Reverse Alamieyeseigha’s pardon, CWI, Catholics, others tell Jonathan

FUMING at what they consider a mockery of the nation’s anti-corruption campaign, groups and the nation’s leaders have urged President Goodluck Jonathan to reverse the state pardon the Federal Government granted former Bayelsa State Governor Diepreye Alamieyeseigha.
The Christian Welfare Initiative (CWI), an arm of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), wondered why such a pardon should be granted someone who was convicted by a London court for corruption and financial embezzlement.
In a statement in Lagos, the National President of CWI, Archbishop Magnus Adeyemi Atilade, described the whole act as being based on tribalism, nepotism and lack of fear of God, and a negation of Jonathan’s perceived war against corruption.
Atilade pointed out that the pardon granted to all the former military officers, including Lt.-Gen. Oladipo Diya (rtd) could be acceptable to the generality of Nigerians on the grounds that the alleged coup for which they were convicted was questionable. But they said that the pardon for Alamieyeseigha could not be justified for any reason because of the large amount of money involved.
According to CWI, Jonathan is indirectly endorsing corruption by this singular pardon of an ex-convict. The Christian body said if Alamieyeseigha deserved a pardon, all the gates of the nation’s prison yards should as well be flung open for the inmates, both convicted and awaiting trial for presidential pardon because their offences were not as heavy as those of Alamieyeseigha who embezzled his state’s money.
CWI recalled that Jonathan was Alamieyeseigha’s deputy when the former governor committed the offence for which he was convicted.
“It is therefore a height of nepotism and tribalism for the same Jonathan to turn round and grant pardon to his former boss. And this is not acceptable to Nigerians; he should rescind the pardon immediately because he is laying a gangrenous precedent for other future leaders.
“Whether Jonathan knows the implication of what he did or not, it should be pointed out to him that the said pardon is a big dent on his government, and the honorable thing to do is to rescind the pardon for Alamieyeseigha now”, the CWI added.
The Justice Development and Peace Commission (JDPC) (a non-governmental, non-partisan organisation and the main social-development arm of the Catholic Church) condemned the pardon.
Addressing journalists at the weekend on the state of the nation to mark JDPC Week at JDPC Secretariat, Sabo-Yaba, Lagos, the Executive Director of the Group, Rev. Fr. Emmanuel Fadele, lamented the position of Nigeria as 135th out of 176 corrupt countries in the world according to the Global Corruption Perception Index.
“According to Human Rights Watch, Nigeria lost $38b to corruption between 1999 and 2007; in 2010, the civil servants pocketed N450 billion in the present administration alone while about N5 trillion could not be accounted for.  They loot mindlessly and mercilessly.
“Nigeria has organs like the EFCC, Code of Conduct Bureau (CCB) and Independent Corrupt Practices and other related offences Commission (ICPC) charged with the responsibility of sniffing out corrupt people and dealing with them accordingly, but they work discordantly, pursuing ephemeral small thieves like Internet scammers, cash couriers, pipeline vandals, among others…
“The current EFCC website ‘celebrates’ successful conviction of a beggarly 19 out of 300 cases and none of these 19 is a high-profile criminal. Two brothers, Ikechukwu and Avoaja, received 91 years jail term for sealing N21 million while John Yusufu, who admitted stealing N23.3 billion, was sentenced to two years or option of fine of N750,000,” the group said.
It recommended that to seriously fight corruption, anti-graft agencies should have defined functions and should be independent, fearless, impersonal, transparent above board and be focused.
Also, a member of the House of Representatives and Deputy Chairman of the Committee on Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), Bimbo Daramola, said that the pardon was not well- thought out.
But the senator representing Edo South Senatorial District, Ehigie Uzamere, at the weekend said that the Senate would further encourage  Jonathan to grant pardon to Nigerians who may have unjustly incurred the wrath of past governments in the country for political reasons.
He said the United States (U.S.) was ignorant of what led to the travails of Alamieyeseigha when it condemned the pardon granted to him by Jonathan.
Uzamere spoke to journalists in Okada when the chairmanship candidate of the Action Congress of Nigeria in Ovia North East, Mrs. Lucy Omagbon. started her campaign.
The Chairman of the Ikeja Branch of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), Monday Ubani, yesterday condemned the pardon as provocative.
Ubani, who was reacting to the comment by presidential spokesperson, Dr. Doyin  Okupe on the state pardon, said the anti-corruption fight of the Federal Government was clearly in trouble.
He said: “So far, the explanations from the government aides are not only watery, but also provocative. The explanation of people like Dr. Doyin Okupe tells you that Nigeria is in serious trouble.
“He presented President Jonathan as an unrepentant monarch whose various infractions cannot be questioned by his subjects. Dr Okupe needs to be educated that Nigeria is in democracy and her rulers need to exercise their powers in the interest of the nation”, he added.
In a similar manner, Lagos-based human rights lawyer, Ebun-Olu Adegboruwa, who was perturbed by the state pardon, said although the power given to the President to grant pardon does not specify the categories of crime that may or may not merit state pardon, such pardon should not have come from a President that is concerned with the fight against corruption.
According to him, it is for the person exercising the power to work out the modalities or set out conditions under which the power will be exercised.
On his part, retired Commissioner of Police, Lagos State, Dr. Abubakar Tsav, has said the state pardon was a mere charade to favour Jonathan’s former master thus encouraging corruption in the country.
Tsav, who made the condemnation in an interview with The Guardian in Makurdi at the weekend, stated that himself like many other Nigerians had continued to be disappointed in Jonathan’s unpopular policies and decisions.
He maintained that the inclusion of the names of Lt.-Gen. Oladipo Diya and Maj.-Gen. Abdulkareem Adisa, among others on the list, was meant to deceive Nigerians and justify his nepotism, noting too that Diya and Adisa were already granted state pardon by Gen. Abdulsalami  Abubakar in 1999.
Tsav questioned why Jonathan did not include Al-Mustapha’s name on the pardon list.