Chief James Ibori
• Ex-gov’s aide chides him as protesters storm EFCC
From LAMBERT TYEM, FRANCIS AWOWOLE-BROWNE and AIDOGHIE PAULINUS, Abuja
As security forces comb Oghara town, in Delta State, in search of Chief James Ibori, police authorities have said that the former governor would be arrested no matter how long it takes. Also, the police said they do not think the former governor has fled the country.
The police, however, said that in looking for Ibori they do not want to be seen as victimising innocent citizens. They appealed for patience over the delay in effecting Ibori’s arrest, adding that the warrant of arrest issued on him has no limited time.
This is coming at a time hundreds of youths stormed the headquarters of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), in Abuja to protest what they called political undertone in the Ibori case. It is also coming as a former aide of the ex-governor urged him to come out of hiding if he does not have a case to answer.
Speaking in Abuja yesterday, Force Public Relations Officer, Emmanuel Ojukwu, said that the search for Ibori continues as long as the Lagos Federal High Court order lasts.
According to him, “manhunt for Ibori still continues until he is arrested or his arrest vacated by a competent court of law. We do not suspect that he has escaped out of the country and even if he may have escaped, we are not in a hurry. He will still be arrested, no matter how long it takes, even four, five or 10 years from now. We are following his arrest within the confines of law.”
He appealed to Nigerians for patience and understanding, saying: “We are not at war with anybody. We are trying to maintain law and order in our society. We have no problem with anybody in Delta and Oghara town in particular. The thugs employed to guard him have no problem with the police and not that they overpowered the police and other security agencies. Police don’t want to engage in any fracas that might cause loss of lives of other innocent citizens, since the offence of the former governor is a bailable one.”
Ojukwu further assured Nigerians that Ibori would soon be arrested, adding that the DIG, AIG and CP were still in-charge of the case until Ibori is picked.
Meanwhile, hundreds of protesters yesterday stormed the headquarters of the EFCC demanding that the commission should do away with politics in handling Ibori’s case.
The demonstrators alleged that the commission was selective in prosecution of financial crime cases, wondering what happened to the Independent Power Project (IPP) probe, which fingered some influential Nigerians.
Addressing the management of the EFCC, led by the Secretary, Emmanuel Akomaye, leader of the protesters, Yinka Gbadebo, said they were not out to defend Ibori but that the EFCC should respect the law of the land.
According to him, it smacked of political persecution for the EFCC to declare Ibori wanted when the date of his invitation was far ahead. He stated: “What we are saying is that due process must be followed in everything the EFCC is doing; its anti-corruption agency is meant for the nation; it should not allow itself to be teleguided by the government of the day.”
In his response, Secretary of the EFCC, Mr. Akomaye, explained that the commission appreciated the position of the protesters. He promised that their views would be tabled before the chairman, Mrs. Farida Waziri.
He explained that the EFCC is a law enforcement agency and would not be involved in anything that would break the law.
The EFCC scribe argued that Ibori’s case should not be seen as a political witch-hunt but normal exercise of the commission’s responsibility to tackle corruption within the Nigerian society.
He stated that if the commission failed to deal with corruption in the society, youths would have no future in the country. He assured them that Ibori would be accorded all possible legal benefits.
Traffic in and around the Wuse area, where the EFCC office is located, was paralysed, as the protesters took over the road with placards, which read: “No to selective prosecution” and “EFCC must subject itself to rule of law” etc.
In a related development, Ibori’s spokesman, Tony Eluemunor, has said that the former governor was being hunted for political reasons.
In a statement, he said that his boss’ case was a witch-hunt, adding: “The arm-twisting that defaced the final years of the last administration has been allowed back into Nigeria as the country enters an election year.”
Also commenting on the matter, a former aide of Ibori, Hon Mark Wariota Ikpuri, has asked him to come out of hiding and face the EFCC.
But speaking with Saturday Sun in Abuja, Ikpuri, the former Special Adviser to Ibori on Students Affairs said that the allegation of witch-hunt is being mischievously peddled by Ibori’s loyalists.
He said: “I don’t believe in those mischievous statements of people. I don’t believe them. Has Ibori come out to say that he has a problem with the acting President? Or has the acting president come out to say that he has a problem with Ibori? There are some things that you would do that your guilt would begin to judge you.”
Urging Ibori to come out, he said: “The more he keeps hiding, the more people conclude the story is true. The more he is staying in hiding; definitely, the impression is that he committed it. He should examine his conscience and ask himself: did I really commit these things or not? Then, if he did, there is nothing bad in saying; I am returning the things he took. What I am saying is that if you are hiding, you give the wrong impression to the populace but coming out proves your innocence. He should come out of hiding.”
Source: www.sunnewsonline.com
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