By SKC Ogbonnia
November 4, 2019
Nigeria’s foremost anti-corruption crusader and a presidential
candidate in the country’s 2019 election, Omoyele Sowore, who is being
detained by state authorities on trumped-up charges, may not regain
freedom soon, because he happens to be a paragon of virtue who truly
personifies the famous quotation: “I belong to nobody.” It is clear
this uncommon patriotism has not been put into consideration by the
principal actors in Sowore’s ongoing prosecution, particularly the
presiding judge, Justice Ijeoma Ojukwu.
Recall that Justice Ojukwu, while reducing one of Sowore’s bail
conditions from N100 million to N50 million, had wondered why a Nigerian
of his pedigree does not have many people queuing up to stand as his
surety, the stringent terms notwithstanding. It can be easy to lampoon
the learned judge for hinging her argument on such premise, quite
alright, but she should be assumed innocent on four compelling grounds.
First, Justice Ojukwu must have based the decision on legal precedent.
Such bail conditions, including a seemingly assumption that Sowore
maintains a residence in Abuja, are typically reserved for famous
Nigerian politicians. But it obvious Justice Ojukwu did not know that,
unlike the corrupt politicians, Sowore is neither wealthy nor can afford
an opulent lifestyle of multiple mansions. More importantly, Ojukwu does
not know that Sowore distances himself from the wealthy politicians,
most of who attained their status through corrupt means. Though he
aligned with some questionable characters within the opposition ranks
during the 2015 presidential campaign, his effort was not only strictly
pro bono, that moment in history called for a united front against the
gross misrule under the then ruling party.
Second, Justice Ojukwu clearly mirrored the bail conditions of Nnamdi
Kanu, another citizen charged for treason in violation of his right to
free speech. Yet, the judge should not fail to recognize that Nigerian
money bags, who could afford the millions involved in such bail
conditions, owe their allegiance to the country’s two political
behemoths: Peoples’ Democratic Party (PDP) and the All Progressive
Congress (APC). This goes without saying that Kanu was able to meet his
bail conditions due to the fact that he enjoyed an intrinsic sympathy
within the PDP. On the other side, even as Sowore played a vital role in
bringing APC to power, the party now sees the anticorruption activist as
its primary enemy.
Third, Justice Ojukwu might have been swayed by the fact that there is
no meaningful pressure from Sowore’s tribe or region, as commonly
obtainable when citizens are illegally detained in Nigeria. But she must
be reminded that geopolitics does not favor Omoyele Sowore. His style of
war against corruption has never known boundaries, and this patriotic
independence is central to his undoing.
For instance, the East appears to have no sympathy for Sowore for his
role in the fall of President Goodluck Jonathan. The North, on its own,
is very furious at the anti-corruption activist for opposing President
Buhari. Worse still, the political leadership in Sowore’s Western
region under APC is even more irate. A Southwest cabal assumes that its
support of the injustice against Sowore would endear it to Buhari
towards 2023 presidency—a thought similar to a prevailing emotional
myopia which presumes that the Igbo should foreclose any hope of
producing the next president because of Nnamdi Kanu.
The nature of these sectional inuendoes is regrettably understandable.
However, it only goes to show that Sowore truly belongs to nobody but
has sacrificed for everybody. This paradox has roots in the ephemeral
nature of memory in Nigeria, a country where the history is a taboo,
which has always made it difficult to give honor to whom honor is due.
If not, both the North and West would have capitalized on the moment to
demonstrate appreciation for the role Sowore played in bringing both
Buhari and the APC to power; while the Easterners could embrace any
support as a payback for the risks the Sahara Reporters publisher took
in Jonathan’s journey to the presidency, beginning from the time the
health of Jonathan’s incapacitated predecessor, Umaru Yar’Adua, was
shrouded in utter secrecy.
Finally, even if Justice Ojukwu further varies the bail terms to the
barest minimum, as widely expected, a powerful cabal within the APC
would not want Sowore to regain freedom before 2023 presidential
election. Such characters want to remain in power after Buhari and thus
see Sowore’s tabloid, the Sahara Reporters, as the “African
Wikileak”, capable of exposing their sins against the humanity.
This is where Nigeria’s civil society ought to come in and heighten
the pressure. The posterity will not be kind to this generation if we
allow evil to triumph over good. This time calls for perseverance and
persistence. A noble step forward is to find a way to chip into the
#freesoworenow “Go Fund Me” account, no matter how little. The
wealthy good Samaritans, who are understandably scared that the Buhari
regime could go after their businesses, if they stand for Sowore, can
still contribute to Go Fund account, using the Anonymous option. Money
is direly needed to defend this prisoner of conscience and the cause of
the common man. As the eminent philosopher Edmund Burke would remind us,
evil can only thrive if good people do nothing.
In sum, the continued detention of Omoyele Sowore may appear very
appealing for the ruling APC, politically; but the apparent injustice
evokes fatal consequences. The biggest loser is President Buhari for
succumbing to the wishes of an overzealous cabal whose sole vision in
the plot to succeed him is polar opposite to the common good. It is not
surprising that the Sowore saga has further darkened Nigeria’s image
in the comity of nations, thereby hindering the all-important foreign
investment. Of course, the poor masses are the victims.
SKC Ogbonnia, Convener of _Power To The Masses_, writes from Ugbo, Enugu
State, Nigeria.