Uncommon Transmission

By UbongAbasi Ise

“… it’s like all that is afflicting the nation happened in a movie. Can someone please press the stop button?” – Sapphire Collection @deolaplat

Nigeria can be an interesting place. This is where weird gags shock public imagination inevitably. Some days ago, I was attracted to the footage of Inspector-General of Police, Ibrahim Idris on Femi Fani-kayode’s Twitter handle, @realFKK with the caption, “Behold the Inspector-General of the Federal Republic of Nigeria! Who did this to us????” With all amount of curiosity, I pressed the play button, and all I had after seconds was a motion picture of IGP Idris with incoherent audio, which I erroneously attributed to poor network service or some technical faults. Because all I could hear was the word, “transmission,” said repeatedly. I had to stop the twitter media out of frustration in order to scroll down for more meaningful tweets. But on the next day, all the social media platforms I subscribed to were overtaken by this same ‘transmission’ thing. After viewing the footage over and over, I had the suspicion that the IGP’s speech ridden with transmission upon transmission wordings might be the handiwork of some idle, young masquerade dresser, who chose to dress the IGP in a most ridiculous garb. To ease my curiosity, I had to call Prince JTT Jude, a close friend of mine and a scion of the movie industry, who has made his mark as a movie editor for about 14 years with over 200 internationally acclaimed movies in his kitty. Prince Jude confirmed in strict professional terms that the ‘transmission-transmission’ video is largely un-doctored. Well, whichever way, my heart is feeling for the IGP for the exposure of him to the public ridicule.

                 The main focus of this piece is not on the bungled IGP’s speech purportedly delivered at the inauguration of the Police Technical Intelligence Unit in Kano on Monday 14^th May, 2018. Since the video went viral, and the word, ‘transmission’ becomes greatly popularized and trending, this writer would use it generously in the write-up to excite the discussion of some of the inanities experienced in Akwa Ibom system.

                Following the IGP’s speech that same week, both social and mainstream media were abuzz with the shameful story of one of the uncommon transformation agents in Akwa Ibom State who was transmuted from Finance Commissioner to a Senator after a successful transmissional process in 2015. The former Commissioner of Finance, Senator Bassey Albert, was made to undergo uncommon transmission from Red Chambers to EFCC net in order to answer some convoluted questions linking him to the transcendence of corruption perpetrated under the administration of the uncommon transformer, Senator Godswill Akpabio, who was equally succeeded in the transmission from Akwa Ibom State Governor position to the Senate seat to represent Akwa Ibom Northwest after 2015 transmissional exercise.

                As it would be recalled, Senator Bassey Albert who was the chairman of the Inter-Ministerial Direct Labour Coordinating Committee during Akpabio’s uncommon transformation tenure, was quizzed by the EFCC in connection with the N30 billion meant for direct labour projects, after which there was alleged massive transmissions upon transmissions of the money from the committee’s purse into some private accounts.

                But instead of condemnation or quietude pending the outcome of the EFCC’s investigation, I was transfixed by the reactions of some Akwa Ibomites. They went onto social media to intercede for God to knead the tummy of the big fish so that it could spit out their Senator for the 2019 elections. Barrage of excoriations were ruthlessly unleashed by his well-wishers on those that jeered the Akwa Ibom Northeast Senator. But this was the matter that had everything to do with the commonwealth of the people which required watchfulness. The Senator’s supporters refrained from the thinking that looting and impunity are counterweights to the forces of human development and general prosperity. Bassey had a triumphant entry into the state after he was eventually released after days in EFCC captivity.

OBA's supporters celebrating his release by EFCC

                Our social environment has given corruption a fertile ground to thrive. I must blame the Western materialistic culture that was superimposed on our traditional system by forces of imperialism that is now producing warped social values that idolizes wealth and more wealth than moral rectitude. It is pathetic that our society is placing much credence on affluence while despising frugality. Ill-gotten riches are no longer abhorred, they are celebrated. Instead of being ashamed that the good name and the image of Akwa Ibom State are being tarnished, some persons are drumming support and cheer the corrupt. It is pitiful that our social values today have become crummy and promote corruption in an absolute terrible way. Gone are the days in our traditional society when those stealing whether private or communal properties were condemned or sometimes banished from the land. Thieves and those with the history of stealing were highly stigmatized and discriminated against because such characterized social deviance. But today the more public funds one steals, the higher the social rung they climb. Although former President Goodluck Jonathan de-linked corruption from stealing, the outcome of the act still shares everything in common because one is taking something that does not belong to them.

                Corruption in the state has helped create tiny affluent minority and vast majority of the poor. It has contracted opportunity space thus making it favour a small segment of the population. For instance, as alleged, N303 million worth of vehicles were given as gift to Senator Bassey by Chief Jide Omokore, the owner of Atlantic Energy Drilling Concept Limited, probably to win contract. And doors, in all probability, were shut against other bidders. If there were other bidders for the contract, wouldn’t they leave with zilch no matter how sophisticated they put up their proposal?  And this is how frustrating and unfair corruption could be. 

Perhaps Nigeria is too lenient with the matter of corruption. That is why it continues to remain cesspool of corrupt practices and impunity. Had the country tow the path of China, maybe it wouldn’t have been this bad. It would be recalled that in July 2011, China executed, at the glaring public view, Xu Maiyong, who once served as Vice-Mayor of Hangzhou, and Jiang Renjie, the Vice Mayor of Suzhou. They altogether stole almost 300 million Yuan equivalent to $46 million at the time.  

It is time to think of ending the transmission of unwavering corruption from administration to administration because if it continues unabated it may consume all of us.

Yes! I am UbongAbasi Ise. For comment please send SMS to 08189914609 |ubongabasiise@gmail.com

Source: The Sensor Newspaper