Crying ourselves out won’t address the problem. We have to begin to address the issues that contribute to weakening our institutions. Without that, scandals like Nnaji’s will continue to dog our political trajectory and national life. It is high-time we rolled our sleeves to make our institutions strong. This, as Condoleezza Rice rightly noted, will provide the bedrock for our successful democracy.
Recently, Nigerians began the week on the note of a sizzling report by an online newspaper, PREMIUM TIMES. The report centred around allegations that our erstwhile Minister of Innovation, Science and Technology, Chief Geoffrey Uche Nnaji, forged his university degree, as well as National Youth Service Corp (NYSC) certificates.
The reaction was instantaneous, just as it was predictable. Outrage. And this was understable. Ever since Nigeria’s return to democracy in 1999, quite a number of high profile office holders have been caught in the web of one form of certificate forgery scandal or another.
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The distasteful trend began in 1999 with two top principal officers of the National Assembly – Senate President Evan(s) Enwerem and the Speaker, House of Representatives, Salisu Buhari. While Salisu Buhari falsely claimed he attended the University of Toronto, Canada, senators – and indeed, Nigerians – couldn’t tell with certainty if their Senate President was Evan or Evans Enwerem.
Ever since Evan or Evans Enwerem and Salisu Buhari, the issue of certificate forgeries has, like wild fire, caught up with members of the executive arm. For instance, Senator Douye Diri of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) is governor of Bayelsa State today simply because of the discrepancies in the name of the All Progressives Congress (APC) deputy governorship candidate in the state, Senator Degi-Eremienyo. This was in February 2020.
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Five years earlier, Minister of Finance, Mrs Kemi Adeosun resigned her appointment following a scandal concerning the alleged forgery of her NYSC certificate. Ms Adeosun had been invited by President Muhammadu Buhari to return from her base in the United Kingdom to join his government. It ended in disgrace.
Instances abound of several other high profile Nigerians who have been enmeshed in forged certficate scandals. This naturally raises the question of if after 65 years of Independence, Nigeria has no institutions to block such embarrassment.
Enter the State Security Service (SSS), sometimes called Department of State Services (DSS).
As far as the SSS Act is concerned, the Service is responsible for the internal security of Nigeria, VIP protection, and vetting of nominees for top positions. The SSS is also empowered to place persons of interest on a watchlist – in addition to protecting the President from embarrassment (as in the cases of Salisu Buhari, Evan(s) Enwerem, Kemi Adeosun and now, Uche Nnaji) among other duties. Without mincing words, it is, safe to say that the SSS is a key institution of the Nigerian State.
In her book, Democracy: Stories from the Long Road to Freedom, Condoleezza Rice, former national security adviser and secretary of state under President George W Bush, believes that that institutions provide the bedrock for any successful democracy.
In other words, weak institutions weaken democracy. Conversely, one of the ways to weaken democracy is to first weaken institutions.
One example that readily comes to mind on how we weaken an institution is the 2016 nomination of Ibrahim Magu as the chairman, Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC). The EFCC Act states that a nominee for the office of the EFCC chairman shall be screened by the Senate.
Even though it is the President that apoints the SSS DG, the secret police wasn’t comfortable that the president chose Magu. And the secret police didn’t hide their disapproval of Mr President’s nominee.
In a letter dated 3 October, 2016, to the Clerk of the Senate, the SSS told the senators that Magu was not fit to hold the position of EFCC chairman.
The secret police listed several alleged malpractices against the EFCC boss, saying his confirmation would frustrate the anti-graft drive of the administration then.
Part of the allegations against Magu was his being in possession of EFCC documents in his private residence during the chairmanship of Farida Waziri.
The SSS also made reference to the circumstances surrounding Magu’s arrest, detention and suspension by the Nigeria Police.
In addition, the secret service alleged that the sum of N40 million was paid for the rented apartment, which costs ₦20 million per annum, where Magu lived.
The SSS added that Magu’s accommodation was not paid for from the commission’s account but by a presidential appointee, who had been under investigation. The SSS alleged that after renting the apartment for Magu, the friend awarded a ₦43 million contract for the furnishing of the accommodation.
The only consequence of the DSS report was that each time he faced the senators, they failed to clear him. Even at that, the President then snubbed the lawmakers and kept Magu as acting EFCC chairman for close to five years.
Thus, Magu became the poster boy of the futility of security reports and Senate screening when political leaders and policy makers choose to weaken our institutions.
While it is convenient to talk about Magu, perhaps mention should be made of our lawyers, especially those who aspire to make it to the peak of the bar, called Senior Advocates of Nigeria (SAN). Oftentimes referred to as Learned Silk, to demonstrate the highest esteem to which they are held, these senior lawyers recently grabbed the headlines when they opposed the screening of their colleagues shortlisted for this coveted rank by the SSS.
A former Nigerian Bar Association General Secretary, Olumuyiwa Akinboro, himself a SAN, described the security vetting as an attack on the independence of the legal profession. Human rights lawyer and former Chairman of the National Human Rights Commission, Chidi Odinkalu was one of the few voices that supported the SSS.
Odinkalu, who expressed surprise at Akinboro’s opposition, said the rule was introduced in 2022 by then Chief Justice of Nigeria, Olukayode Ariwoola, and had been applied to SAN conferments in 2022, 2023 and 2024 without protest.
“These people are short of candour. The rules requiring screening of SAN candidates by SSS were made by Olukayode Ariwoola in 2022. They governed SAN conferment in 2022, ’23 & ’24,” noted Odinkalu.
It has since emerged from the grapevine on the outcome of the DSS screening, that some of the nominees for the award of SAN are not fit and proper. Even with this SSS report, the same tainted nominees still managed to wangle their way to the swearing-in. They are now addressed as “Learned Silks!” I won’t be surprised if these SANs aren’t among those blaming the Senate and the DSS for “not doing a thorough job!”
Now, to our own Minister Uche Nnaji. He resigned a while ago. I’ve read and heard many people blame the Senate and the SSS for the lapses that made it possible to swear in Nnaji as Minister of Innovation, Science and Technology. Having set a dangerous precedent with Magu and many more that aren’t known, how are we sure the powers that be even allowed Nnaji to subject himself to the rigours of screening by the SSS? How are we sure he, in the name of security vetting, even stepped foot within the four walls of the SSS national headquarters in Abuja?
The truth remains that over time, we failed to address the question of interference with institutions. Why should some governors, for instance, have the wherewithal to demand the deployment or removal of Police Commissioners to or from their states?
Crying ourselves out won’t address the problem. We have to begin to address the issues that contribute to weakening our institutions. Without that, scandals like Nnaji’s will continue to dog our political trajectory and national life. It is high-time we rolled our sleeves to make our institutions strong. This, as Condoleezza Rice rightly noted, will provide the bedrock for our successful democracy.
Johnson Okolo, a public affairs analyst, wrote from Umuahia.
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