Reports that the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, may arrest former President Goodluck Jonathan upon his return to Nigeria from his overseas tour over allegations of corruption and misappropriation of billions of dollars during his five-year stay in office may have forced the former leader to go into temporary self exile in Cote d’Ivoire.
Several sources close to the ex-president, who confirmed to a national daily that Jonathan had sought refuge last week in the West African country, blamed the heightened attacks on oil and gas installations in the Niger Delta by Ijaw militants to what they claimed was “the decision by President Muhammadu Buhari to renege on his promise that his predecessor had ‘nothing to fear’ from him (Buhari) after he handed over the reins of power on May 29, 2015”.
It would be recalled that immediately after his victory in the 2015 presidential election, Buhari had stated that he would not go after his predecessor, despite allegations that the former president had presided over widespread corruption during his five years in the saddle.
However, since Jonathan’s departure, anti-corruption agencies led by the EFCC have gone after several of his associates on allegations of money laundering, diversion of public funds and contract scams, mostly linked to defence sector contracts and the purchase of arms used for the prosecution of the war against Boko Haram in the North-east.
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