Letters
Politics, corruption and the Dikko affair
I have been following the Dikko affair with keen interest since it does not only add new dimensions to West African politics but also touches on some of the underlying reasons and excuses of coup makers in West African countries.Dr Umaru Dikko, ex-Transport Minister of Nigeria is supposed to have stolen one billion pounds from the impoverished people of Nigeria while in public office, and is now living in luxury in London.
The first time I read about this billionaire business was when Cameron Duodu published an article in the Observer about Dikko after the Nigerian coup. Surprisingly Dr Dikko has not found it necessary either to refute or confirm the allegations. I presume the story has been widely publicised in Nigeria to prove the callousness of people like Dikko who while in public office used their positions to steal the resources they have been mandated to manage on behalf of the people. To the Nigerian masses people like Dr Dikko should be buried alive.
A billion pounds is quite a large sum of money and I expected Dr Dikko to express his innocence or otherwise over the allegation. As it is now Dr Dikko is now known world-wide as a billionaire and the earlier he does something about these allegations the better it will be for his image since silence means consent.
Talking about Dikko being a billionaire reminds me of such wild allegations that are made against politicians whenever there is a military take-over in an African country. In 1966 Dr Nkrumah of blessed memory was called the biggest thief Ghana has ever produced. Some newspapers said he was worth £20 million while some of his own colleagues accused him of sending suitcase loads of gold bars to Cairo. Well, time has vindicated him.
In 1972 the Palaver newspaper of Ghana alleged that an ex-minister in the Busia administration put up 17 houses while in office for 27 months! It came out later that this gentleman owned only two houses and they were all put up before entering public office.
Just before 31 December 1981 a weekly newspaper and a leading opposition MP in Ghana alleged that a leading member of the then ruling PNP was to benefit from a currency printing deal to the tune of £2.7 million! The story was widely believed in Ghana and I can say with some confidence that it was the immediate cause of the Rawlings coup.
Some of us however wondered at that time how much currency Ghana was printing and at what cost that one person could get a commission of £2.7 million. What then was the profit margin of the printers? Almost three years after the PNDC came to power and almost 2½ years since a committee was set up to look into the matter there has not been any statement on the issue, because there was no deal.
In the early days of the Ghana coup it was fashionable for the newly born 'revolutionaries' to call the politician and other Ghanaians who left the country thieves and rogues who had escaped to foreign countries to enjoy the money they had looted from the people. I remember how Chris Atim, the ideological guru of the PNDC stood before yelling civil servants at the Ministry of Finance to tell them that those who had left the country have something to hide.
Alas, ten months later he also had to escape, may be to enjoy his loot or he had something to hide. Now that Akata-Pore, Kwesi Adu and Chris Atim are in London living either in Council flats or in Bed and Breakfast hotels and collecting dole money like the politicians they happily branded as thieves they would probably write to the WDC/PDCs to tell them that one does not need to loot to be able to live in exile.
Corruption exists in all societies and at all levels. Ministers are tried in Europe for corruption but the governments in which they served are not overthrown. The European press does not portray their leaders as thieves to the world. As long as soldiers, journalists etc continue to call African leaders names we have no hope of being respected by the international community.
Kojo Mglosky, London.
Free Tunde and Irabor
All the past week's event concerning the abortive attempt to bring back home to Nigeria Dr Umaru Dikko to face trial is a well commendable effort, but that will not change my opinion about the two journalists who were tried and jailed by the tribunal of the Federal Military Government.It is my firm belief that when a government tries to suppress the freedom of the press, then the freedom to write and speak has become meaning- less. It is therefore most unfortunate that the Nigerian system of justice was put to sleep the day the two profession- al journalists were jailed by the tribunal, robbing them of the freedom associated with their profession.
It is a shame that a country like Nigeria is being led to live in the past. Instead of the leaders taking steps to break off all diplomatic relations along with economic ties with the number ONE enemy, the British government for habouring fugitives and embezzlers, confiscate all British assets in Nigeria and do not allow any Briton to set foot in Nigeria they are rather jailing good and notable journalists. It is a shame.
It's time we believed that a free press was not an enemy of the govern- ment. Therefore for justice to take its normal course of action the Supreme Military Government should free the two journalists.
Tunde Oyinade, Maryland, U.S.A.
Tribalism won't do
Going through your April issue I came across an article written by one Dr A.B. Assensoh in which he cited Dr Ohene Djan's case as having been heavily influenced by tribal considerations instead of the rule of law.He may be right in describing the late Acheampong as tribalistic but to some of us the problem between the Ashantis and Brongs needs a diplomatic approach rather than the mobilisation of forces for a show down. Before the formation of Brong Ahafo Youth Association both regions had a lot of things in common e.g. political aspirations and traditional beliefs.
The question of dominance was completely unheard of. The rift be- tween the two regions reared its head with the intensified activities of the BAYA. Coming back to the Ohene Djan case I wash to draw the attention of the writer to the fact that Acheam- pong never accused Ohene Djan of committing murder but rather the Director of Public Prosecutions did so on behalf of all Ghanaians.
The way out to build a strong nation is to unite all Ghanaians under one banner and not to embark on the formation of separatist groups. Those who seek political power through murder- ous acts can only increase our wretchedness. Ohene Djan must be a lucky man to have escaped hanging.
Rexford Oduro, Essen, West Germany.
King Peter's unique problem
I want to express my heartfelt thanks to Mr Iniobong Udoidem for his scholarly article "What's in a name - a rejoinder" (Talking Drums, June 11, 1984).I read the article with much interest and thank God we Africans are steadily awakening to our true identity. I agree with every point that Mr Udoidem has raised in the article but there are a few things he did not mention and I hope he will take no exception if I did.
When these colonialists came to Africa they could not spell nor pronounce African names and this is why most of those whom they whisked off from the continent were forced to adopt western names thus contributing to the loss of their true African identity. Besides these people did not make the effort to pronounce or spell African names because they felt that Africans are inferior and are not worth the effort even though there are other very difficult white names.
A case in point is that of a very forceful and powerful tribal ruler in Liberia who was called Bakpagbah, a Bassa name meaning 'Let us wrestle'. (Bassa is one of the thirty-one tribes of Liberia). When the pioneers landed on the shores of the then Grain Coast which later became known as Liberia. Chief Bakpagbah was one of the many tribal chiefs with whom they negotiated for the purchase of mainland Liberia. But because they could not pronounce nor spell his name and never cared to make the effort, they called him King Peters.
The same is true of another tribal chief whom they called Long Peter which bears no true significance. These were names which the pioneers could easily spell and pronounce and therefore forced them on the poor illiterates whose only means of communicating with these pioneers was with hand signs. And because they knew no better they accepted these useless white names but thank God and happy to mention that they were not fools to sell this piece of land called Liberia.
I hope those Africans who bear the white men's names will now clearly see the light and will at once drop them and adopt their African names to manifest their true African identity.
J. Michael Kunmeh, Monrovia.
— An ancestor of Chief Bakpagbah (Peters) and his grave.
