CRIMINAL diversion of palliatives meant for Nigeria’s vastly deprived populace isn’t new(s) in this clime, but the fraud that took place in Sokoto recently is extremely strange, even by the standards of the absurd. As Muslim faithful across the country prepared for the recent Eid-el-Kabir festivities amidst the spike in the cost of food and household items, the state governor, Ahmed Aliyu, thought of ameliorating the plight of the people. He approved the sum of N30,000 naira for all categories of workers in the state and N20,000 naira for all categories of pensioners, as well as those receiving allowances from the state government. The beneficiaries expressed profuse thanks, but then the Nigerian factor struck. Somehow, the money got stuck in traffic and, consequently, the intended beneficiaries had a bleak Sallah.
While addressing a crowd of well-wishers and supporters at the Government House in Sokoto, the state capital, following a successful Hajj exercise on Friday, July 5, the governor pointedly accused some local government and local government education authority officials of diverting the stipends. Decrying the nefarious attitude of the officers, the governor ordered them to return the diverted money or face serious consequences. Hear him: “The money was given to the workers in the state and some unscrupulous staff diverted the funds and they have been directed to return it immediately or face serious consequences. I wonder how somebody would deny our workers the stipends we gave them in order to make them financially stable during the Sallah festive season. Those who diverted those funds must return them immediately or else we will take serious punitive measures against them. We will ensure that the culprits reap what they sowed to serve as a deterrent to others.” The governor further charged all heads of agencies where such corrupt tendencies were perpetrated to hasten the compilation of the names of all the affected workers and ensure that they were paid the money.
It does seem, the way many people carry on across the country, that the moral basis of the society is under severe assault. People rob and cheat others without the slightest prick of conscience. Time was in this country when, as a trader, you could leave your goods in your stall to address a pressing issue without nursing any fear that they would be stolen. Not anymore. Greed, to use Chinua Achebe’s imagery, has put a knife on the things that once held the Nigerian society together, and it has fallen almost irretrievably apart. In particular, the civil service, once a reputable outfit relied on to drive Nigeria’s developmental vision, is now hardly distinguishable from the country’s intensely corrupt, primitively acquisitive political class. That is partly why such a facility as the stipends approved for workers and pensioners to smoothen their Sallah experience was callously diverted by a band of rapacious, unconscionable local government finance officers.
For obvious reasons, it is not wrong to give palliatives. The palliatives were exactly what they purported to be: small sums meant to tide Sokoto workers and pensioners over. The money should not have been diverted under any guise. But still, while Governor Aliyu must be commended for his thoughtfulness and commendable reaction on detecting the fraud, his reaction still leaves much to be desired. It is diffident. Instead of issuing any warnings to the concerned looters, Governor Aliyu and his men should have gone after them immediately and, with the help of the police and other security agencies, ensured their swift apprehension for prosecution. Warning thieves that they will be dealt with is not as effective as dealing ruthlessly with them. We hope that the governor is working hard to bring the culprits to book.
For one thing, by diverting the palliatives meant for workers and pensioners, the accused local government officials caused them (the workers) to experience a miserable Sallah, particularly as many, if not all of them would have banked on the money promised by the governor. For another, they sought to create disaffection between the workers and the state government. Not having received the promised palliatives, many of the intended beneficiaries would have assumed that it was their government that had failed to fulfill its promise. They would thus have nursed needless animosity against the government, holding it responsible for their bleak Sallah. The finance officers responsible for the Sallah heist must therefore be fished out and made to have their day in court where, in our view, they deserve to be subjected to the strictest sanctions imposed by the laws of the land.
Governor Aliyu did well in providing palliatives for Sokoto workers, but he still has a job on hand. His government must hunt down the criminals involved in the current case and ensure that justice is done to the workers betrayed during the Sallah celebrations.
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