Corruption Trials Against Ex-Governors withdrawn

The newly-appointed Chief Judge of the Federal Capital
Territory (FCT) Justice Ibrahim Bukar, today in Abuja
withdrew the case files of former Nigerian governors
undergoing trial for corruption.

Justice Bukar requested all judges in the FCT to return
the case files of several of the governors, some of whom
are reportedly being considered for ministerial
appointments by President Goodluck Jonathan.

A source at the FCT High Court said the new chief judge
did not state why the case files were being withdrawn,
but it is being suspected that he plans to do away with
the cases. Some of the cases were filed by the
Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC)
since 2007.

Since coming to power in 2010, President Goodluck
Jonathan has boosted and encouraged corruption in
several ways, including through declaring he would not
publicly declare his assets; refusing to push actively for
action against corrupt officials, especially within his
government; and pardoning a corrupt former governor,
DSP Alaimeiyeseigha.

Several officials at the EFCC have also confided in
SaharaReporters that Mr. Jonathan has directly interfered
in their work and stopped several high profile
investigations on corruption by asking the EFCC
chairman to not investigate some of the most corrupt
public officials in his administration.

A source at the EFCC noted that the case of former
Governor Jolly Nyame had reached an advanced stage,
with nine witnesses already called, lamenting that the
case file is among those withdrawn today.

In recent months, President Jonathan has repeatedly
declared corruption in Nigeria to be “exaggerated.”
Only last week, it emerged that his Minister of Aviation,
Stella Oduah, compelled a struggling agency in the
Ministry to purchase two overpriced luxury motor
vehicles for her use at an incredible cost of N225million.
The public uproar that has followed the story has been
ignored by Mr. Jonathan.

What ever happened to Democracy ?

Source