Constituency projects: Why ICPC is after me TheNigerialawyer

In March 2017, the Senate, headed by
Bukola Saraki, rejected the nomination of Mr Ibrahim Magu as
chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC),
few months after it passed the same verdict. The man who headed the
Senate Committee on Anti-Corruption and Financial Crimes in the
eight Senate, Chukwuka Utazi, opens up in this interview with FRED
ITUA on what transpired. He also spoke on other salient issues.

Some people were shocked when you were named chairman,
Senate Committee on Primary Health and Communicable Diseases,
having headed the Anti-Corruption Committee in the eight
Senate

As a lawyer and a political scientist, we are trained to do
anything. There is a law for any aspect of life. As a lawyer, you
can fit into any position. So, I don’t see anything wrong with it.
When I came in 2015, I didn’t make any choice to head the committee
I was given. When I was eventually named, I used the internet to
search for all the information I needed. I started doing the job. I
am doing the same thing. I am studying. With time, I will get used
to the work. Besides, our job is administrative. And we also carry
out oversights.

In the eight Senate, you headed the Anti-Corruption and
Financial Crimes Committee. Your Committee was at the centre of a
controversy on the non-confirmation of Ibrahim Magu as chairman of
EFCC. How did you react when you were bypassed and the entire
Senate had to handle the confirmation hearing?

There was nobody that shortchanged my office. Any confirmation
on Anti-Corruption, ditto EFCC and ICPC, passed through me. I was
part and parcel of it. The only confirmation that had to come to
the floor was that of Magu. That was what the Senate wanted then.
So, they asked him to come. But members of the board of EFCC came
to me.

If you were allowed to screen board members of EFCC, why
were you not allowed to screen Magu too?

Some critical confirmations like that were done on the floor of
the Senate. Like the CBN Governor, for instance, he was asked to
face the entire Senate. As I said, I screened board members. They
couldn’t go through because they didn’t meet the geopolitical
spread. The Federal Character principle was not adopted. I
presented the report, but the Senate decided not to confirm them
because the appointments were lopsided. Other geopolitical zones
were complaining.

There is this accusation that the non-confirmation of
Magu was a personal vendetta. Is that claim true?

As chairman of Anti-Corruption Committee, I worked well with
Magu. I supervised him well and ensured that the budget of the
Commission was increased. I did what no other person before did as
chairman of that committee. It’s on record. I know what their
budget was before I came. I was instrumental to the completion of
that EFCC building. I went to the presidency and complained that it
was wrong for the EFCC to have offices scattered across Abuja. I
convinced them to raise the budget since President Muhammadu
Buhari’s administration was based on anti-corruption. They listened
to me and I came to the Senate, discussed with more people. We were
able to jerk up the budget. That was what I did.

What about those who still hold the view that former
governors, including Bukola Saraki who were facing corruption
charges, frustrated the confirmation?

What happened on the floor of the Senate was not under my
control. If the Senate had issues with Magu, that’s their own. I
made all the efforts humanly possible to ensure that Magu was
screened and confirmed. Ask Magu and he will tell you. I went out
of my way to reconcile Magu with Saraki. I took Magu to the house
of Saraki in Maitama. I did everything to reconcile them. I told
the two of them that they were performing institutional roles. I
told the two of them that nothing should be personal and that the
two institutions- Senate and EFCC must operate. I begged them to
forget about everything and look at the institutional roles.

I prepared questions for Magu during the confirmation hearing
that will guide him. I went that far to assist him. I looked at all
the questions that border on his office. I also asked him the ones
that suited him. I had worked with him for a while and I could tell
of his strengths and weaknesses. I prepared those things. It was
unfortunate that at the end of the day, we had a logjam. Some other
people were thinking differently from the way I was thinking. I
didn’t have control over events at the Senate to have pushed
through with Magu’s confirmation.

As chairman of the committee then, you led your members
to offices of EFCC and ICPC across the country to ascertain the
condition of facilities there. Your findings were never made
public.

When I went for those oversight functions, it was not at the
prompting of the Senate. There was no resolution asking me to do
that. If there was a resolution, I would have come back to the
floor of the Senate with a report. We went round on our own to see
things for ourselves. With the information we got, we were able to
sit down with the heads of the various agencies to discuss our
findings with them. If you remember when you accompanied me, I
didn’t tell EFCC or ICPC that I was coming for a visit. That’s the
essence of oversight. You need to see things the way they are. You
don’t have to announce that you’re coming and they begin to prepare
for your arrival. We did that to make the agencies better. I know
the headship of the two agencies benefited from the visits.

During your oversight visits, I recall some suspects
were kept in detention facilities for months without being charged
to court. Did you also resolve these issues with the two
agencies?

We received several petitions that most of the detention
facilities, especially that of EFCC, were converted to other uses
and were doing routine police work. We went there and confirmed
those things in their various offices. By the time we returned to
Abuja and confronted Magu, he removed the person in charge of Lagos
office. If we had not gone there, he wouldn’t have known what was
happening there. We also engaged with the staff during our
visitations. That’s the essence of oversights.

The last ministerial confirmation was condemned by Nigerians.
There are also claims that this is a sign of things to come and
that the Senate will not be independent. Do you subscribe to these
claims?

That is the perception and it is different from the reality in
the National Assembly. These appointments made by President
Muhammadu Buhari were different from that of 2015. The essence of
the screening was to get the necessary information. We did the best
of our ability. We didn’t need to abuse or harass those nominees.
We did it well.

What about the fear that it will be a rubber-stamp
Senate?

Is there anybody who has ever headed the National Assembly that
is more qualified than Lawan? We have seen his profile. He’s the
man for the job. We have seen him under crisis. In 2015, he was
almost going to be the President of the Senate. We knew he would be
Senate President. If you conduct the election again, he will win.
He lost so many positions and didn’t fight with anyone. He didn’t
lose his cool. I know with Lawan’s experience, he will manage the
National Assembly well. Currently, he is mounting pressure on the
Executive to submit the budget and return the country to the
January to December budget circle. He doesn’t need to shout.
Everyone has his style of getting things done. Lawan will come out
as one of the best leaders the National Assembly will ever
have.

Recently, the ICPC claimed that you held on to items
meant for your constituents. What happened?

For those who know me, they know what I can do. I got materials
like every other person. The contractors don’t come at the same
time. They come at different times. As I am talking, some books are
still coming and some are yet to be supplied. Elections were around
the corner. 2018 up to 2019 were election period. I didn’t want to
share those materials during the elections. I didn’t want to be
accused of using the items to induce voters. My people were aware.
I told them I had these things and that I was going to distribute
them after the elections.

After the elections, I returned to Abuja to conclude work on
pending bills on anti-corruption. It’s on record that all the
anti-corruption bills that were there for over 14 years were passed
during my time. The NFIU bill was a private one I sponsored and it
was the fastest ever passed. Then we had the retreat and the
inauguration. I was also named as a member of the Welfare
Committee. That was what happened. In selecting those to benefit,
we used churches to get the people. It took them over four months
to get these people who were to benefit.

I don’t have any issue with ICPC tracking these things. They
came to my house in Enugu to check. The next morning, trouble
started. I complained to the chairman of ICPC about the publication
in the media. I went about my business. Then all the stories
followed. We distributed the items to the people. Whatever anybody
is writing doesn’t bother me. A clear conscience fears no
accusation. Maybe some people wanted to malign me. As a politician,
it’s expected to happen.

What about the controversy over the CBN empowerment for
your people?

It’s the same thing with the CBN issue. They said I collected
N5,000 and couldn’t keep the agreement I had with the people. Part
of my mandate is not to create jobs. I went out of my way to solve
a problem. I discussed with the CBN Governor to empower my people.
He said they had an office in Abia State. I had to move them to
Nsukka to train 1,500 youths. These people paid the money into the
account of those who trained them. If you add up the money, it will
amount to N7.5 million. I spent money on their accommodations and
other costs. Those who are envious are doing everything they can to
bring me down. I am a faith-based politician. My Bible tells me
that I will face persecution. That should not scare me away from
public life.

Culled from SUn

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