Indications emerged on Saturday that the Presidency will not
interfere or give special treatment in the ongoing anti-graft
investigations of former senior government officials of the
Goodluck Jonathan administration. Reliable sources in government
told our newspaper over the weekend that the presidency will not
order the anti-graft agencies to stop the investigations or refrain
from searching the residences and property of the affected senior
government officials.
These feelers emerged even as former vice president Namadi Sambo
cried out that the “repeated invasion” of his house in Kaduna was a
ploy by anti-graft agencies to implicate him. On Wednesday, a
combined team of policemen, Independent Corrupt Practices and
Related Offences Commission officials and some agents said to be
officials of the Department of State Services had raided Sambo’s
house said to be unoccupied at the time. According to the reports,
the operatives, who arrived at the house in a bus and Toyota Hilux
van at 3pm, cordoned off the road leading to the residence and
barred motorists and pedestrians while the two-hour search
lasted.
Sambo, in a statement on Saturday by his Media Adviser, Mr. Umar
Sani, said the invasion of his 1, Alimi Road un-occupied residence
in Kaduna on Wednesday was the fifth in six months. Sani expressed
fears that the security agencies might raid the house again with
the intention of planting an incriminating object there.
He said, “The recent desperation exhibited by some security
agencies in carrying out a raid on an unoccupied residence blocking
all entry and exit points, in a commando-style and coming along
with a bullion van speaks volumes of the clandestine intention of
the security operatives.
“It is therefore worrisome to note that the consistency with
which the searches occurred and the intervals between them,
portrays a desire of a fault-finding mission. We are apprehensive
that a repeat of such episode will not be surprising if an
incriminating object is planted in his residence in order to
willfully and deliberately incriminate him.
“The desperation of some of the security agencies is glaring
going by the number of times such searches were conducted and still
counting. We hope it is not a way to try to give a dog a bad name
in order to hang it.”
However, a top government official, who spoke on the condition
of anonymity, dismissed the allegations of persecution, saying
“This government does not dictate to anti-graft agencies how they
should carry out their duties, so far they are doing so based on
the rule of law.”
The official also added that the anti-graft agencies did not
have to take instructions from the Presidency before carrying out
their lawful duties.
He said, “They do not have to clear anything from the Presidency
while carrying out their legitimate duties. So, the need to get
clearance did not arise in this particular case (Sambo’s case) you
are talking about. We learnt about it the same way you and other
people learnt about it.”
There have been speculations that the Jonathan administration
reached some understanding with the then incoming Buhari
administration, for senior officials, specifically the president
and vice-president not to be probed.
However, the senior official debunked the speculation, adding
that he was not aware that the Muhammadu Buhari administration had
any understanding with any person or persons that they won’t be
probed.
“You know one of the major promises made by the President and
the All Progressives Congress ahead of the 2015 election was that
they will fight corruption. This administration has been doing
that. I am not aware that there is any exception,” he said.
When further asked if Sambo’s alleged persecution formed part of
discussion during a recent meeting he had with the Acting
President, Yemi Osinbajo, at the Presidential Villa, Abuja, the
source said he was not privy to the discussion at the meeting.
“As far as I know, it was a courtesy visit by former
vice-president Sambo. He had a one-on-one with the Acting
President. I was not at that meeting, so I was not privy to their
discussion,” he said.
But Sambo’s aide, Sani, said, “This raid brings to fifth, the
number of times the residence was searched within a period of six
months and on each occasion valuable fittings were deliberately
destroyed.”
He noted that such a raid was not conducted on the former
vice-president’s Link Road residence in Kaduna and his Abuja
apartment, both of which were occupied.
He stated, “As the visit of the operatives was unscheduled, the
reasons for the search were not specifically stated. However, the
outcome of the search was made known. At the end of the whole
exercise, the officers, who carried out the search were satisfied
that nothing incriminating was found. As a law-abiding citizen, the
former vice-president did not raise the alarm in the previous
invasions in view of the fact that he has nothing to hide.
Meanwhile, the DSS had on Friday said that its operatives were
not involved in the raid on Sambo’s house.
A senior officer at the Public Relations Unit of the DSS, Mr.
Nnana Nnochiri, who responded to one of our correspondents’
inquiries, said officials of the agency were not part of the team
that searched the house.
He said, “We have carried out investigation to ascertain the
identity of those involved in the raid.
“We have spoken with all our directors in Kaduna and the states
close to the state where the incident happened, but I can
conveniently tell you that our officials were not part of it.
“Apart from this, we have also done our investigation to
ascertain the agency or the agencies that went there, the DSS was
not among them.
“While we are happy that you called to find out what we
discovered there, I must also have to disappoint you to say that,
while I cannot say the items that were either found or seized
there, but I can conveniently say we were not at the scene.”
The spokesperson for the ICPC, Mrs. Rasheedat Okoduwa, had told
one of our correspondents on the telephone on Wednesday that she
was not aware of the search and thus could not comment.
Indications emerged on Saturday that the Presidency will not
interfere or give special treatment in the ongoing anti-graft
investigations of former senior government officials of the
Goodluck Jonathan administration. Reliable sources in government
told our newspaper over the weekend that the presidency will not
order the anti-graft agencies to stop the investigations or refrain
from searching the residences and property of the affected senior
government officials.
These feelers emerged even as former vice president Namadi Sambo
cried out that the “repeated invasion” of his house in Kaduna was a
ploy by anti-graft agencies to implicate him. On Wednesday, a
combined team of policemen, Independent Corrupt Practices and
Related Offences Commission officials and some agents said to be
officials of the Department of State Services had raided Sambo’s
house said to be unoccupied at the time. According to the reports,
the operatives, who arrived at the house in a bus and Toyota Hilux
van at 3pm, cordoned off the road leading to the residence and
barred motorists and pedestrians while the two-hour search
lasted.
Sambo, in a statement on Saturday by his Media Adviser, Mr. Umar
Sani, said the invasion of his 1, Alimi Road un-occupied residence
in Kaduna on Wednesday was the fifth in six months. Sani expressed
fears that the security agencies might raid the house again with
the intention of planting an incriminating object there.
He said, “The recent desperation exhibited by some security
agencies in carrying out a raid on an unoccupied residence blocking
all entry and exit points, in a commando-style and coming along
with a bullion van speaks volumes of the clandestine intention of
the security operatives.
“It is therefore worrisome to note that the consistency with
which the searches occurred and the intervals between them,
portrays a desire of a fault-finding mission. We are apprehensive
that a repeat of such episode will not be surprising if an
incriminating object is planted in his residence in order to
willfully and deliberately incriminate him.
“The desperation of some of the security agencies is glaring
going by the number of times such searches were conducted and still
counting. We hope it is not a way to try to give a dog a bad name
in order to hang it.”
However, a top government official, who spoke on the condition
of anonymity, dismissed the allegations of persecution, saying
“This government does not dictate to anti-graft agencies how they
should carry out their duties, so far they are doing so based on
the rule of law.”
The official also added that the anti-graft agencies did not
have to take instructions from the Presidency before carrying out
their lawful duties.
He said, “They do not have to clear anything from the Presidency
while carrying out their legitimate duties. So, the need to get
clearance did not arise in this particular case (Sambo’s case) you
are talking about. We learnt about it the same way you and other
people learnt about it.”
There have been speculations that the Jonathan administration
reached some understanding with the then incoming Buhari
administration, for senior officials, specifically the president
and vice-president not to be probed.
However, the senior official debunked the speculation, adding
that he was not aware that the Muhammadu Buhari administration had
any understanding with any person or persons that they won’t be
probed.
“You know one of the major promises made by the President and
the All Progressives Congress ahead of the 2015 election was that
they will fight corruption. This administration has been doing
that. I am not aware that there is any exception,” he said.
When further asked if Sambo’s alleged persecution formed part of
discussion during a recent meeting he had with the Acting
President, Yemi Osinbajo, at the Presidential Villa, Abuja, the
source said he was not privy to the discussion at the meeting.
“As far as I know, it was a courtesy visit by former
vice-president Sambo. He had a one-on-one with the Acting
President. I was not at that meeting, so I was not privy to their
discussion,” he said.
But Sambo’s aide, Sani, said, “This raid brings to fifth, the
number of times the residence was searched within a period of six
months and on each occasion valuable fittings were deliberately
destroyed.”
He noted that such a raid was not conducted on the former
vice-president’s Link Road residence in Kaduna and his Abuja
apartment, both of which were occupied.
He stated, “As the visit of the operatives was unscheduled, the
reasons for the search were not specifically stated. However, the
outcome of the search was made known. At the end of the whole
exercise, the officers, who carried out the search were satisfied
that nothing incriminating was found. As a law-abiding citizen, the
former vice-president did not raise the alarm in the previous
invasions in view of the fact that he has nothing to hide.
Meanwhile, the DSS had on Friday said that its operatives were
not involved in the raid on Sambo’s house.
A senior officer at the Public Relations Unit of the DSS, Mr.
Nnana Nnochiri, who responded to one of our correspondents’
inquiries, said officials of the agency were not part of the team
that searched the house.
He said, “We have carried out investigation to ascertain the
identity of those involved in the raid.
“We have spoken with all our directors in Kaduna and the states
close to the state where the incident happened, but I can
conveniently tell you that our officials were not part of it.
“Apart from this, we have also done our investigation to
ascertain the agency or the agencies that went there, the DSS was
not among them.
“While we are happy that you called to find out what we
discovered there, I must also have to disappoint you to say that,
while I cannot say the items that were either found or seized
there, but I can conveniently say we were not at the scene.”
The spokesperson for the ICPC, Mrs. Rasheedat Okoduwa, had told
one of our correspondents on the telephone on Wednesday that she
was not aware of the search and thus could not comment.
Read more https://nairalaw.com/probe-no-special-treatment-for-sambo-others-says-presidency/