The Conference of Nigeria Political Parties (CNPP) has asked the National Security Adviser, Major General Mohammed Monguno (retired) to resign over the alleged shady dealings he superintended at the Presidential Investigative Committee on Arms Procurement, saying the indictment and arrest of a member of that committee by the Department of State Services (DSS) is an indictment for which he must leave office within seven days or face nationwide protests.
The CNPP also asked the Acting Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Mr Ibrahim Magu to resign within the same timeframe over his alleged indictment by the DSS. Moguno and Magu are also top members of the committee set up by President Muhammadu Buhari last year.
The CNPP in a statement made available to journalists, on Wednesday, by its National Chairman, Alhaji Balarabe Musa and Secretary General, Chief Willy Ezugwu noted that it was not possible that Air Commodore Umar Muhammed (rtd) who was arrested by the DSS for alleged fraudulent deals involving top government officials could have acted without Monguno’s involvement.
The statement said claiming ignorance of the dirty deals implies the National Security Adviser was lax in finding out what went on under his watch, which is worse than being part of the massive theft. It explained that “The same offence that the entire country is crucifying the former NSA, retired Colonel Sambo Dasuki for has been committed all over again by Monguno as the incumbent and that Nigerians must not be tolerant of such crime.”
The CNPP warned that Nigerians and the international community are watching to see that the DSS makes the findings from its investigations public while actions must be taken against those indicted. It stressed that “A situation where the Office of the NSA and the EFCC arrest and recover money from corrupt persons only to turn around to steal the recovered amounts was horrifying.
“This is why indicted people are subsequently cleared by the same agencies that indicted them without the benefit of being tried in the law courts and this is no longer acceptable. The anti-corruption fight does not require lip service at this time that Nigerians are feeling the pains of the damage done by corruption.
“This is why we are demanding that Mohammed Monguno and the EFCC Chairman, Mr Ibrahim Magu must resign. Distancing themselves from the fraud uncovered by the DSS was not enough. “They must also stop chanting the cliche of corruption is fighting back. Since the EFCC and ONSA were both mentioned in the report about the arrest of Air Commodore Umar Muhammed (rtd), the onus is now on Monguno and Magu to do the right thing by standing down to allow for unhindered investigation,” the conference demanded.”
According to the CNPP, President Muhammadu Buhari must by now recognise the threat to the credibility of his anti-corruption fight with the conflict of interest around his NSA and the anti-corruption chief.
“Mr President cannot carry on as if what Nigerians think does not matter as they are waiting for him to repeat the Dasuki treatment with all those indicted on the committee. If these two men and their accomplices are not immediately sacked and prosecuted, we shall lead Nigerians in their thousands in street protests because it will imply we have been defrauded with the anti-corruption fight,” it warned.
The group rejected any attempt to interfere in the investigation of the DDS as it warned that any panel set up now by the NSA amounted to being a judge in his own case since he was allegedly indicted in the scam at the Presidential Investigative Committee on Arms Procurement, which is under his jurisdiction.
