Ganduje bribery allegation: A comparative approach

…also published in Daily Trust  

As the scandal triggered by the leaked bribery video clips involving Kano state governor Abdullahi Umar Ganduje continues to rock the state’s political atmosphere and generate controversy across the country, a comparative look at the situation explains why while a similar or even less serious scandal elsewhere has always had profound political consequences, the Ganduje bribery scandal, albeit extremely serious, would most probably fizzle out amid pervasive culture of impunity in the land, as it has always been the fate of similar and even more serious scandals in the country.
 

Starting with any typical western democracy, for instance, a scandal of this magnitude always attracts intensive and extended media coverage and a flood of analyses by experts and opinion leaders, which, in turn, spark spontaneous public outrage with civil society organizations, activists and the general public demanding for an immediate, independent, transparent and exhaustive investigation into it.

Of course, the official directly involved would feel too disgraced to cling to his position, hence would resign with immediate effect to provide an enabling environment to conduct an independent investigation free from his tacit influence so as to not compromise the credibility of the investigation. He would then embark on his tedious journey to clear his name through investigation panels and judicial channels; a process that eventually either leads him to jail, in case of a conviction, or renders him too exhausted, morale-wise, to resume active participation in public affairs, in case of acquittal.

Also, depending on the type of democratic system in his country, his scandal would not only affect him alone, but would also affect the whole government, his party and of course its chances of winning elections. In Britain, for instance, where the system of government is parliamentary, a scandal of this gravity involving a top government official would not only constitute a huge source of pressure for him to resign, but might in fact cause the resignation of the whole government, depending on how well the opposition parties capitalize on the scandal to shake public confidence in the government and its credibility.

Also, even in a country where the system is presidential e.g. the United States, a state governor involved in such a scandal would not only have to resign in disgrace and face the consequences, but would certainly jeopardize his party’s chances of winning elections in the state, and might in fact affect its chances of winning elections at the federal level as well.  

Also, a similar scandal in a country like China is even more serious due to the country’s particularly uncompromising intolerance to corruption. Any government official involved in such a scandal out there faces rigorous investigations leading up to judicial prosecution to face charges that attract capital punishment to eventually get executed if found guilty.

Other countries around the world maintain various approaches in a similar situation. In the Middle East, for instance, where governments are particularly sensitive to any potential scandal likely to provoke overt display of frustration by the general public against the government especially in the post so-called Arab Spring era, a scandal of this enormity is too serious to be downplayed, let alone ignored. To address it, a typical government out there would instantly sacrifice the official involved by dismissing him or forcing him to resign before subjecting him to judicial prosecution. Though he may still somehow escape appropriate punishment eventually, benefiting from the underlying culture of elite impunity, he isn’t likely to regain relevance in the public sphere. He would probably spend the rest of his life lying low and too disgraced to pursue any public role again.

Now, from the ridiculously little interest shown by particularly the mainstream media in the governor Ganduje scandal, the obvious reluctance of the opinion leaders in the society (with the exception of a few) to dwell on it and the absence of public activities by civil society groups and activists to push for an impartial and in-depth probe into the scandal, one can clearly see our collective hypocrisy in our purported endeavour to build an egalitarian and prosperous society.

Without exaggerating their potential impact, one is understandably disappointed in these parties in particular, for they supposedly represent the interests of the general public, and do indeed owe their perceived credibility to their supposed struggle to ensure transparency in public affairs.

After all, the beneficiaries of the status quo aren’t expected to voluntarily quit stealing, as their greed is apparently too insatiable to be satisfied by any amount of stolen public resources. Besides, their consciences (if any) have apparently grown too hardened to be moved by the misery of the millions of seriously sick people dying right under their noses for being too deprived to afford basic medication, or by the plight of millions more rendered extremely impoverished, unemployed and/or constantly vulnerable to threats on their lives due to pervasive insecurity and/or life-threatening traffic accidents due to the sheer dilapidation of the already inadequate public road infrastructure.

The foregoing among other things explain governor Ganduje’s unapologetic demeanour knowing that he would not only get away with this scandal, but would in fact almost certainly somehow secure reelection in the forthcoming election, for that matter. After all, the purported probe launched by the Kano state House of Assembly into the scandal leads nowhere, because the House members are equally involved in the same scandal. In one of the yet to be released bribery video clips, it’s heard how millions of Naira and market stalls were shared among them as well.