Madam secretary Hillary Clinton: please blacklist the following Nigerians

Dear Mrs. Clinton:
With all your years in politics, foreign affairs and the resources available to the United States government, I do not think there is anything about Nigeria that I need to tell you. You have read about it and you have been there to see for yourself. You know who the big players are in the country’s world of corruption and you know where they have stashed their stolen wealth. You have openly, and presumably diplomatically, condemned corruption in the country, During your August 2009 visit to Nigeria, you made overt references to the fact that Nigeria’s problems are rooted in its failure to deal with corruption. Just today, while addressing state department employees during a town hall meeting, you again seized the opportunity to tell the whole world about Nigeria’s failure to address the legitimate needs of its people and how such failure is gradually turning the country into a breeding ground for all sorts of undesirable elements. On behalf of millions of Nigerians, I thank you and the Obama administration profoundly for the above efforts. However, there is so much more to be done.

More than ever before, there is an urgent need to increase the pressure on Nigeria’s corrupt-beyond-redemption political class in order to prevent a total breakdown of law and order and possible civil war. If U.S. diplomatic history provides any clue with respect to conflict resolution, it is that a break down of law and order in Nigeria will force the US to make gargantuan human and material commitment to Nigeria and the Sub-region: a situation that is unnecessary in light of the options available, a situation that neither ordinary Nigerians nor the United States want; a situation that would create a refugee problem of a magnitude not seen in recent human history and be destabilizing to West African, European and North American countries.

In order to prevent Nigeria from descending into a civil war or several civil wars as is more likely to happen because of the country’s ethnic and tribal configuration, urgent steps must be taken to effect immediate and long term changes in the country. Nigeria is where it is today mainly because of the “elements” in charge of the country and their devious device which they have christened government. Permit me to suggest we are requesting the urgent assistance of the Obama administration in putting in place a no-visa list consisting of Nigeria’s leading government officials and their private sector collaborators. The no-visa list should at the very minimum contain the following:

• The country’s current leader (whoever that is) should be limited to the United Nations and Harlem the way Fidel Castro was during his 1960 visit;
• all past leaders and governors;
• all current state governors with the exception of one or two who are doing their jobs;
• all past and current federal ministers and state commissioners;
• all past and present lawmakers at the federal and state levels
• all past and current local government chairmen/chairlady and the elected councilors who assist them in looting their respective treasuries;
• past and present managers of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, and other leading government corporations;
• past and present MD/CEO’s of all banks in the country;
• all past and present ambassadors of the country for their roles as agents of an evil regime;
• all previous and present police and military officers beyond the rank of Major or its equivalent;
• all judges from the magistrate courts to the Supreme Court of Nigeria for their roles in accepting bribes and perverting the course of justice;
• the present chairperson of the EFCC for her role in legitimizing corruption;
• the children and wives of those on the no-visa list;
• all known enablers of corruption not caught by the above list.

A serious consideration of the above list will show that 99.99% of the individuals who have destroyed Nigeria and stolen the people’s commonwealth will be found on the list. Having them on the no-visa list hurts no one but the crooks themselves. I believe in the list and given the power to implement it, it is exactly what I will have in place. Realizing that I do not have the power to implement the list and given other considerations, the above list maybe unwieldy and may lose the desired effect. Consequently, I will suggest a more pragmatic list made up of the following:

• Umaru Yar Adua and Goodluck Jonathan;
• all the current governors
• immediate past president and governors, especially those indicted or convicted for corruption (i.e. Olusegun Obasanjo, Ibrahim Babangida, Lucky Igbinedion, Orji Kalu, Peter Odili, and James Ibori – ignore the Kangaroo court discharge);
• all current federal ministers and state commissioners, particularly, Michael Aondoakaa, Dora Akunyili, Ojo Madueke and Rilwani Lukeman;
• all current senior officers of the police and armed forces
• all current managers of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, Power Holding Corporation of Nigeria and other leading government corporations;
• Aliko Dangote, Mike Adenuga, Dahiru Mangal and all Nigerian billionaires because there is no legitimate Nigerian billionaire (those who want to argue their cases should be asked to submit their income tax returns for examination);
• The judges and justices of the Federal, Appeal and Supreme Courts for their roles in accepting bribes and perverting the course of justice;
• The current chairperson of the EFCC, Farida Waziri;
• The current officers of the National Assembly, including the David Mark, Dimeji Bankole and Jubril Aminu who has been indicted in the Siemens bribery scandal but is still angling to become the vice president in the event Goodluck Jonathan becomes the president of the country;
• The chairpersons of all the banks indicted by the Central Bank of Nigeria, including Cecilia Ibru and the coward called Erasmus Akingbola who claims to have accumulated assets of over $2 billion (N322 billion) dollars with a monthly salary of $10,000 (N1.5 million). An eye should also be kept on below-rader crooks like Chukwuma Saludo – former Central Bank governor, Jim Ovia of Zenith Bank and Tony Elumelu of Uba who are just as corrupt as the indicted ones;
• Some traditional rulers and pastors for their roles in providing recognition to corrupt politicians in exchange for part of the looted funds;
• Including Journalists who have sold their souls in exchange for Abuja land and other pecuniary benefits will force them to return to their basic responsibility of holding government accountable to the people;
• The children and wives of all those on the list because they school and live in the west with monies looted from the ordinary people of Nigeria;

Corruption up among China government officials

China's anti-corruption watchdog has said that 106,000 officials were found guilty of corruption in 2009, an increase of 2.5% on the year before.

The number of government officials caught embezzling more than one million yuan ($146,000; £91,000) jumped by 19% over the year.

The government says the increase is due to better supervision of the problem.

But corruption is consistently rated the number one concern by Chinese, ahead of pirated goods and pollution.

There is widespread anger at the ostentatious lifestyle enjoyed by some Communist Party officials, police chiefs and bosses of state-owned companies, says the BBC's Quentin Sommerville in Beijing.

With no independent oversight of the ruling communists, corruption has bloomed.

CACOL files fresh petition against Ibori's "Kangaroo judge" and the former chief judge of the federal high court

The Coalition Against Corrupt Leaders (CACOL) has called on the National Judicial Council, (NJC), through the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, Justice Idris Kutigi, to kick Justice Marcel Awokulehin off the James Ibori kangaroo trial in Asaba.
In a follow-up petition dated 11 December, CACOL drew the attention of the NJC to the abominable misconduct of Justice Abdullahi Mustapha, the former Chief Judge of the Federal High Court, and Awokulehin.
It said that removing Awokulehin from the case is the right thing to do as whatever decision the judge takes would be wanting in credibility and embarrass the judiciary.
Recalling the embarrassing history of the Ibori trial, the Coalition called upon Justice Kutigi, “in the name of all that is good, not to allow Mr. Justice Awokulehin deliver a ruling that would cast aspersions on the neutrality of the bench in this case, and thereby erode people’s confidence in the judiciary as an arm of government that is expected to be the last sanctuary of hope for the oppressed. In the petition, which was copied to The President; the President of the Senate; the Honourable Speaker, House of Representatives; the Minister of Justice and Attorney-General of the Federation; and the President of the Nigerian Bar Association, CACOL called on the NJC to intervene before the matter becomes a national embarrassment. Justice Awokulehin is scheduled to deliver a judgement quashing Ibori's money laundering charges on December 16 2009. Ibori paid the judge $5 million for the "ruling" seeking to quash 170-count charges filed against him by the EFCC.

How does Ghana avoid becoming another Nigeria and escape the "Curse of oil"? T

Ghana's discovery of major oil fields is set to transform the country. But there has been little public debate on the fundamental effects that this will have, or even on upcoming short term government decisions that will have a major impact. So I contribute a few thoughts to encourage debate with my Ghanaian friends.So far, there has been more interest in the international media than in the Ghanaian media over the question of whether the Ghanaian government will allow Kosmos Energy to sell its stake in Ghana's bonanza Jubilee oilfield to Exxon Mobil for over 4 billion dollars, as Kosmos and Exxon Mobil have already agreed. But Ghanaians should be very keenly aware of what is happening. The issue raises complex questions which go to the heart of the future of Ghana, a future that will be radically influenced for good or for ill by Ghana's new position as an emergent oil rich state. It may help to isolate and consider the following issues involved in the case, each of which is both critically important for Ghana, and a vexed point of dispute in Ghana's vibrant political culture.

Sierra Leone's health minister sacked

The Sierra Leone's president has sacked two of his ministers, one of whom has been indicted for corruption.
According to the BBC, Health Minister Sheku Tijan Koroma appeared in court on Wednesday charged with illegally awarding contracts.
He is the first minister to be charged with corruption since President Ernest Bai Koroma came to power two years ago. No reason was given for the dismissal of the other official, Leonard Balogun Koroma, who is minister in the vice-president's office.
Mr Koroma promised to crack down on corruption when he won elections in 2007
Correspondents say corruption is seen as one of the reasons for the outbreak of civil war in the country in the 1990s.
Comment: In the past one month, Corrupt Ministers have been sacked in Ghana, Liberia, Zambia and Kenya. As we have not heard of a sacked corrupt minsiter under President Yar'adua of Nigeria, Nigeria's minsiters must be whiter than white and his cabint the cleanest in the History of Nigeria, post-independence.

Corruption indicators

By its nature corruption can be difficult to detect as it usually involves two or more people entering into a secret agreement (You don’t give a receipt for bribes!). The agreement can be to pay a financial inducement to a public official for securing favour of some description in return. This list is not exhaustive and the ingenuity of those involved in corruption knows no bounds! You may be aware of:

Economic and social effects of corruption
Bribery and corruption impacts upon the poor and vulnerable people in developing countries, it undermines public services and has an economic impact, increasing the costs of doing business whether the corruption is overseas or domestic.
One very real example that helps us to understand why the proactive attack on corruption must be stepped up is a story told to our head of Anti Corruption, Keith McCarthy, while overseas.
It involved a young mother in a developing country who died in childbirth along with her new born baby. The new road that she and her husband chose to travel to the Hospital had not been completed. In fact part of it did not even exist due to the corruption of a public official by a UK person
Corruption Indicators

Attention: Justice Kutigi: Gross misconduct on the part of the Justice Mercel Awokulehin in the case of FRN vs James Ibori & anor

Mr. Chairman, we are a Coalition of over fifty Civil Society, Community-Based and other NGOs that are devoted to anti-corruption crusade to free Nigeria from the pangs of unbridled corruption. We have been involved in monitoring the progress recorded in the prosecution of anti corruption cases especially those involving politically exposed persons.
We have being monitoring the case from the Federal High Court, Kaduna , Kaduna the Federal High Court, Asaba, Delta State . It is common knowledge that the Attorney-General of the Federation has been using his position to frustrate the trial of Chief Ibori both in Nigeria and in the United Kingdom . In order to prevent Chief Ibori from being brought to book the Attorney-General of the Federation has caused the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to take the following decisions:i. All the witnesses in the case have been removed from the EFCC and transferred to different locations all over the country. ii. Mr. Ibrahim Magu, a serving police officer, who coordinated the investigation of the case has been suspended from the Police for over a year.iii. Rotimi Jacobs Esq., the counsel who handled the matter at the Federal High Court, Kaduna and at the Court of Appeal has been removed from the case.iv. The appeal filed at Supreme Court by EFCC against the decision of the court of appeal on the movement of venue of trial of Ibori’s case from Kaduna to Asaba was discontinued without any reason. Perversion of Justice by the Judiciary Now the judiciary seems to have been co-opted into the whole intrigues to pervert justice in this case having regard to the role of the trial judge in the Federal High Court, Asaba. The misconduct of his Lordship is unprecedented in the history of the legal profession in Nigeria . We crave your indulgence by reporting to you the gross misconduct committed by the Judge handling the case of FRN V. James Ibori & Anor. at the Federal High Court, holden at Asaba, Delta State .. The details of the gross misconduct of the learned trial judge include the following

Rise and reclaim your country, Achebe challenges Nigerian youth

ChinuaAchebe, the author "Things Fall Apart," one of the world’s most popular novels, says the time has come for Nigerians to challenge their bad leadership, or be doomed.
The famous teacher and writer was speaking last Thursday at a meeting with the former Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, Mr. Nuhu Ribadu in his quiet home Bard College at Redhook/Annadale-on-Hudson, a two-hour drive from New York. As what was originally planned as an informal meeting blossomed into a wide-ranging conversation about the state of the Nigerian nation, Professor Achebe said those looting Nigeria needed to be stopped, and urged Ribadu to reach out to young Nigerians to rise up to the challenge of halting the corruption and ineptitude of the nation's rulers.“We should feel we have come around and that we missed the bus the first time and that the correction of the situation in our country is in our hands. We can’t call the British back even though some people have suggested that. But we can’t allow this to go on any longer. Already our people are getting used to living in that ugly style,” the professor of literature said.He declared: “This is the time to bring an end to it. If we do nothing, we are doomed.” The meeting with Ribadu, at the exclusive liberal arts college founded in Annandale–on-Hudson, started at about 2 p.m. and lasted for several hours. After 15 years as the Charles P. Stevenson Professor of Languages and Literature at Bard College in Annandale-on-Hudson, New York, Achebe will be leaving the school at the end of the year to join the faculty of the Brown University as the David and Marianna Fisher University Professor of Africana Studies.

Nigeria’s Internet Anti-Corruption Fighters

Successive Nigerian governments have developed such thick skin that neither public opposition nor public demonstration inspires a change of heart if it is not accompanied by extreme violence
Nigeria’s Internet Anti-Corruption Fighters Our project explores the effectiveness of naming and shaming as an anti-corruption strategy. It is clear that the federal Government of Nigeria and the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, shies away from prosecuting corrupt politically exposed persons.
Purported Corruption prosecution merely remains a potent strategy to destroy political opposition. Despite that, Nigerians have decided to take their destiny in their hands by exposing every witnessed acts of corruption. Yes, you may escape prosecution today, but how would you tell what an incoming administration would do?
Post-Ribadu, there appears to be a consciousness or what I call, FEAR, that the day of reckoning might come one day. Experience has shown that the political class has grown sensitive to being popularly perceived as being corrupt. This is demonstrated by the extent they go to counter public perception that they are corrupt.
Many politicians hire internet rats that crawl the internet sites and online forums to defend their name when their rapacious exploits are exposed; Tony Eluemunor is a veritable example. The extent he will goes to defend his master, James Ibori; the corrupt former governor of Delta State against known allegations of corruption is admirable. Had he devoted that amount of effort thinking up strategies to develop the country, Nigeria would beat Japan!

South Africa's Corruption hotline 'swamped'

The anti-corruption hotline set up by South Africa's President Jacob Zuma is proving unable to cope with the demand.
It was started in September in response to concerns about corruption and after demonstrations over lack of services.
The opposition Democratic Alliance says it has not been able to get through to the complaint line for 13 days.
South Africa's Mail and Guardian paper says when it rang, a message said: "Due to extremely high call volumes we are unable to attend to your call."The BBC rang the 17737 hotline five times on Friday morning but was met with an engaged tone.When the line launched in 14 September, Mr Zuma himself took some of the first calls and promised callers that their complaints would be dealt with speedily.