairly good job, it may be time to consider a revision of their mandate.
The Siemens Wilbros bribery scandal currently rocking the Nigerian telecoms sector has provided daily humor. “It is instructive that Nigerian officials alone took 10 million Euros out of the overall 12 million Euros allegedly paid out by the German company to officials in three countries, including Russia and Libya.“That made Nigeria a clear gold medallist in this Siemen’s bribery contest, with Russia, a distant second, with only 2 million Euros shared by 38 people. . I supportEFCC's efforts at cleansing Nigeria's public service. NuhuRibadu is doing what many spineless Nigerian public official has been unable to do in our country's recent history.
Thanks to over at for linking to this article in the .
The temptation for taking short cuts on the road to riches has often been as great for entrepreneurs as it has for state officials. . Now, according to a former senior government official, with the state starting to relinquish control of the commanding heights of the economy, there is a greater rapprochement between the two, with money from both public and private sources blending together. Big business and some of the banks are heavily invested in the political system, just as politicians and government appointees are invested in the Nigerian banks and businesses making money, he says. There are significant changes, however, in the way Nigeria’s newly mega-rich are deploying their wealth. In the past, the wealth was hoarded in banks abroad. Today, it is mostly being poured into business enterprises within Nigeria.
This article draws mixed feelings from me, on one hand, I am glad that 'new money' gets it. This way they have done better than 'old money'. However the thieving still continues, leaving my people in stark poverty. It is true that Nigeria is a country in the middle of an enormous process of wealth creation, but the possibility of wealth being redistributed isn't in the horizon. Something has got to give pretty soon. I can feel it. Enjoy the article and hat-tip to Emeka.
H discusses a BBC program that looked at corruption in Africa, especially within the Aid agencies. In other news, GSM mobile is planning to pump a whopping $50 billion into sub-Saharan Africa over half-decade-. Like its time to jump and shout. The returns on investment in communication in Africa is high enough. Okay, I am just beefing because I am not a part of it. The IMF thinks there are . I think so too, apparently thinking otherwise isn't very rewarding psychologically. In Nigeria, the Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Prof. ChukwumaSoludo yesterday that Nigeria would need $510 billion over fifteen years to develop its railways and develop other infrastructure. I'd say make that a bajillion dollars if you want sir, we know Nigeria needs tones of money to get our infrastructure back together. Okay now lets get back to work and start with the first million dollars we recovered from these looting thugs.
Leaders of two Nigerian unions in South Africa on Friday demanded for an apology from a South African parliamentarian who allegedly made uncomplimentary remarks on Nigeria. A local newspaper, ``Polokwane Observer,'' on Wednesday quoted the Chairperson of the Standing Committee on Public Accounts, Mr Rudolph Rhala, as referring to Nigerians as ``corrupt people''. The paper, writing under the headline ``The Limpopo administration must avoid becoming another Nigeria,'' quoted Rhala as warning that South Africa and Limpopo ``must avoid becoming a Nigeria ''. He was commenting on the ``unquenchable appetite for corruption'' among the South African public officials at a public sitting in Limpopo on Tuesday. Rhala then asked rhetorically: ``Can we allow that? Then let's leave this country and let it become Nigeria,'' the paper further reported. In his reaction, the President of Nigerians in Diaspora Organisation (NIDO), Mr Kenneth Ayere, described the comment as ``barbaric'', especially coming from a public officer.
A south African parliamentarian switched the word 'Nigeria' for 'corrupt state' while making a speech. What do you think, bad move or a call for us to buckle up and get it right. For me I am sort of indifferent. I'd advise the union leaders to quit making trouble and focus on more pertinent issues. I for one do not want Nigeria to be like Nigeria.
Update...
Ribadu said, "'recent survey data from Kaufman etal. indicates that there has been a reduction in the perception of corruption in Nigeria."
It is hard to tell from out here if this is true, I am curious as to what the situation on the ground feels like. Is there a perceived difference between OBJ's time and now. The media says so, and now there is research to back it up. Is this true?
The previous administration constantly proclaimed the independent nature of the EFCC and swore that it was not interfering with its prosecutorial abilities. Nigerians did not believe. However, once NuhuRibadu started throwing former governor's into Abuja'sKuje prison, Nigerians began to hope that some parts of the governmental structure were actually independent and not corrupt.To now limit the EFCC by referring to the EFCC Act of 2004, which apparently allows the Justice Minister to make rules or regulations with respect to the exercise of any of the duties, functions or powers of the EFCC, will only return Nigerians to the mindset that some powerful former officials will escape the chokehold of the law.
My 2 cents; I do think reining in the EFCC is a step in the right direction, that is, in the long run. In the short run it may seem like the EFCC is loosing some of its power. Upon closer review this new arrangement will lead to a tighter integration of the EFCC into the justice system. The focus should be on how to restructure the the Judiciary arm of government in such a way that it would be allowed to operate with some level of independence. Inasmuch as desperate situations call for desperate measures, I find it difficult to separate the EFCC from Nigeria's history of military rule. The EFCC has done a fairly good job its time to move on and become a more grown up body.
Solomonsydelle subsequently left the following comment; I, however, must disagree with you. Your last statement in particular - "The EFCC has done a fairly good job its time to move on and become a more grown up body." does not make sense at this time. The EFCC has done nothing yet. It now needs to step up investigations and bring as many frauds to justice. Nigeria is still a nation where knowing the right people can and does protect you from the arm of the law.My concern is that agencies like EFCC need to be INDEPENDENT and not subject to a Minister of Justice who might use his position to stifle prosecution of his peers and friends.That is THE concern. And, until we reach a point in Nigeria where we are confident that such will not happen, the move to subject EFCC to Mr. Aondoakaa's potential 'whims' is a bad one. Just my opinion.I also notice that you took a quote from my post. In response to your comment, I must provide the very next paragraph from the post, which I hope answers some of your concerns. "Now, I firmly believe in coordination and agree that all parts of the anti-corruption campaign work in sync. However, I cannot help but worry that by subjecting the EFCC to the Attorney General's decisions could limit the number of prosecutions and thus hamper justice. I hope that Michael Aondoakaa, who has achieved the status of SAN, will relieve the fears of Nigerians by giving us a clear picture of the IMPARTIAL guidelines by which the EFCC, ICPC and Code of Conduct Tribunal may move towards prosecutions... That, I believe, is the most effective way to do 'damage control' and keep the country on the right track in its quest to stamp out corruption."
My response is as follows;
Granting agencies like the EFCC a blank check, is a disaster waiting to happen. All that is required is for one hot-headed retired police chief, funded by some disgruntled elements in the Nigerian political space, to become the head of the EFCC. (Don't you love it when Nigerian news agencies use the word 'disgruntled'). Also almost every single problem plaguing our country can be traced to a lack of planning and/or a failure to implement the plan agreed upon. I see agencies and independent bodies as the symptoms of a failed public sector. The EFCC exists in the first place because the Justice Ministry has slacked off on its duties. So the question here is should Nigeria continue with the patch-patch approach (short term solution) or should home country look into restructuring its public sector? (long term sustainable solution). At best quick fixes keep the man on the streets appeased. They often disappear just the way they arrived int he first instance, once the purpose. I do believe the problem of corruption of public officers is that of deterrent, we can not keep going after the politicians post-stolen-money. It ought to be the other way around, whereby the punishment is so stiff that dipping ones hands in the public coffers remain unattractive. EFCC may have worked in the Obasanjo era, but for the sake of continuity and sustainability Yardua's move get two thumbs up from me.
Revision
With Nigeria you just never know. Word on the underground is that Yardie was pressurized into the decision because it was time to prosecute a particular sponsor of Yardie's campaign..Hmmm..
