Demand probe of past govts, Oshiomhole urges workers

Benin city – Governor Adams Oshiomhole of Edo State has challenged Nigerian workers to insist on a review of corrupt government policies by past administrations, saying past misdeeds should not be swept under the carpet.
Speaking at an anti-corruption rally organized by the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) at the Samuel Ogbemudia Stadium, Benin City, Thursday, Oshiomhole said even as workers demand probity and accountability from the nation’s leaders, they also must shun corrupt practices in their places of work.
The Governor who said the country is gradually returning to the right track under President Muhammadu Buhari said “until recently, I am sure it would have been so hazardous in the face of what appears to be a direct state policy that not to be corrupt is to be endangered and the way to be safe was to ensure that you participate in corrupt practices and everybody kept quiet. We got to the point that those who raised their voice against corrupt practices were all unceremoniously removed from office and in some quarters people clapped.
The Central Bank Governor, today an Emir of Kano, as a seasoned Banker, as an economist   and in his younger days as an activist in the student union movement raised his voice about corrupt practices in the oil sector and showed numbers about the scale of sources of money that were diverted away from national treasury into private pockets or to put it more nicely, money that were not accounted for.
“After series of efforts and struggles day and night to shut him down, we saw ministers organizing public hearings inviting the parties to speak to these weighty allegations.  In the end, we were told by the Minister of Finance and the then Coordinating Minister of the Economy that the numbers were not 20 billion dollars as alleged by the CBN Governor, that what they were not able to account for was ‘merely’ 10.2billion dollars.
“There was no one voice to organize labor. There was not one single protest from Civil Society, religious leaders were criminally silent, everything was fine and the Governor had been taught his lessons and he was excused from Central Bank.
“They have other allegations on how much we have spent on power. In the name of power generation, huge numbers were thrown on the floor of the National Assembly, panels were set up, people appeared and all manners of numbers were thrown around, in the end nothing happened. We heard of huge contracts of N20 billion per kilometer to construct a 4-kilometer runway in Abuja at N80 billion.
“This was exposed again on the floor of the National Assembly and there was Government magic. Enquiries were held, public hearing took place and in the end, the then Federal Executive Council said they had scaled down the amount from N80 billion to N40 billion. There were few Newspapers editorial, there was no protest from any one.”
“So many things have happened and so many people kept quiet because it was hazardous to speak the truth.
“So I am happy that with the election of President Muhammadu Buhari and since his assumption of office the language has changed and everybody now has the courage and I dare say that the statement made here that the official of the federal ministry of labour as eloquent as it was, if he were to deliver that statement before May 29, he would have lost his job. If he queried why we should be doing imports, why we have no power supply, if he had said any of those things he said, he would be dismissed without benefits.
“Today, because of the spirit of the President of the Federal Republic, Nigerians have courage to stand and be counted on the fight against corruption. We must understand that in every fight, you have the Army for corruption and you have the Army against corruption. You have to choose which of this army you want to participate in because if the President is going to fight, he will need trusted allies. He will work as the Commander-in-Chief, we have to be the troop ready to be commanded and that is why the import of this campaign which the NLC has waged across the country and which the Edo State Council has bought into for me is commendable.
“Let me appeal to you Comrades that there are a couple of things which we must all avoid doing. When a teacher approaches SUBEB to influence his transfer from my village to Auchi and part with N20,000 to get the transfer done, that is a corrupt practice. When a worker on level 14 approaches a Traditional ruler to do a letter to the Governor to be promoted to a Permanent Secretary over above level 15 and level 16, that is a corrupt practice.
“When Pensioners because of their connection in government had to get paid before others who came in before them, that is corrupt practice. When we promote people on account of who they know rather than what they know, that is corrupt practice. When people put in 4 hours instead of 8 hours, that is corrupt practice. When we cover up those who were absent from work and mark that they were present, that is corrupt practice.
When we take our children to private schools at 8:00am as teachers and allow our pupils to be in classes without teachers to 10am, that is corrupt practices so there is corruption in low places and there is corruption in high places.
‘Everybody can re-examine his own life and say we have all sinned and now that we have realized the futility of individuals seeking self help, let us resolve now to do our part and police others to do their part so that Nigeria can fulfill its promise of not only the population of Nigeria but indeed to the entire black race.”
“So in fighting against corruption, all those who are victims of state corruption must demand a review and a revocation of all of these transactions that did not meet the primary rule of transparency and accountability
“We shall not let the sleeping dog lie because the dog is not sleeping, it is barking and if we do not, this crisis will continue.
“I ask you comrade that it is time to be vigilant. You asked for minimum wage to be increased. You must first insist that the old ones must be implemented. A man who has no breakfast, no lunch cannot complain about the quality of the dinner. As we speak you hear of figures of government in the past prohibiting some items in the morning and in the afternoon granted waivers for those things to come in.’
Earlier, the Chairman of Edo State Chapter of Nigeria Labor Congress, Comrade Emmanuel Adedokun said, “It is our conviction that the elimination of corruption will functionally be the beginning of our national prosperity.
“As an organization whose objective is to promote positive change in Nigeria, we are happy to be associated with the current national posture of the federal government led by President Muhammadu Buhari on the frontal attack against corruption.”
Goodwill messages were also delivered by Professor Eddy Erhagbe of the University of Benin; Comrade Jude Obasanmi, Chairman, Congress of Non Governmental Organisations (CONGOS), among others.