Their passion to loot Nigeria and render it bankrupt is uncontrollable and explosive. For long, we are tired of their looting but they are not tired of looting us. But what will permanently retire them from further looting so that Nigeria can move forward?
It’s appalling that many unjingoistic Nigerians get elected or appointed into public offices to partake in the ‘banditry’ of treasury looting. This is because looting is the only predominantly religious belief in Nigeria today that is winning millions of converts. A cursory look at the list of Nigeria’s notorious looters and their loots is very eerie.
They started in millions of naira but their prodigal mentality later dictated to them that only billions would satisfy them. Now, it is all about trillions of naira and their bank accounts are over saturated with ill-gotten wealth. The simple note is that in the past, Nigeria was under-looted. Now, it is time for over-looting.
For quite some time, we have been more anxious about population explosion but little worried is accorded to imminent looting explosion. Like it or not, Nigeria has attained the age of looting explosion and is actually on the precipice. There are apocalyptic visions drafted by the prophets of doom threatening our future owing to reckless looting.Therefore, let’s all wake up and take decisive action before we get consumed. End looting now because our future is being looted by the members of looters association of Nigeria.
Of recent, we have been bombarded with news of outrageous looting pandemic perpetuated by ungodly public office holders. Their profound infatuation for stealing is putting the country in penury and life becoming difficult for the masses. Tragically, the beneficiaries of our sustainable looting are becoming stronger than our economic and political institutions. Indeed, this is a national tragedy that must end!
By reflective analysis, therefore, the corrupt system that breeds ubiquitous looting is more dangerous than the culprits. It is greater appealing to focus more on the cause and less on the effects. For pillaging to be checked and controlled, therefore, the system or environment that allows stealing public money must be revisited with a view to dismantling it. In a sense, if we kill the system that supports plundering, looters will have nothing to pillage.
From 1999 to date, the massive looting unleashed on the nation is adequate to construct and re-construct beautiful roads to avoid accidents and save lives. The money is enough to fund our universities and ensure quality education so that ASUU will not go on strike. The humongous funds that have gone into private pockets and accounts could have been used for establishing industries and reducing the level of staggering unemployment across the country. Plundered money could have been channelled to ensure a reliable and effective health delivery system in the country and avert the squandering of resources by government officials who often travel abroad for treatment when they are sick.
The evil of treasury depredation will never allow us to resuscitate our moribund refineries and our energy crisis will linger. The formidable forces of looting will continue fighting to see that the Ajaokuta Steel Company does not see the light at the end of the tunnel so that, forever, we forfeit technological revolution. If not for looting, Nigerians wouldn’t have been in darkness and constant power supply would have revolutionised our small scale Industries.
Insurgency, banditry and kidnapping are the stubborn children of looting. We are where we are today regarding insecurity because the funds meant for facilitating a sense of socio-economic security for especially the youths have been stolen by individuals. When the state fights these elements of insecurity, it is just fighting a symptom and not the real disease. However, is the state aware that it is chasing shadow and not the real object?
During the EndSARS violence that rocked many parts of Nigeria a mob of youths broke many warehouses and carted away Covid-19 palliative items. The authorities labeled them ‘hoodlums’ and ‘looters’. But in actual sense, it was a case of looters being looted as suggested by Patrick Rothfuss. The EndSARS looting was just a social reaction to the looted items that were meant for the masses to cushion the adverse effects of the global pandemic. The looters and looted variables of that social unrest left great lessons, among which was the economic depression of youth restiveness. However, it seems those lessons are now forgone experiences.
Thank God that our founding fathers did not teach us how to loot. If they had actually did that, they wouldn’t have been honoured and revered. They sincerely taught us a national vision of how not to make Nigeria wretched. For instance, the late Prime Minister Sir Abubakar Tafawa Balewa would prefer to borrow money from individuals than laying his hand on the treasury. That was a typical example of how to love Nigeria. Where is that love now, for Allah’s sake? Nigeria’s looters have abandoned and squandered that love. What they champion now is looting with attendant injustice, inequality, unpatriotism, creating a lacuna between the affluent and the squalid.
The history of government in Nigeria is the history of despoliation overtime. It is painful that plunderers in Nigeria do not get the retribution they deserve. I envy them because despite their nefarious activities, they go unpunished. Incidentally, when former President Muhammadu Buhari decided to create VIPs in looting, he granted state pardon to ex-governors Joshua Dariye and Jolly Name despite their economic felonies on their people. This is Buhari’s version of looters republic, insinuating that all looters are equal, but some are more equal than others.
Let’s all call looters by their proper them and shun using euphemism such as economic saboteurs. Don’t label me an extremist. It’s about my beloved country Nigeria and how it must survive. Nigeria must survive even if unrepentant looters are averse. Looting must cease forthwith to persist in Nigeria. We cannot prosper because looters are our worst enemies. The best teacher to teach them how not to loot Nigeria again is the China experiment. Are we ready to try it?
Abdullahi writes from Ringim, Jigawa state via [email protected]