All things considered, I hold the strong view now that President   Buhari’s anti-corruption project is under heavy threat by some   corrupt and diabolic elements in the DSS and the Senate of the Federal   Republic. I am of the opinion that unless the President and the Vice   President do something tangible to stop the drift, they may lose the   momentum and the strong pillar that prepared the ground for the smooth   ride to power in 2015. The promise to fight corruption to a standstill   in Nigeria and release funds for projects was the principal reason why   Nigerians went for PMB in 2015 after three attempts in 2003, 2007 and   2011. The president has done well so far given the monumental   achievements recorded by EFCC, ICPC and the Presidential Advisory   Committee on Anti-corruption led by Professor Itse Sagay. This regime   would have achieved more than what we have now if it had paid   attention to behind the scene moves during the formative stages   leading to the emergence of the 8th Senate.

The emergence of Bukola Saraki as the Senate President and the   opposition as the Deputy Senate president remain a fundamental mistake   the leadership of APC made. This grave mistake is still hunting the   APC Presidency till date. Corrupt elements in Nigeria have teamed up   with the duo to circumvent every attempt to take the fight against   corruption to another level. Senator Saraki is facing corrupt charges   at CCT and yet he still sits as the president of the Senate. It has   not happened before. The late Chuba Okadigbo was impeached. Evan   Enwerem stepped aside and so was Adolphus Wabara for similar offences.   But here is Saraki sitting tight in the Senate and going to CCT. This   is an aberration, an affront, an attack on the integrity of this   government, an attack on constituted authority and an attack on   civilization.

Now Saraki, Ekweremadu and other Senators have ganged up against EFCC   Chairman, Mr Ibrahim Magu, working in tandem with some funny   characters at DSS office. But DSS is under the control of the   President. So what is going on? I am told that the Senate hurriedly   rejected Magu based on the baseless and cooked up report from DSS   directly under the Presidency. This is unbelievable. Are we suggesting   that those appointed by the President are now too powerful to work   against the President? What is the meaning of all this? When a dog   bites its owner, the dog must die. Chief MKO Abiola once said so.

Today I read a front page report on The Nation’s Newspaper why they   are against the Acting Chairman of EFCC. The Nation says “THE   GOVERNORS ARE NOT HAPPY BECAUSE OF THE PROBE OF ALLEGED DIVERSION OF   19BILLION, PART OF THE 388.30B PARIS CLUB REFUND. THE SENATORS ARE NOT   HAPPY BECAUSE MAGU’S REFUSAL TO STOP INVESTIGATION OR TRIAL OF NO   FEWER THAN 10 SENATORS FOR ALLEGED CORRUPTION: THERE ARE ALSO SOME   HIGH PROFILE SUSPECTS BEING PROBED WHO ARE ANGRY THAT EFCC WILL NOT   STOP THEIR INVESTIGATION”

Given the report above and what we knew already, it is crystal clear   that the fight against corruption is under threat from some powerful   quarters and unless President Buhari carries the big stick, we may   lose the war against corruption.

I am told by eminent lawyers like Femi Falana, Wahab Shittu and others   that Magu can be represented again or allowed to do his work in acting   capacity as the president deems fit. I support this 120% beyond   mathematics. Friends and President Buhari’s associates tell me that   Commander in Chief is treading softly so that he will not be termed a   dictator. Now we have to perish this thought. The President of the   Federal Republic of Nigeria has enormous and unprecedented powers to   get things done in the National interest. Few corrupt and totally   irredeemable savages cannot hold 160million Nigerians hostage.   President Buhari had full dose of military trainings across the globe   and dealing with mischief makers should not pose a serious problem.   President Buhari can consult his colleagues in the original   constituency to deal with trouble makers. Senator Saraki cannot be   going to court to face corrupt charges and at the same time sitting   tight as the president of the 8th Senate. Senator Ike Ekweremadu from   PDP cannot remain the Deputy Senate President. That position belongs   to APC, all things considered.

I do not want to believe that President Buhari, who contested   presidential elections in 2003, 2007, 2011 and 2015 is now too weak to   take the bull by the horns. I do not want to accept this. This   President is still the man Muhammadu Buhari we all know. Now the first   step to address this challenge is to sack the DSS boss for working in   tandem with enemies to ridicule the presidency and for submitting two   reports about Magu to the Senate on the same day. It shows complicity,   subversion, sabotage, insubordination, betrayal, abuse of office and   disrespect to the presidency. If the president fails to do this, his   supporters would have no choice than to run away with the thinking   that President Buhari has appointed some people who are now more   powerful that they do not know their limits      Written by Joe Igbokwe