Will Jonathan be jailed?

A friend told me he wished Muhammadu Buhari’s government could jail former President Jonathan. He believed this will set the precedence for the prosecution, and probably incarceration, of former Presidents Obasanjo and Babangida. If you are like my friend, who has been analyzing this scenario, you must have been wasting your time. It will never happen.

Today, I have lost count of the number of people calling for Jonathan’s prosecution. The list include people like Senate leader, Ali Ndume and the Chairman of the Lagos chapter of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), Apostle Alexander Bamgbola. Various anti-corruption NGOs have also joined in the crusade. Well, one cannot out-rightly dismiss their arguments. It is believed that for society to make progress, no one should be above the law.

However, Apostle Alexander Bamgbola’s intervention provoked this article. The cleric reminded us that some nations have jailed their former presidents, in order to make progress. He gave examples with Presidents Albert Fujimori of Peru and Ehud Olmert of Israel. The cleric gave examples with countries where such action would not have the kind of consequences it could have in Nigeria, even in Africa. I will throw light on the last statement in this article.

Former President Jonathan is a very smart man. He knew that the day of reckoning would surely come. Thus, he was once quoted as saying, ‘’ To my ministers, I wish you what I wish myself….. They will have hard times, we will all have hard times. Our ways will be rough’’. Of course, some of his ministers’ ways are already rough. But his is not yet.

Some people, thinking that they may be jailed, never make any implicating statement without mentioning his name. This is not to say I am defending Jonathan, but these guys know that the chances of anything happening to him is slim. Thus, they reckon that they might go scot-free by mentioning his name.

Nigeria has an unwritten culture of preserving its past leaders. Little wonder, that the president’s spokesman, Femi Adesina responded to calls that Buhari was shielding Jonathan by saying that we should be reminded that as a former president, Jonathan should be given some dignity.

Talking of dignity, I am not sure any Nigerian president has appeared in any Nigerian court. Buhari didn’t even appear at the Oputa panel, and heaven didn’t fall. One or two other Nigerian leaders refused to attend as well, and hell didn’t break loose. Well, you could argue that Oputa panel wasn’t really a court, but it is easier to attend such panel than a court. You might also argue that Obasanjo attended because he set-up the panel. I am sure you saw how Baba responded to questions in the panel.

But all these are not the meat of my argument. Jonathan won’t be prosecuted nor jailed not because anyone is afraid of the militants in the Niger delta, but because it will send a bad signal to Africans and even to the international community. Never mind how some countries described corruption in his tenure.

Possible uprising in the Niger delta, if Jonathan is jailed, can be contained. The reason is simple. Most freedom fighters in the delta are actually looking out for their stomachs and are not truly representing the people. Some are not even acting in the interest of Ken Sarowiwa. Those who were truly freedom fighters are no longer influential.

Do you think all those prestigious international organizations giving Jonathan awards do not know that his name has been mentioned in corruption scandals in Nigeria? They know. But, they consider his entrenchment of democracy more important than anything else. They know that it will take time for Africa to be like America.

They know that Equatorial Guinea’s life president, Teodoro Obiang, who has already spent 37 years in power, just won, with 94 % votes, in elections conducted in his country. They know how easy it is to manipulate the system in Africa. Jonathan, being what Warri will call a fast guy, told them that he never knew the former INEC chair before appointing him. Truly, there is no evidence that he did. This message went down well.

They know what it took to force President Blaise Compaore out of office in 2014 after he ruled Burkina Faso for 27 years. They also know about what’s happening in Congo, Rwanda and Burundi.

They know it was not the America’s treat, delivered by Senator John Kerry that made him handover. They know treats have not worked for Mugabe. In short, in Zimbabwe, the more you threatened him the more he does weird things.

If Jonathan is jailed, it will take the continent back and everyone knows this. However, some of his former supporters might be finally jailed.

On a final note, former President Jonathan reminds me of Muhammed Ali. In the 1974 famous battle with George Foreman, tagged Rumble in the Jungle, Ali pretended not to know what he was doing until the 7^th round, when he took on George, and gave him a classic knock-out. Similarly, Jonathan might be giving all those who disappointed him a classic knock-out when Buhari finally jails them. They accused him of keeping silent, and he is still keeping silent.

THECABLE.NG AT 2

The future of journalism is in the digital environment. TheCable.ng knew this from inception. Interestingly, one of the UK’s national and quality newspaper, The Independent, has embraced a digital-only future. The 30-year-old newspaper had announced that its last paper edition would appear in March.

The new owner of The Independent, Evgeny Lebedev, argues that a digital future would allow the newspaper invest more on its quality editorials that attract a wide range of readers. The Russian journalist and businessman was right.

Interestingly, TheCable.ng has a lot in common with The Independent of the UK. One, they are both owned by journalists. Two, they try as much as possible to be independent. Three, they give free news. Evgeny Lebedev also owns the UK’s Evening Standard, which is given to commuters free of charge in London. Four, some anchormen in both newspapers are unusually young – this is very good because they bring in youthful enthusiasm. At TheCable.ng, we have ‘Fisayo Soyombo, the editor, while The Independent has Oliver Duff as its i editor – they should be in their early thirties.

Having said that, I congratulate the team at TheCable.ng for having worked very hard in the last two years. I am sure their future is as bright as that of The Independent.