Arms Deal: NLC Insists On Death Penalty For Looters.

NLC President Ayuba Wabba


Following the mindboggling revelations arising from the $2.1bn arms procurement scandal, Nigeria Labour Congress, NLC, yesterday insisted on its stance that corrupt public officers should face capital punishment.
Addressing journalists in Abuja, NLC President, Comrade Ayuba Wabba, stated that the ongoing detention of some persons by Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, in connection with the alleged stealing and diversion of monies meant to prosecute war against insurgency in the North East, justified the union’s calls for summary execution of corrupt public officials.

Some ex-high ranking government officials, including former National Security Adviser, NSA, Sambo Dasuki are currently in the custody of EFCC over complicity in the $2.1bn arms deal.

He said: “The revelations by former National Security Adviser, his erstwhile Director of Finance, Shuaibu Salisu, which we believe are just the tip of the iceberg, are mind-boggling and justify as well as reinforce our call for capital punishment in cases of corruption in public office.

“We believe with prescription of more stringent punishment for corrupt cases, few will dare to go to this extent. We need not telling that massive corruption in the system, is responsible for our lack of development and our present economic woes.”

Comrade Wabba said corruption had sent so many Nigerians to their early grave, stressing that it would be unjustifiable to allow those who engaged in the acts to go without punishment.

The NLC president insisted that capital punishment for corruption worked in other countries like China; hence it could also work well in Nigeria. To this end, the congress president demanded legislation and policies to be put in place to deal with the situation.

He urged the National Assembly to rise to the challenge immediately, but advised that the laws should be crafted in such a way that it should not be used indiscriminately.

Besides, he called on the National Assembly to enact laws that would also protect whistle blowers, while the judiciary should also rise to the challenge by ensuring speedy disposal of corruption cases.

Wabba called on President Muhammadu Buhari not to relent in his war against corruption, adding that Nigerians would salute him for it.

He said: “On our part, we urged President Muhammadu Buhari not to relent in his war against corruption. Even if it is the only major achievement in four years, it will suffice. At least it would have succeeded in loot recovery as well as set a national moral barometer capable of attracting international confidence and respectability.

“In furtherance of this campaign, we call on the government to among other things, probe the power sector reform programme which has delivered darkness instead of light, despite the billions of dollars expended on it.”

He said NLC would definitely not allow any attempt to politicise the anti-corruption efforts and urged the anti-corruption agencies to follow due process.

“We believe with prescription of more stringent punishment for corruption cases, few will dare to go to this extent. We need no telling that massive corruption in the system is responsible for our lack of development and our present economic woes.


“Rising cases of alienation, civil disobedience, crime and insurgency are directly traceable to wanton cases of corruption in high places which did not only create avoidable diseases, ignorance and poverty, but have totally incapacitated our people.

“We as a people and as a nation cannot continue like this, except we want to continue to be the laughing stock of other nations and except we want to create a state of anarchy.

“Because certainly, our teeming youths and the army of the unemployed, who look unto their country for their means of livelihood, will not fold their hands while a few individuals corner the national resources,” he added.

He said labour must be resolute and firm in their support for good governance and fight against corruption and must entrench the culture of accountability, ensuring that public officers are accountable in and out of office.

Meanwhile, the Federal Government yesterday appointed a private legal practitioner, Mr. Oladipupo Okpeseyitan, SAN, to prosecute Dasuki. Okpeseyitan made a formal appearance when the case of the enforcement of human rights by Dasuki came up for hearing at the Federal High Court Abuja.


The lawyer, after announcing his appearance told the trial judge, Justice Adeniyi Ademola that he had filed a motion for stay of execution of the ruling of the court, which granted Dasuki permission to travel abroad for medical treatment.

He applied to the court to put the ruling on hold pending the outcome of the appeal in the matter. Dasuki’s lawyer Mr. Ahmed Raji SAN, in his reply told the court that he had just been served with the motion in court, adding that he needed time to respond to the motion. The case has been fixed for December 8, 2015 for hearing.

This was even as Dasuki yesterday denied that he never made any statement implicating anyone or group in the allegation of $2bn arms purchase deal.

Dasuki, who is still in the custody of EFCC, was alleged to have made the statement to the anti-graft agency and named some former governors of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, and chieftains of the party among others as accomplices in the alleged deal.

Speaking through his lawyer, Dasuki, maintained that he never made such statement or name anyone to the anti graft agency, stressing that he wondered where the authors got their information from.

“I was with Dasuki yesterday (Wednesday) when the purported statement was made. I wish to make categorical statement that my client never made any statement of such nature or naming anybody or group in any statement. “Quote me anywhere, Dasuki has not done anything like that.

It is absolutely untrue. It is the figment of the imagination of the author aimed at creating falsehood for reasons best known to them and Nigerians should disregard them.

“They are just out to scandalise the man, bring his image and character into disrepute so that his friends and well wishers can run away from him. They want him deserted and that will fail,” Raji said.