CRITICAL stakeholders in Edo State yesterday hailed the conviction of former Governor James Ibori of Delta State, saying it was a lesson to corrupt politicians.

But curiously, no politician in Edo called yesterday agreed to speak as they based their position on the neighbourliness of their state to Delta State.

But the Executive Director, Environmental Right Action/Friends of the Earth Nigeria (ERA/FOEN), Nimmo Bassey, said the conviction was a caution to politicians that they could be apprehended anywhere in the world if they believed they could steal money and run away from the country.

“The moment he admitted to the charges, it was clear to everybody that he will be convicted. It is a signal to our political leaders that they cannot be reckless with our resources and think they can escape abroad. This is also a challenge to our judicial system and a wake-up call to anti-corruption agencies to sit up.”

To the Benin chapter chairman of the Nigerian Bar Association, Rasaq Isenalumhe, it is a right decision and indictment of the country’s judicial system and judicial officers.

“It is a welcome development. He did it in Nigeria and was discharged but in England, he could not buy his way. In Nigeria, you can steal money in government and establish a company to employ people but in England, you are going to be guilty of stealing and then guilty of giving employment to other people at the expense of Nigerians.

“Our prosecution officers should also prepare very well for cases they are handling so that they don’t give room for lapses.”

The Edo State chairman of the Nigeria Medical Association (NMA), Dr. Philip Ugbodaga, said: “With the conviction of James Ibori, justice has been served the people of Delta State whose resources he plundered leaving his people in penury and abject poverty. This has exposed the unacceptable gaps in our criminal justice system and makes nonsense of our often-touted fight against corruption. A man whose case was dismissed by courts in Nigeria has now been convicted of similar charges in a foreign country. What a monumental contradiction. Oh! I weep for Nigeria. Maybe, just maybe we should send all our corruption cases for trial abroad since it is now easier to secure a conviction outside the shores of Nigeria. This conviction will hopefully send a very clear message to all our political office holders that although they can escape from Nigeria but they cannot escape from justice as the long arm of the law now has no boundaries.

“What a relief for the people of Delta State and the people of Nigeria. The recovered money should be repatriated to Delta State and the utilisation for the benefit of all Deltans closely monitored as once bitten, twice shy!”

-Guardian

Posted by admin on Apr 18 2012. Filed under Delta, Edo, Headlines, State News. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback to this entry