NGO Bill, CSOs and corruption By Gbadebo Smith

 

Facts have started emerging on why the National Assembly is eager to pass the Non-Governmental Organization ((NGO) bill. Apart from the need to ensure national security by monitoring the finances of NGOs, the problem of criminal harassment, intimidation and blackmail of federal government establishments, as well as the three arms of government for financial gain by criminal elements within the fold of Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) formed the main plank of the bill.
It is no more news that the proposed bill did not receive the blessing of Nigerians because of modus operandi of the implementation and supervision of the NGOs in the expected law that will emerge from it. However, stakeholders at the public hearing by the House of Representatives committee on NGOs, held on December 13, 2017, admitted that there is urgent need to check the activities of rouge elements within its fold. The consensus among genuine CSOs was that, in order to preserve the independence of the NGOs, there is urgent need for self regulation.
Thus, a group of patriotic Nigerians, made-up of professionals from different walks of life, under the banner of SanitiseNGOs, met in Abuja to find a way of checking the criminal activities of rogue CSOs. To sanitize the NGOs in Nigeria to operate in accordance with international best practice, this redemptive group agreed that Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) will have to play a vital but patriotic role here. From investigation of the activities of anti-corruption CSOs in Nigeria, it was discovered that some of them use the CSOs for criminal extortion and blackmail in disguise.
It was also discovered that rouge CSOs take advantage of government’s simplification of NGO registration in Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC), to register as many NGOs as possible, then coined a name to depict the NGOs as either coalition or network. For instance, Civil Society Network Against Corruption (CSNAC) is a CSO with more than 150 NGOs, according to its chairman, Olanrewaju Suraju, a lawyer. While in company registration, individual companies maintains their separate identity under a group, this is not the case in coalition or network of NGOs for the purpose of financial returns and proper auditing. In group accounting, the balance sheet shows the financial activities of each and every company under the group. Experts in financial matters and auditing have called on government to develop a proper accounting standard for NGOs to ensure sanity in their financial dealings.
According to SanitiseNGOs finding, most of the chairmen or directors of dubious anti-corruption CSOs are lawyers. Having failed in legal practice, they elected to float NGO, with sole intent of making money. Although, there are clean and genuine ones, but they don’t go around claiming to have 200 NGOs under their network or coalition. The task before Barrister Abubakar Mahmoud led NBA is to design a code of conduct for non practicing lawyers to insulate the profession from criminal tendencies.
SanitiseNGOs finds it difficult to understand the why, for instance, a lawyer, who is a worker in the temple of justice, should talk contemptuously of National Judicial Council (NJC). If for any reason, a petition against serving or retired judge(s) on corruption is not treated by NJC, the right action by CSNAC that sent in the petition is to petition the judicial committees in both houses of National Assembly. Instead, chairman of CSNAC elected to embark on media war against NJC and its officials; labeling them as lacking in integrity and corrupt. But behind the name calling by CSNAC is probably the longing for hit back. Of about 200 NGOs that makeup CSNAC, 5 or 10 are suspected to be part of the plethora of partnership contracts proposals on either capacity-building, anti-corruption seminars and sponsorship abroad for research, sought with NJC to which the body refused for paucity of fund. Information shows that appeal had been made in the past to the CSOs, particularly CSNAC, NOPRIN, etc, to disclose the identities of those NGOs they claim makeup their CSOs, but they never bothered to do that. The question remains, why are they refusing to make the disclosure?
The story of harassment, intimidation and blackmail of government officials for partnership contract by rouge NGOs under some amorphous coalitions and networks is rife in Independent Corrupt Practices Commission (ICPC). The modus operandi of these CSOs is just the same with what this writer motioned in the above paragraphs. The case of ICPC is even more pathetic. It will be recalled that sequel to a petition written by one Aaron Kaase, who was suspended by Police Service Commission ((PSC) for allegation bordering on criminal activities and the conclusive investigation of same, the ICPC has been under consistent attacks from CSNAC. After a thorough investigation of Kaase’s allegations, ICPC discovered that the issues raised were administrative in nature and should be handled administratively, and that there was no criminal indictment of the chairman, Sir Mike Okiro.
CSNAC, through its chairman, Suraju Olanrewaju, thought otherwise, consequently, he dragged the agency to Presidential Advisory Committee Against Corruption. When the advisory body threw away his petition, he turned attention to the office of the secretary to government of the federation; all in effort to tarnish the image of PSC chairman because the commission did not give partnership contracts to some of his numerous NGOs under CSNAC. He has re-petitioned ICPC again to open a case it had already thrashed out.
National Assembly members are equally not speared of the character assignation of Olanrewaju’s CSNAC. The leadership of NASS is also not left out. The story is the same for President Muhammadu Buhari’s inner cabinet members. Maman Daura, Abba Kyari and Ali Mangunu are some of those he had used CSNAC to portray in bad light. The attorney general and minister of justice is one of the victims of vicious attack from amorphous CSNAC. The list is endless and the funny aspect of it all is that the network merely re-circles stories about corrupt allegation in public domain, the network never originated corruption allegation independently.
Finally, to put a final stop to organized criminality by some CSOs in the name of fighting corruption, this writer will like to advice NBA to liaise with NASS to amend relevant laws relating to registration of and supervision of NGOs in Nigeria. This will go a long way in bringing sanity to the operation of civil society organizations in the country.

Smith, a member of SanitiseNGOs group, writes from Festac, Lagos

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