Senator Chukwuka Utazi, representing Enugu North Senatorial district in the National Assembly, was the Chairman, Senate committee on corruption in the 8th NASS. He speaks with TAIWO AMODU on issues relating to the Nigerian Financial Intelligence Agency (NFIU) bill among others.
You are the one that spearheaded the Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit that we have today and the building housing the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), but you hardly talk about these things?
You are the one talking about it. The truth is that people complain that I am under-reported. I don’t believe that I should be out there trying to tell my story. It is of late that I got media aides. Before, I never bothered about such. I do my things and I go my way. I don’t want to play to gallery, which I don’t believe in. I know that we do a good job. Like you said, when I came here for the 8th assembly, some senators and I studied the EFCC and saw that it was handicapped. We saw their offices and felt that they were not good enough for an anti-graft agency. Then, I wrote to the president and had engagements with late Mamman Abba Kyari. I told him that look, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) started that EFCC Headquarters. It was an ambitious effort by the Obasanjo administration such that the United Nations Convention against Corruption said Nigeria was actually taking the lead. I said look, if PDP could start it, why shouldn›t Buhari, whose mantra was anti-corruption complete it? He said how do we do this and I said just cooperate with me and you will have it done.
Afterwards, I met the budget office and the appropriation committee. I told them that we have to increase the EFCC budget. Later, having secured the backing of the Senate President, we talked to Senator Danjuma Goje, the chairman of the appropriation committee and he agreed. That was how we were able to get the resources we needed from N2billion to almost N6 billion for the first year. Today, the office we built remains the best in the country.
To fight for NFIU, when I came, I was attending the international corruption taskforce meeting in Paris almost every two months or there about and the kind of cold shoulder I received on behalf of the country touched me. Each time you come and announced your presence for a meeting, the people would just looked at you and mind their business. So I looked at all that. One day I was insulted politely and it didn›t go down well with me.
One young man said I had a fine suit, but I asked why I was given a cold shoulder and they all laughed. They said after the meeting, I would not come back again as that›s how Nigerians behave each time they do election: someone will come and announce that we are here now, but you will never see the person until the next four years.
But contrary to their claim, I came back, but still, the next meeting was not to be, because Magu was the one funding it as the money for our travel had been domiciled in the EFCC. But when I went back for the meeting, I assured the men that President Buhari was different and that under him, one can easily get things done. And they all laughed and appreciated my suit. But the good thing about all is that each time I traveled, I often wrote a report about my meeting and the commitment I made on behalf of the country. I would write the report and send to the office of the president, vice president and the attorney-general of the federation.
But when the matters came to a halt in 2017 and Egmont Group of Financial Intelligence Units suspended Nigeria, Magu got wind of it and was hiding it. I raised it on the floor of the Senate and told Nigeria the whole thing and that the agency had threatened that if we didn’t do anything by the end of December, 2017, the country would be expelled entirely. It was then that the presidency started looking for the files of all those memos I sent to them. So they quickly found those things and invited me to a meeting at the office of the vice president; the attorney-general and the entire ministers were there. And they said that they would look at the issues. Then, I left and traveled for my summer break in the United Kingdom.
Just two days in UK, my office sent me a message of a letter from the president appointing me as chairman of the presidential Ad-hoc committee to reposition the NFIU for the country. I looked at it and saw that it was a very sensitive job. Then, I quickly returned to Nigeria that weekend. The following Monday, I met with the presidency. They said they had been watching me and discovered that I was the person to do the job; they gave me one month for the task. So, through out that vacation, I was indoor and bombarded with daily tasks. Even though Magu didn›t like the job I was doing, I remained undaunted and stood my ground.
Later, I came up with a bill, which remains the fastest in the history of the NASS. With its passage, we told Egmont Group not to make good their promise of extending this thing to expulsion. There was no threat I didn’t receive on the bill. But I stood my grounds. Alone, I went to the NTA and Channels television to promote the issue. To pass the bill, sign and also get a chairman for it all became an issue. But I thank God, the civil society organisations and the Journalists that worked hand in hand with me to make sure that all those things were advertised and today the country is better. Buhari became champion of anti-corruption as a consequence of that bill that he signed into law.
But since you came to the National Assembly in 2015 till date, what would you say have been your achievements so far for your constituency in terms of beneficial projects?
When I was doing my campaign, I went a little bit. You know, before me was late Senator Fidelis Okoro and after him was Senator Ayogu Eze. Fidel won the election; we expected a lot of things from Nsukka, but we didn’t get them. Part of them is what I am still pursuing here: the creation of Adada State. I was a secretary of that state movement. During that period, we begged Fidel to help us in the pursuit of that noble enterprise, but he was not forthcoming. He did his term and left. Eze came up and he was better than Fidel. He did his best too, but our people were expecting certain things from their representatives towards that Adada State creation. Ayogu also did his best and left.
At certain stage, I had to throw my hat into the ring, so that we will not be begging people to come and see things the way we saw them here. On the state creation, I told them that I would be very visible, not only on the floor, but also in the constituency with projects that would touch their lives. And when I came to the assembly, I fulfilled my promises. Of course, I’m not blowing my trumpet, but if you compare my performance with those that had come before me, you will discover that none of them comes near me in terms of boreholes provision, renovation of hospitals, building of schools and other empowerments. The last that I did that got my fingers burnt in 2019 was almost N170 million worth of items. Nobody believed that somebody can do that, but because of my orientation and the way I see life, I have to do what I did.
What was your early political career like?
Well, naturally as an individual, politics comes to me as something that is part of my life, because I can remember that in those days when I was in primary school I was chosen to be the class monitor in primary four and five. But in class six, I became the school monitor, which was for the Headmaster. When I moved to the college, I was also found worthy to be a prefect. I was a Catholic sacristan, taking morning devotion and conducting assembly. Also, when I moved to the university, it was the same. I was class representative throughout my days there. I also played politics. Those days, I started at Awka College of Education. It was in affiliation with the University of Nigeria, Nsukka. And from class representative, I ran for a Student Union position. I was the vice president of the SUG. Initially, I was running for the position of the Commissioner for Transport, but when the women suddenly realised their voting strength and then fielded a female candidate, I had to turn to the vice president position. The election was tough, but I won it.
I took the biggest risk of my life then, when I used my school fees to run the election. I did it believing that I would somehow get money to pay back my school fees. I used part of the money to print my posters and all that. I took the risk and won the election. Based on the kind of home I came from, I could not travel to tell my people that I was doing politics as nobody wants to hear anything about it. But that’s my life. Luckily, I was able to get the money back and I paid the school fees. But the news of my victory at the election was aired on the radio and I had to face a tribunal in my family.
YOU SHOULD NOT MISS THESE HEADLINES FROM NIGERIAN TRIBUNE
Buhari Urges MTN For Quality Service, Downward Price Review In Cost Of Data, Other Services
President Muhammadu Buhari Friday at State House Abuja urged the MTN Group to make the available top-of-the-range service to its Nigerian subscribers…
We Have Not Had Water Supply In Months ― Abeokuta Residents
In spite of the huge investment in the water sector by the government and international organisations, water scarcity has grown to become a perennial nightmare for residents of Abeokuta, the Ogun State capital. Uzodinma sacks General Manager of OCDA, names replacement Uzodinma sacks General Manager of OCDA, names replacement Uzodinma sacks General Manager of OCDA, names replacement Uzodinma sacks General Manager of OCDA, names replacement.
Selfies, video calls and Chinese documentaries: The things you’ll meet onboard Lagos-Ibadan train
The Lagos-Ibadan railway was inaugurated recently for a full paid operation by the Nigerian Railway Corporation after about a year of free test-run. Our reporter joined the train to and fro Lagos from Ibadan and tells his experience in this report…