For sometimes now, the news pertaining libel and corruption litigations between The Executive Secretary, Nigeria Content Development & Monitoring Board, Chief. Simbi Kesiye Wabote and a US based Nigerian journalist, Chief Jackson Ude has been viral, making headlines of most daily newpapers. From our findings, the rift started when Wabote sued Chief Ude for allegedly publishing and accusing him of public funds diversion in the form of ” Libel”.

The so called character assasination suit has been going on in a USA District Court, Eastern District of Pennsylvania with series of adjournment, counter suits and the likes while Wabote, a Nigeria public servant spends to engage international lawyers to manage and handle his case from public purse.

Our drives as a global Advocacy platform on accountability, decorums and effective services delivery have nothing to do with the validity or otherwise of the suits rather our concerns are of the view that Chief Wabote should with immediate effect resign his appointment in the Nigeria Content Development and Monitoring Board to face his litigations. It amounts to sabotage against Nigeria government by allowing a person facing corruption cases to continue to pilot public office affairs, thereby sponsoring himself with hard earned tax payers’ money. Where in the world would any decent government allow her functionary to remain in office while answering and facilitating his or her legal matters bordering on corruption?

Global Initiatives For Good Governance, GIGG, with all sense of fairplay and support for decency calls for the resignation of Chief Watobe and hand over to the person next to him in office pending the determination and conclusion of his matters.It demands the attention of the APC led Federal Government to look into this matter critically by probing and relieving him of his sensitive appointment in the Local Content Board. An attention demanding and plum office of this class where Wabote serves as the Executive Secretary should not be toyed with considering the delicate administration attached to it in monitoring oil/ gas and other local industrial productions in the land. It is an office that gives pre eminent attention and services to indigenous ciitizens and their local firms in the overall national economic undertakings .

In the light of the foregoing, we reiterate and crave the indulgence of President Muhammed Buhari to intervene in the situation by terminating Wabote s appointment and then subject him to administrative probes. This is a government whose core blueprints agenda in her inauguration speech on 29th May, 2015 was anchored on fighting and eliminating corruption but today, the actions of the government in this regard seems to be an aiding and abetting one.Nigeria is expected by the international communities to have grown beyond this level of under development and backwardness especially in handling corruption cases where huge chunks of our common wealth had been stolen and dumped in foreign banks by government officials while the masses are dying of abject penury, hunger and hopelessness.

We , therefore, demand that these acts of insurbordination, failure of leadership and financial recklessness on the part of government functionaries come to a stop because Nigerians cannot afford to continue in this mess. Whatever the country is today is the effects of our leaders attitude to governance and only a change in attitude can redeem and rejuvanate the situations.

Chief. Dr. Emeka Kalu
Director General, Global Initiatives For Good Governance.