The President, Civil Society Groups for Good Governance, Ogakwu Dominic, has called for an independent panel to conduct a forensic investigation into the fake agency scandal, saying the move would help address the trust deficit between the government and Nigerians.
Ogakwu made the call following the clearance of the Chief of Staff to the President, Femi Gbajabiamila, by the House ad-hoc committee over his alleged involvement in the fake agency scandal.
According to Ogakwu, the independent panel should comprise individuals outside government, with civil society and the media represented, alongside a forensic investigator who is detached from ongoing government processes.
“What we are saying is that there is a lot of trust deficit when it comes to government dealing with government, especially the National Assembly. People tend to see the National Assembly as an extension of the executive. And so, whatever is done by the National Assembly, to a large extent, may not be acceptable to Nigerians. And so, we are thinking that to lay this matter to rest once and for all, there needs to be another layer of investigation, which is an independent panel—a forensic investigation on the matter.
“All these agencies we are talking about, they are still an extension of government agencies. We want an independent panel, an independent forensic investigation, that would actually put a seal to whatever investigation these different arms of government have made.
“One, there should be people outside government. They should not be members who are serving in this administration. Number two, we need to have the civil society as part of it. Three, we need to have the media as part of it. If possible, we need to have a forensic investigator—somebody who would be totally detached from the ongoing government processes, someone who is not a member of the current administration,” he stressed.
Speaking on the need to strengthen public confidence in government institutions, Ogakwu said an independent panel would complement, rather than undermine, existing investigations by the ICPC and National Assembly.
He maintained that such an independent inquiry would help establish whether the findings of the ICPC and National Assembly are consistent, thereby further boosting public confidence in the administration.
“What we are saying is that it is not meant to hurt those in government. We are not saying that what those in government have done is totally out of place. No, we are saying that it will further strengthen it. Imagine that we have an independent panel now that will look at the matter. So that will further give credence; that will further boost the confidence that the people have in the administration.”
On the preliminary findings of the National Assembly clearing the Chief of Staff, the Civil Society Group President said many Nigerians viewed the outcome as a fait accompli, with the result allegedly predetermined before the committee commenced its investigation.
He also said the National Assembly’s preliminary findings provide a foundation for further investigation, but urged an independent forensic probe involving civil society and the media to make the process credible and acceptable to Nigerians.
“The take of Nigerians on the findings or the outcome of this committee is that it was already a fait accompli, which means the result was known even before they started. It would have been a different ballgame altogether if the committee had come out to indict the Chief of Staff. But you and I know that as far as this country is concerned, those things are far from happening at the moment.
“Rhey have done their preliminary investigation, they have done their preliminary findings, and what they have has given us the foundation upon which we can build other elements of the outcome of this kind of administrative mess that took place in our nation. And so the thing there is that while we are pushing for an independent investigation.it’s even to help them. We want another layer of it where even the civil society will be involved, the media will be involved, and a very independent forensic investigation will be carried out on the matter.
“I think to give it a balance, to balance the entire process and to make it look credible and acceptable to everyone, an independent forensic investigation should be carried out on this matter.”
On the relevance of an independent panel despite the matter being before the courts, Ogakwu cited the Oputa Panel, saying its revelations helped heal wounds and led to significant adjustments, insisting that a fresh forensic inquiry could similarly clarify the allegations and further clear the Chief of Staff’s name if he is not culpable.
“I will agree that the Oputa Panel revealed a lot to Nigerians, and through that, a lot of adjustment was made. You cannot say that there was no impact from the Oputa Panel. The Oputa Panel is one very strategic panel in this country that brought a lot of revelations that actually healed wounds beyond just trying to criminalize a few people. A lot of wounds were healed in the process.
“What we are saying is that we cannot say because of this or that, the matter should just be left. You will agree with me that most Nigerians are saying that clearing the Chief of Staff is like what they know would happen in the final analysis. And I have repeatedly said that the Chief of Staff may not even be culpable in any manner. The Chief of Staff may just have been a victim of circumstance.
“For us, the independent forensic panel will further clear his name. Whether you like it or not, this is a man that is highly placed; he’s a man that has a bright future ahead of him. The possibility of trying to look at him from one perspective will take a lot of time for him to be cleared of most of these allegations. So I think that that will help.”
Reiterating the need for further investigation, Ogakwu said the process should scrutinise the disbursement of government funds, identify those who received public money without accountability, and uncover other issues surrounding the scandal.
“Going forward, I feel that if we have a strategy committee to carry on or to further the investigation, that will be some of the elements that they have to look at: Who are the people who have received government money without being accountable for it, or through the back door, and all that? So I think there’s a whole lot of things to be discovered through this. For us, I feel that this is an eye-opener. These things don’t just happen accidentally; they happen because Nigerians need to heal from the process,” he said.
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