No Hiding Place

Few months ago in Abuja, the capital of Nigeria, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) was making arrangements to file charges of money laundering against former vice-chairman of Intercontinental Bank, Mr. Erastus Akingbola, Mr.Dele Oye a businessman based in Abuja and Mrs. Cecilia Ibru former Managing Director of Oceanic Bank.

Some of the charges were granting loans without collateral and misusing creditors’ money among others. The commission is taking this stand because most of the accused have fled the country. The allegations are staggering against the threesome; what easily comes to mind is how people can have faith in Nigerian banks again? With all these scandals from prominent banking officials. Some such as Cecilia Ibru involved their nanny in laundering money.

Surprisingly Akingbola is a pastor in one of the nations most respected churches, Cecilia is also a known Christian. Both over the years have given seminars on investments and how to banking in Nigeria. This shows how much of a hypocritical set of people Nigerians’ are especially those in prominent places.

This is a typical example of “do as I say and don’t do as I do”. A phrase commonly used in the country. A keen observer would have though that, banking officials will use the last year’s recession as a yardstick to improve their lot and that of the country, and make the world to know that a nations such as Nigeria accused of being very corrupt over times has been able to show to fellow Nigerians and the world over that we as a people can run our own affairs. This was not the case; as usual they went the case of many banks in USA that went under due to financial irregularities.

The EFCC must be praised in its effort to bring some sanity to the industry as well as the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) all efforts to politicalize the issue have failed, the nations must be commended for this. Its time the banking officials and other prominent Nigerians who have the spirit of greed, even to the extent of killing their own businesses and running away with people money so they and their families can live in affluence while the rest wallow in poverty that those days are long gone, there is n o hiding place for corruption anywhere again in the world.

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  Magbegor Ovie  odyoba@gamil.com