Like Wamako, like Chime

By Semiu Aderogba

Were Nigeria to have traveled the road to Third Term, perhaps, the bizarre which was deliberately created in the immediate birth of a new regime would never have been unraveled. Perhaps, by her own regenerative power, Nigeria would have fumbled and wobbled through the mess of arrogance of power and disregard for rule of law, being the legacy sown by the last order. Of course, that course would have consumed some irreplaceable citizens’ creative years for inclusive development and capacity for roles in a globalizing world. Simply put, Nigeria would have been shunted further back the dark alleys of failed states.

So, in a way, it had not been entirely unexpected of the rowdy political class to run their usual regime of desperation and indiscipline, visiting on Nigerians every manner of truncation of public order and decency, including the ripping apart of rule of law as were the cases in the last elections. The immediate result of these had been the questionable exercises in nomination and eventual election into offices every manner of players, most of whom are bereft of finely honed values and minutest decencies.  

However, by the current trend of judicial reawakening, activism, fearlessness and boldness, we have had to take on the intricacies of the dubious package of a new era with such skills reminiscent of methodical powers in untying the Gordian knot. Today, our hope lies in the promises of an activist judiciary, which in stating the unalterable positions of the law, has to, now, give vent to the hope of birth, growth, longevity and refinement of democracy in Nigeria .

In that vein, we have had landmark pronouncements as in the interpretation of the tenure in Anambra State; the decisive application of judicial parameters in settling and setting aside some manipulations in Rivers State; the infusing of credibility in Kogi, Adamawa and Kebbi States, and now the exposure of the ugly scenario of manipulation in the nomination exercises that threw up the Sullivan Chimes and, well, Aliu Wamakos of our time.

But as we shall see, if Wamakos’s case was like one sticking wrong doing of wrongful substitution, that of Governor Sullivan Chime of Enugu State is like a laundry list of avoidable electioneering and electoral perfidies. Belated resignation from previous employment, continued drawing of salaries way into nomination and election into office, wrongful nomination, wrongful substitution, violation of the 2006 Electoral Act, pissing on section 187 (1) of the constitution of the Federal Republic and non-qualification based on arrogant disregard for the clear provisions of our statute books.

This is the Enugu State story. If there was any State in which the candidate displayed real disregard to order, Enugu was the consummation of bad political behaviour, greed for little perks of office and fragrant disregard for rules of any engagement. Of course, as Commissioner for Justice and Attorney General of Enugu State, 2001 – 2007, Sullivan Chime was placed on some good monthly pay alongside other perks of office. It was expected that immediately his nomination was consummated late December 2006, he would advance to electioneering, garnering, in the process, the huge campaign funds built by the teeming contributors to the war chest. This was not done. Rather, long after his nomination and clearance by his Party, Chime had stayed on as Commissioner for Justice and Attorney General until March 2007, when his successor, Barrister Ifeanyi Nwoga was appointed. The way it went, it never looked like Chime wanted any gap in his employment track since May 29, 1999 when Chimaroke Nnamani offered him the first meaningfully paying employment from dreary general legal practice.

Granted that things were hard and Chime wanted to scoop every penny he hoped was on his way, to continue functioning as Commissioner so he could draw salaries longer than permitted in law was like going too far in display of lack and hunger for small things. Yes, things have been tough for most people, but having been nominated, on the supposition that there was compliance to the rules which demanded resignation before even declaring interest, continuing in office is clear disregard for the rules.

If indeed hunger for the little salary was the case, could it then be said that despite huge contributions to campaign funds, he was hell-bent on not letting go a mere N172, 000 or thereabout, which was the salary of a Commissioner in his era. This is now even more curious against the reality of drive for campaign funds which variously led Chime and campaign team to Lagos, Port Harcourt, Abuja, Owerri, Aba, Umuahia, Onitsha and even the Washington DC and London. In each of these fundraising ventures, millions, in various currencies, were netted into the pool which was solely run by the Governorship Candidate himself. It is then a massive wonder that he had continued to insist on remittances of his commissioner’s salary long after he ought to have disengaged from employment.

The second perfidy associated with this was the continued functioning of Chime as Commissioner for Justice when he ought to have long quit, before nomination as candidate. This he did not do. Rather, and most likely because of the salaries, he had continued to function until, perhaps, the administration of Nnamani found it most embarrassing to continue keeping him in office while he was due for governorship election in few days. It was about the end of March, 2007 that he finally disengaged.

Aderogba, Nigeria Editor of Africa Press Associates, Nairobi, covered tribunal sittings in Enugu, Lokoja, Birnin Kebbi etc.