Monday, 9 June 2014

Corruption: Why drug- war cannot be won in Nigeria







Emeka Ibemere
By his long youthful beard and glittering eye, he didn’t know where the train of life had stopped him. At the back of the operational Hilux jeep of his captors, he thought that it won’t be long, he would get over it. This was his thought because his godfathers had told him that he would be released no matter the condition.
With this assurance, he was full of confidence until the Cell of his captors at the National Aviation Handling Company, NAHCO, banged for a close, that he realized where he was; and that the assurance given to him was empty boasts. Even the reasons he told his captors for indulging in illicit trade were like a fairy tale of the ancient marina, to those who arrested him.
And if the assurance of his bosses had worked out as planned, Anabaronye Tochukwu Ken, 36, and a Lagos based auto parts dealer, would have rejoined her pregnant wife in his house and see the delivery of their first baby any moment from now.
But that couldn’t be possible any longer for now. Touchukwu is still with the Agents of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) who carried out his arrest for allegedly ingesting 52 wraps of narcotic substances that tested positive for cocaine. The drug weighed 900 grammes.
According to the NDLEA Spokesman, Mitchell Ofoyeju, the arrest took place at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Lagos while the suspect attempting to board an Air France flight to Milan.
Mr. Hamza Umar, NDLEA commander at the Lagos airport, said that the arrest of Anabaronye Tochukwu Ken was made possible by the scanning machine at the airport. In his words, “Anabaronye Tochukwu Ken tested positive for drug ingestion during the outward screening of Air France passengers at the departure hall. While he was under observation, he excreted fifty two (52) wraps of substances that tested positive for cocaine with a weight of 900 grammes. Anabaronye is helping us in our investigation activities”.
The 36-year-old suspect in his confessional statement pleaded for mercy on the grounds that his wife would soon put to birth. “I sell motor spare parts but at present, I have no shop and my wife is pregnant and about to give birth to our first child”, he added.
“I got myself involved in drug trafficking to take care of my family. I ingested fifty-two (52) wraps of cocaine for a fee of 4,000 Euros. I sincerely plead for mercy. My greatest desire is to be released from custody before my wife’s delivery date.” The suspect is from Orlu, in Imo State.
Chairman/Chief Executive of the anti-narcotic Agency, Ahmadu Giade said that drug traffickers should be handed stiffer penalties to deter others from engaging in the criminal act. “In addition to public enlightenment, stiffer penalties are effective means of addressing the problem of illicit drug trafficking and abuse. It will assist in the drastic reduction of the financial attraction of drug trafficking,” Giade stated.
The suspect, NDLEA said would face prosecution in court as soon as investigation was concluded.
 But an NDLEA officer who is not happy with the running of the organization, told our correspondent that whether stiffer penalty was given as an option to reduce the problem of illicit drug trafficking was applied or not; that the conceptualised  corruption existing in the fight against drug trafficking would not have any effect. He said corruption is the bane of the war on drug in Nigeria. It’s not pursued with vigour and sincerity of purpose.
Investigation by our correspondent has revealed an increasing boom in Nigeria’s hard drug business with serious lapses in the prosecution of suspects. There are allegations of cartel operating within the courts, the prisons and at the legal department of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency to assist drug convicts to evade jail terms.
A judge recently accused prosecuting lawyers of collaborating with suspect’s lawyers to set free drug suspects going trials in NDLEA cases.
Few years ago, media exposed the activities of the drug cartel which led to the inauguration of a panel headed by Justice Gilbert Obanya. Obanya was charged with examining the activities of the anti-drug agency and report to the Presidency. However, the retired Judge made his observation in his report and forwarded it to the then Minister of Justice, the supervising ministry of the agency which gave the nod for its implementation. One of the Obanya’s recommendations was dealing with corruption in the agency. But that report didn’t see the light of the day.
However, the cartel succeeded in ‘killing’ the report of the Obanya panel, when the Chairman and Chief Executive of the NDLEA, allegedly failed to implement the ‘august report’ using contacts in high places.
It’s observed that every day, at the airports, sea ports and boarders, drug suspects are arrested and prosecuted but little or none serves their complete sentences, fuelling suspicion in high quarters that the drug war in Nigeria seems not to be working.
Recently, Nigeria’s major drug barons have devised new strategies to get away with their crimes. They have used a combination of bribes, blackmail and threats to frustrate their prosecution and avoid jail terms.
The mess came into forefront recently when Justice Ibrahim N. Buba of the Federal High Court, Lagos, assumed duties in 2012. The judge was reportedly shocked to discover that more than one hundred accused drug barons granted bail on liberal terms by Justice Liman had jumped bail. Our investigation revealed that the situation was the same in several other courts. Upset by the situation, the judge has repeatedly scolded the NDLEA in court. He has also issued several orders to the agency to re-arrest suspects, but to no avail.
Another judge of competent jurisdiction also added his voice to the growing weed of corruption at the agency.
It was gathered that Justice Okon Abang of the Federal High Court, Lagos on 7, Friday February, 2014 was unable to accommodate the unmitigated corruption of the NDLEA prosecutors any longer and sadly accused one of them, Mr Abu Ibrahim of gross misconduct in open court.
Daily Newswatch learned that the Judge while delivering judgement in a case of dealing in cocaine was quoted to have said in his judgement that there seems to be collaboration between the prosecutor and the accused.
The judge said: “When the fifth prosecution witness (Idris Zakari) testified, learned counsel for the prosecution applied to tender only a portion of the statement of the accused person”.
“The full statement is attached to the counter-affidavit filed by the same prosecution in opposition to bail application.
“While writing this judgment, I wondered why learned counsel for the prosecution Abu Ibrahim, a counsel I have so much respect for, behaved in this manner.
“I ask again, why did the learned counsel behave this way? Whose interest is the learned counsel serving? Is it the interest of the prosecution or the interest of the accused person or is he serving the interest of justice”?
“In his written address that is not helpful to the court, learned counsel for the prosecution never for once canvassed arguments on the confessional statement. He kept mute and said nothing about it.
“I ask the question: I’m not making a statement of fact – is it that learned counsel for the prosecution’s intention is to enable the accused person escape conviction? The attitude of learned counsel is most unfair to the court and to the smooth administration of justice.”
The judge, who suspected that there was ‘agreement’ between the parties to enable the accused escape justice, added that, “many heads will roll” if he ordered an investigation into the case.
Abang said, “In the course of his arguments, learned counsel for the defence pretended as if no such confession had been made. I ask the question again, is it that the prosecution and the defence had colluded to create problems for the court by withholding material evidence, which would conveniently secure conviction, to enable the accused person escape conviction and go home with the N14m illegally procured from illegal dealing in narcotic drug? Abang queried. “Speaking for myself, I can never be a party to this kind of unwholesome and improper conduct. If I order investigation into this matter, many heads will roll.”
He said despite the conduct of the counsel in the case, there was circumstantial evidence sufficient to convict the accused for the alleged crime.
“Where the circumstantial evidence is cogent, undisputable, strong, and points irresistibly to the guilt of the accused person, the court of law is entitled to convict the accused person,” he said.
In convicting the accused, the judge said, “With regard to the unchallenged evidence of PW5 and the evidence contained in Exhibit E1 (a portion of the accused person’s statement tendered by the prosecution) it is my humble view that the accused person conspired with Sam Egunibe to import 8.270kg of cocaine from Pakistan to Nigeria.”
Meanwhile the petitioning staffs accused Giade to have enthroned an atmosphere that is encouraging the recycling of seized illicit drugs through collusion with drug dealers and barons and the promotion of unholy trading of drug cases between NDLEA prosecutors and defence counsels for money.
According to them, these devious arrangements do not only dent the image of the country, they are making a mockery of Nigeria's professed anti-drug campaigns as well as our justice delivery system.

Further investigations by our correspondent revealed that the latest tactics by these big time drug dealers was to contract special defense lawyers to handle their cases. It was gathered that within the judiciary, some of the big name lawyers know the judges who are favourable and those that are tough. They then use dubious court officials to manipulate and make sure that their client’s case is assigned to a favourable court.
According to our sources, the notorious judges then grant bail to the suspects on liberal terms, with the stipulation that the NDLEA must verify the sureties.  But within the NDLEA, the jobs of verifying sureties are done by the same group of people who would endorse any arrangement made by the defense lawyers. An aggrieved NDLEA officer, who pleaded anonymity, said the present NDLEA cannot win the drug war based on five caret-corruptions in the prosecution of the war. According to him, such corrupt arrangements enabled drug barons to continue to thrive.
Two judges are said to be the most dreaded in the war against drug. They are Justice Buba and Abang.   Justice Buba is alleged to be a no-nonsense Justice and that his approach changed the game and made life tough for drug traffickers and bosses. The same accolade is given to Justice Abang, who always questions the ability of the NDLEA lawyers.
It was recently alleged that NDLEA lawyers avoid Justice Buba’s court like a plague.

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