By Deyemi Saka
The advent of democratic rule in Nigeria in 1999 brought about an upsurge in the population of women playing prominent roles in the day-to-day running of the affairs of our dear nation. Few names come readily to mind as the administration of Olusegun Obasanjo gave women empowerment a new definition and a breath of fresh air. Okonkwo Iweala, Dora Akinyuli of blessed memory, Obi Ezekwesili, Late Remi Oyo, and Kema Chikwe. Successive administrations gave us Farida Waziri, Arunma Oteh, and Aloma Mariam Mukhtar, who rose to the pinnacle of her legal profession by becoming the Chief Justice of Nigeria.
We had some not-too-good instances, as some of them left their exalted offices and positions ingloriously, it must be said that female public office holders and administrators have been subjected to “male-inspired chauvinistic” attacks and it is unhealthy for our public administration and the growth of our public institutions.
Arunma Oteh was nominated as the Director-General of the Securities & Exchange Commission by President Umaru Yar’Adua in July 2009 and became Director General of the SEC in January 2010, after being confirmed by the Senate of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
While investigating the near collapse of Nigeria’s Capital Market in 2008, the House Committee of Capital Markets and Institutions launched a public inquiry in April 2012.
Ms Oteh and the committee chairman had a heated exchange over the focus of the hearing, leading to the chairman’s resignation from the committee after allegations that he had asked for a bribe to influence the House Committee inquiry and that he had collected public funds to attend a workshop in the Dominican Republic but had neither attended the program nor returned the money.
What happened?
The SEC released two statements explaining their position on the allegations made during the public hearing. The first press statement made on 19 March 2012 focused on the varied allegations made by the committee while the second press statement of June 2012 stated that no financial overtures have ever been made to the Hon. Hembe by Ms. Oteh, DG SEC or any staff of SEC.”
A new eight-man Ad hoc committee was then set up by the House of Representatives to complete the hearing on the near collapse of the capital market.
As a possible fallout of the events that had taken place at the public hearings, Arunma Oteh was asked to proceed on compulsory leave by the SEC board, pending an independent investigation into the management of Project 50, a program packaged by her to commemorate 50 years of capital market regulation in Nigeria.
Arunma was exonerated by the board-appointed firm of any criminal breaches but not without her reputation being maligned and her integrity brought to public disrepute.
She resumed on July 18, 2012, after an independent investigation by the earlier stated board-appointed firm, PricewaterhouseCoopers. The firm cleared her of any financial impropriety and she concluded her 5-year tenure as SEC DG in January 2015.
When the news of the reinstatement of the former head of the Presidential Task Force on Pension Reforms, Abdulrasheed Maina who was wanted for fraud broke, former Head of Civil Service of the Federation, Winifred Oyo-Ita was in the eye of the storm.
At the hearing by the ad-hoc committee set up by the House of Representatives to probe the matter which had all the persons remotely involved questioned, while reaction to the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Interior, Abubakar Magaji that the directive to reinstate Abdulrasheed Maina came from her office, she stated that; “to claim that the directive to reinstate Maina came from my office is limited in facts,” and “the remarks by Mr. Magaji that he acted based on directives of the Head of Service, to put it mildly, is not quite correct,” she said.
In her defence, she stated that there is a process of conveyance of reinstatement instructions. The Federal Civil Service Commission would send a letter to the Head of Service and also send another letter to the beneficiary of that reinstatement under the flying seal of the Head of Service.
The Ministry of Interior did not wait to get a posting instruction before they went ahead and reinstated Maina and assigned him duties. “So this is to completely discountenance the attempt by the Permanent Secretary that they acted on an issue in an illegal manner while trying to make claims that my office was legal”, she added.
She noted that the Ministry of Interior only acted on an advanced copy of the reinstatement letter, which was meant for information purposes only.
Mrs Oyo-Ita further insisted that Mr Maina, as far as she was concerned, has not been reinstated into the civil service. “A letter of reinstatement was never given to him from my office.”
After calmness returned to the polity, in a bid to clear her name and maintain her integrity, she offered her resignation and 27 days after rejecting her resignation, President Buhari removed Oyo-Ita as head of civil service(22nd August 2019) as she was instructed to proceed on an indefinite leave.
It is noteworthy that no other person involved in Abdulrasheed Maina’s reinstatement saga was sanctioned and true to the script of a male-driven chauvinistic attack, an investigation was launched by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) into allegations of financial fraud against Ms Winifred Oyo-Ita.
The charade of investigation and prosecution was exposed on March 3 2021 when at Federal High Court, Abuja, the Court ordered a stay of proceeding in the ongoing trial of the former Head of Service, Mrs Winifred Oyo-Ita, and others charged with her.
Justice Taiwo Taiwo, in a ruling he made during that infamous saga, described the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC)’s act in obtaining an exparte order for the freezing of bank accounts of the 4th, 5th, and 6th defendants in the matter before another court while the matter was still before him stated that the action of the agency was “an abuse of court process.”
Justice Taiwo, who went further, described the EFCC’s conduct as “judge shopping” aimed at getting a favourable court judgment, said the anti-corruption agency’s conduct was reprehensible and condemnable.
Yet again, a woman in public administration was disgraced out of office, and her reputation was maligned and damaged.
We are all living witnesses to “it’s ok… it’s ok.. off your mic” and how Prof Kemebradikumo Pondei, who was the Acting Managing Director of the Niger Delta Development Commission put up a fainting stunt while answering questions bothering on corruption at a hearing of ad-hoc committee of the Senate in 2020 while probing the massive corruption under his watch.
This brings me to the instance of Ms Nunieh who as Acting Managing Director of NDDC alleged that Senate President Godswill Akpabio who back then was the Minister of Niger Delta Ministry repeatedly pressured her to take “an oath of secrecy” that was meant to keep her from exposing fraud at the commission.
In furtherance of her grievous allegations, she is quoted to have said; “for instance, he told me to raise a memo to fraudulently award emergency contracts for flood victims in the Niger Delta,” She made this claims in an interview with journalists shortly after appearing before the Senate ad-hoc committee investigating NDDC. She said she would have been jailed if she had succumbed to Mr. Akpabio’s ‘oath of secrecy ” and jailed for at least five years if, she had operated under the said oath, as she would have committed an infraction on the Public Procurement Act while Akpabio would be walking about a free man.
Ms Nunieh further claimed her refusal to take the oath prompted the “distinguished “Senator to hatch the plot of her removal from office.
Other allegations were that on the day of her inauguration as Acting MD of NDDC, Akpabio told her if she didn’t do as he said; “The same pen which I use to sign your letter, it will be the same pen I will use to remove you,”
There was another allegation that Akpabio asked her to change the dollars in the NDDC account; sack the head of the legal team who is from the north; remove all directors who refused to follow his instructions and also implicate Peter Nwaoboshi, chairman of the senate committee on NDDC.
She made a grievous allegation of sexual harassment against Godswill Akpabio during a live program on national television, till date, Akpabio is yet to sue her for damages and defamation of character. Her psychological and mental well-being meant nothing as she was not protected in the face of such dehumanisation and violation.
Yet again, just as it panned out with the aforementioned women, the words and testimonies of these men were believed above hers; a woman was axed as Ms Nunieh was sacked four months later as the crisis rocking the commission over abuse of funds kept mounting. Today, Godswill Akpabio is presently the President of the Senate while there was no further investigation or prosecution of Pondei by relevant government agencies.
Barely some months into the new administration of President Ahmed Tinubu, another woman is set to be given such treatment. Hajia Muheeba Dankaka is not only fighting for her survival in office, but she is also burdened to prove her innocence while those who have made such damaging allegations have yet to substantiate it, but have convicted her in the Court of Public Opinion.
A confessed felon, Haruna Kolo who is an ex-aide to the chairperson of the Federal Character Commission, Muheeba Dankaka admitted to selling federal employment slots to job seekers at the directives of his former boss.
Mr Kolo confessed while testifying before a House of Representatives ad hoc committee investigating job racketeering at ministries, departments and agencies (MDAs).
It is on record that in his testimony, Mr Kolo alleged that Ms Dankaka set up a job racketeering ring, collecting money from job seekers and in a bid to avoid digital trials, Mrs Dankaka insists on cash only.
Yet again, his words and testimony were taken as the truth since they served a purpose and chauvinistic agenda while Hajia Dankaka’s testimony was disregarded as both swore by the Holy Quran.
It is only in Nigeria that such could happen as Haruna Kolo is walking a free man and Dankaka is not only going to lose her portfolio but has lost her credibility and reputation destroyed. More intellectually infuriating is that the Chair of the House Committee Hon Yusuf Gagdi said a warrant of arrest will be issued will be issued against Kolo and also expressed his conviction that “Kolo was serving as a front for collecting money for job recruitments in the commission as against the service, financial regulation and the extant law,”
This aforementioned statement by Gagdi simply means the investigation exercise by the House of Representatives is a charade, a fraud and a fait accompli to disgracefully remove a woman from office in line with their antics and unwritten creed.
It is disheartening that the legislative arm of government is a willing tool to carry out the hatchet and dirty job. I’m wondering while relevant government agencies like the Independent Corrupt Practice Commission(ICPC), Economic Financial Crimes Commission( EFCC), Code of Conduct Bureau, and Nigeria Police are on this, it’s always the legislators.
Sadly, women are endangered in public space and public administration in Nigeria. In the absence of hard forensic evidence, and the face of watery allegations that those alleging are finding hard to prove, I’m of a strong conviction that Muheeba Dankaka’s travails are nothing but patriarchy at play.
Deyemi Saka is a public affairs analyst and PR consultant
