The leadership of the NLC has frowned at the Presidency’s decision to constitute an
administrative panel to try two erring public office holders.
The Nigeria Labour Congress, NLC, has commended President Muhammadu Buhari for suspending Secretary to the Government of the Federation, SGF, Mr. David Babachir
Lawal and Director-General of National Intelligence Agency, NIA, Ambassador Ayo Oke.
This came as Senior Staff Association of Nigerian Universities, SSANU, yesterday,
urged the President to purge his cabinet of corrupt elements, saying “a lot of them have
one mess or the other.”
Reacting to the suspension of the SGF and the D-G, NIA, General Secretary of the NLC, Dr.
Peter Ozo-Eson, wondered why the Vice President should be the person to investigate criminal allegations against the
SGF.
He said: “Well, we think that it is something that is positive. There are those who will say
that it has taken long, particularly the issue of the SGF. Well, government has now
decided to suspend them and investigation is going on, it is fine.
“But what we don’t understand is how an administrative committee, chaired by the Vice President, will be investigating what is an alleged criminal offence.
However, whatever processes they have chosen to adopt, what is important is that they need to bring the facts before the nation.
“We need to know that there are no sacred cows and at the end of the day, we hope that justice will be done and citizens will be
able to attest that justice has been done.”
On whether the president should extend the action to other political office holders having
corruption allegations against them, Ozo- Eson said the normal practice was that people with established corruption cases
against them should step aside.
He said: “Once there are allegations of corruption and there are prima facie cases
established while such investigation is going on, the normal practice is that people
step aside, or are suspended or they remove themselves from the process.”
Also reacting to the suspension, National President of SSANU, Comrade Samson Chijioke Ugwoke, said: “Should Buhari be
serious with his anti-graft campaign, the Presidency should not be investigating the
SGF and others.
“If somebody in the Presidency is accused of corruption, the usual anti-corruption agencies that investigate other ones, should
also investigate the SGF. The Presidency should not investigate Presidency, nobody should be a judge in his own case.
