Nobel Laureate, Prof Wole Soyinka, has called for a “non-partisan commission” to probe the sabotage that followed the murder of a former Minister of Justice, Bola Ige, and the massive corruption that caused the Mambilla power project collapse.
SaharaReporters earlier reported that Soyinka criticised the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) over the “unjust detention” of a former Minister of Power, Dr Olu Agunloye, noting that it was in total contempt of sense and justice.
Bola Ige was assassinated on December 23, 2001, in his residence in Ibadan, Oyo State, during the tenure of former President, Olusegun Obasanjo.
Soyinka in a release on Monday noted that it was time for Nigeria to finally put the Mambilla Project to rest by establishing a commission of inquiry to resolve the controversies.
He wrote, “Put succinctly, I wish to claim that finally, after so many years of frustration, the nation is being offered an opportunity of putting the Mambilla Project to rest, be it through terminal abandonment or resuscitation, corralling its lessons in fulfilling one of the most basic conditions for national industrial development with private creative input – addressing frontally and holistically the basic question of sustainable supply of power.
“In addition – and I concede that this is a personal, yet national concern. We stand a chance to finally solve a nation’s high profile murder case, this being none other than that of Bola Ige, also prior minister of Power under President Olusegun Obasanjo.
“Let this be understood. The murder of Bola Ige, plus a monumental act of sabotage that took place under Ige’s watch, involving the loss of some engineers, was linked to massive corruption that underlay the Mambilla collapse.
“It is time to end the deception, the cynical cover-ups, the blame passing, the diversionary utterances and the now open admission of corporate corruption with high reaches of power. We are calling for a non-partisan Commission that will sit in public, take evidence, ask questions, cross-examine witnesses over even one year if necessary.
“After all, this MASSIVE FAILURE has gone on for nearly two decades. We can spare one more year, surely to lay bare the ugly face of Truth, then let the public do what it will with the revelations. The cycle of self-deception has gone on far enough. Let the two legislative chambers take the.bull by the horn to end the charade, cut our losses and move on.”
The elder statesman had earlier noted that the detention of a former Minister of Power, Dr. Olu Agunloye, by the EFCC, was in total “contempt of sense and justice, or indeed, basic humane considerations.”