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Sanusi and his twisted ‘missing $20b’ tale

By Yahaya Bello
26 March 2015   |   6:42 am
ADOLF Hitler’s propaganda minister in Nazi Germany, Paul Joseph Goebbels stated in one of his popular submissions: “If you tell a lie big enough and keep repeating it, people will eventually come to believe it.” The foregoing is the situation Nigeria finds itself with the twisted, yet, celebrated tale of the “missing $20 billion” crude oil earnings.
Sanusi

Sanusi

ADOLF Hitler’s propaganda minister in Nazi Germany, Paul Joseph Goebbels stated in one of his popular submissions: “If you tell a lie big enough and keep repeating it, people will eventually come to believe it.” The foregoing is the situation Nigeria finds itself with the twisted, yet, celebrated tale of the “missing $20 billion” crude oil earnings.

When the royal court of Kano is in session, part of the Emir’s elaborate turban covers his mouth so that courtiers speak on his behalf. On the few occasions an Emir speaks, it is expected to be in measured tones and bereft of controversy – two qualities the former Central Bank Governor and Emir of Kano, Sanusi Lamido clearly lacks.

The role of the Emir is that of peacemaker. Politics and an apparent scripted smear campaign he is presently headlining against the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) are things that he should traditionally stay clear of. Speaking recently with Christiane Amanpour of the Cable News Network (CNN), Sanusi, against the findings of the Senate Committee on Finance and PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC), has continued his unabated false allegation of unremitted $20billion oil revenue against the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC).

Before his ouster, Sanusi, in his self-appointed role of whistle blowing, alleged that the NNPC had not remitted $49.8 billion into the Federation Account. Shortly, he claimed that the unremitted funds, which had stood at $10.8 billion after reconciliation, are now $20 billion, a claim which the NNPC has since disputed with documentary evidence. Again, the allegation has also been proved to be false even by his (Sanusi) own account.

Indeed, part of the Nigerian tragedy is that someone like Sanusi, with a record of financial improprieties, became the helmsman in the CBN in the first place. It is a sad commentary that someone who couldn’t push a simple matter as a new denomination of the national currency by following simple statutory processes, became a pontiff for transparency and accountability.  Nigerians must ask Sanusi what he stands to gain in his spirited effort to hang a tag of corruption on the NNPC (by implication the country’s petroleum ministry).
Giving the NNPC a bad name for obvious political gains may seem an act of local misdemeanour on Sanusi’s part, but the ripple effects are not limited to the national stage. Indeed, Nigerians are the ones made to suffer in this discrediting plot.

The confidence of foreign investors is bound to be shaken, with the country’s position on the perception of corruption index unflattering.  Yet, for all the stridency with which these attacks on the leadership of the Nigerian oil authorities is conducted and the multiplicity of fronts from which the missiles are launched, none of the wicked – even if always salacious – allegations have been conclusively proven.

Even more tragically, the opposition has blindly taken side with the agents of malicious campaign against the country’s mainstay, crude oil.

While the sabotaging smear campaign against the Ministry for Petroleum Resources, NNPC and its subsidiaries persists, Nigeria’s petroleum minister, Mrs. Diezani Alison-Madueke and her policies are being celebrated in the real world. Alison-Madueke, a strong-willed woman with her hard-earned credentials, should be encouraged and celebrated. In other climes, as with the examples of the U.S. and the Rices (Condoleezza and Susan) or Christine Lagarde (France), to give just two instances, Diezani would be a revered personage.

The woman has many firsts. Alison-Madueke is the first woman to hold the position of Minister of Petroleum Resources in Nigeria. In October 2010 she became the first woman to head a country delegation at the annual Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) conference. She was also the first female Minister of Transportation, and the first woman to be appointed to the board of Shell Petroleum Development Company Nigeria.

Last November, Alison-Madueke was elected as the first female President of the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) at the 166th meeting of the OPEC Conference in Vienna, Austria.

The House of Representatives is on the verge of passing the important Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB), a revolutionary legislation championed by the country’s petroleum ministry.

Madueke has stated that Nigeria will end gas flaring by 2017.
These are the true situation of things.  Sanusi must be called to order in Nigeria’s interest.
• Dr. Yahaya Bello is Executive Director of Transparency Network, an Abuja-based anti-corruption advocacy group.

14 Comments

  • Author’s gravatar

    Many baseless accusations in order to score cheap political gains. The masses are been fed with lies daily while the perpetrators of fraud in the oil sector are untouchable.

  • Author’s gravatar

    Sanusi a CBN governor by zoning and an Islamic insurgent by training is only hanging in there till after election. He will surely pay dearly for his roles in Boko Haram terror activities against Nigeria.It is a matter of time.

  • Author’s gravatar

    It is unfortunate that Sanusi did not use the opportunity afforded him by CNN to apologize for his gaffe and restore a measure of credibility and honour to his name. The ripple effects of unsubstantiated allegations of this nature travel beyond the shores of Nigeria and take ages to clear. Sanusi has indeed done incalculable damage to the image of Nigeria. Very sad indeed!

  • Author’s gravatar

    Everybody shall know the truth when independence person is at the helm of affairs, that is when thorough investigation will be conducted and the true picture will open to all NIGERINS whether there was missing NNPC funds or not.

  • Author’s gravatar

    She might also be the first to be convicted for EMBEZZLEMENT OF PUBLIC FUNDS and other atrocities levied against her.

    • Author’s gravatar

      It is all APC lies. You people belive crap. The whole this was engineered by Obasanjo who sees corruption as the only dummy he can sell to the electorate to install Buhari, He installed Shagari, Installed yar Adua and now he wants to install Buhari

  • Author’s gravatar

    Mallam Yahaya Bello, how are you? This is your cousin, Jalal-ud-din Rumi Bello. I intentionally gave my real full name so you will remember me. Furthermore, for you to understand and accept the fact we are from the same caliphate. I understand your frustration. You have had a twisted mind and cloudy moral vision from youth. Most honest family members know you posses unstable mental ability to twist the truth and makea-believe. For you to asserts the ex CBN Zar does not know what he is talking about is not only abnominable but a big disgrace to Nigeria. In addition, your stand on the missing $20 m/b is a slap on the face of whoever appointed Sanusi and the Senators who approved the nomination of Sanusi. Nonsense. How dear you to put such in print and compare Sanusi to Paul Joseph Gobbels. You are part of the problems in Nigeria, not the solution.

    • Author’s gravatar

      It shows that you are stupid and irresponsible like Sanusi and all the APC agents who are running around with false information, simple maths would have shown buffoon like you that Sanusi is real Gobbel who is working for who ever pay him to spun out stupid accusations. If Nigeria makes 92 billion dollars in a year from oil and Sanusi is shouting that 49 billion dollar is missing does that not show that he is failure at his job. Since Nigeria will not function with that amount missing. He later start is rhetoric’s of 10 -20 billion dollars, LIARS will never have peace. He knows it that he is a born liar that is why even after Price Water Cooper find nothing missing he shamefully hide behind in his palace to be spinning rubbish. Whether Jonathan is there or not it doesnt make difference Sanusi has no reputation again in the outside world since PWC are international organisation with reputation all over the world, they will never allow sentiments or illegal or have baked politicians cum sultan with no reputation tarnish their image.

    • Author’s gravatar

      Mr. Bello, if your are pregnant with the whole truth about the missing $20 billion, give birth to such information, or else, this pregnancy will be forcefully aborted and your life will be paid for it. Don’t delay, tomorrow might be too late for you.

    • Author’s gravatar

      Have you considered asking Sanusi how 49.8 became 20?

    • Author’s gravatar

      Bello you U just succeeded in venting ur long held pent up anger on ur brother and never producing any evidence that what he said is a lie or that what sanusi said is the truth. U should not have bordered posting this, U should just have called him on phone and trashed out any issue with him on phone or go to his house. Forum like this should be devoid of any such sentiments. The issue here is that sanusi erred in making that 40-20 billion pronouncement in the first place and also erred by letting an opportunity to correct that error slip through his finger. If he has any evidence that will prove otherwise, let him bring it forward, else, he is just out to cause mishief. And it is not good for a person of his status.

  • Author’s gravatar

    Sanusu did not stand to gain any thing. He was acting for some folks but the evil that men do lives after them and what you sow is what you will reap. Sanusi in his life time will reap the trouble he has caused the entire nation as somebpeople up until now believed him. This was a man who was recklessly reckless with nigeria’s money at central bank

  • Author’s gravatar

    Sanusi was working for Obasanjo to blow up the corruption slogan and enable them install Buhari as the next president.It is as simple as that.Sanusi has no shame in what he is doing and only God knows how such morally bankrupt persons could have been in charge of a nations CBN