hat piece of news whereby Dariye threw the Bombshell how they shared the N1.8 Billion State Ecology Fund allocation with the PDP officials came to Nigerians as a shock, but not surprising, revealing how Nigeria money has been moved around to the private individuals. Governor Dariye added more problems to his existing challenge of his political career by such revelation. It is like an elementary school student in trouble with the teacher, begging the teacher not to whoop him pointing to his school mate as the one that made him to do it.

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Dariye's political immaturity became more obvious to most Nigerians by the granted interview to Danjuma Maguna, Jonathan Elendu and team leader, Prince Charles Dickson. It is like a sinking ship that is desperately looking for a rope to grab for safety, not realizing that the weight of the Boat and the water volume would pull it down faster and the tree branches where the ropes were tied would come along with it, faster than imagined. Instead of allowing the ship to go down peacefully without much damage.

President Obasanjo has directed a full scale probe on the people connected with the illegal diversion of the Plateau State 1.8 billion Ecological Fund for the 2003 electioneering Presidential campaign. Would something solid ever come out from such probe. Nigerians are not rusting such 'white elephants' probe designed to silence the people from asking questions.

According to Dariye, the N1.8 billion Ecological Funds was shared among PDP stalwarts to settle the 2003 presidential campaign expenses because the party's national secretariat did not release any fund to the state PDP for the election. Dariye acted as the 'loaner', using the State money for PDP electioneering campaign. As a matter of details Deputy Senate President, Alhaji Ibrahim Mantu, was given N10 million; the PDP South-west (N100million); PDP South (N100 million) and Plateau State (N800 million), and an unnamed Ministry was given N10 million, while N1m went for the Commission on Transaction (COT).

PDP, here we go! We need to see more of your dirty linens publicly. Nigerians have enough water to help PDP wash its dirt.

Dariye's case developed some K-Legs with the interview granted to some reporters recently, (Danjuma Maguna, Jonathan Elendu and team leader, Prince Charles Dickson) when he stated that;

"I have to say the alleged diversion of ecological funds has been very dramatic and creating sensations. No money was diverted. N800 million meant for Plateau State was fully accounted for. If you go mathematical, minus N800m...N100m went to PDP South West to sustain the Party structure leading to the presidency campaign was fully accounted for. N100m for PDP North East fully accounted for. N10m was given to Senator Mantu, which he is yet to account for. N66m was given to Plateau State PDP for the 207 wards. So if you divide N66m over 207 wards, an average of N318,000.00 and N8m or so went to the Ministry, that is the practice"

Mathematically, N285 were disbursed, where is the remaining N515m? The maths did not add up. Where is the remaining N515million? As an Accountant, Dariye should be able to do that easily.

Nigerians might want to know from PDP if what Dariye did is the "practice" of the ruling party to share the State Development funds with different wards in the State, and left the project undone. So the Ministry would only have 0% to do the job. In the process whatever is left would be for the Ministry officials to share. As the Chief Executive of his State, how much would be his share, since "that is the practice". At least something must come to the Executive, since it "is the practice".

The question is how much went into Dariye's pocket from the State Development fund; if he thinks what he did was normal and right? He was part of it and the Chief executioner of the money under his control. He was a party to the decision, the Chief Executive of his State. Are we saying this is the practice across the Country? Is this how it is done by other States that are under PDP control?

Governor Dariye made some offensive statements during the interview.

"…. the N800m was money meant for development of Plateau State which is fully accounted for ….and it's just like in America, you use donations from mega companies…. And high net worth individuals to fund political movements. Dick Cheney and George Bush have people who contributed to their party purse …that is the normal practice but like I said, there is nothing wrong in what we have done."

It might be wrong for Dariye to allege that "This is how it is done all over the world". Does Dariye think that in the United States of America, when certain money is allocated for Ecology, it would be shared with the ruling political party, a State Senator; I beg your pardon Sir. He sounds like a sinking Ship that is looking for any other ship to sink along with him.

In the first place the Ecological Funds is not from a private company, it was public money. More so it was meant for the State development. Does that mean that the State development money should be spent through sharing it with other Political Party chapters and a State Senator? Dariye should realize that the US White House is under ethical challenge; Oga Dariye must be ready to face any legal challenge to his statement on Dick Cheney and George Bush, whenever he steps his foot into the United States.

This is part of what he told the reporters "Some people will join me to return this money," Which means that Dariye got part of the money. Not in Nigeria would you be asked to give out some money to people that you won't have some into your pocket. Dariye would not go down alone without bringing some along with him. If he gave them that money voluntarily, that is his choice. Would the Chief Executive make that "ministry" return the N800 million?

Nigerians might be asking why the State money was distributed that way. If Dariye got the directive from the PDP operatives to divert the money to Obasanjo's campaign, who authorized that? Why was Plateau State made to pay PDP operatives in South South, South West to one Yomi Edu and South East for campaigns? Haba! Was that how Ngige won his election, which he confessed to and now found him a fraudulent Governor? Did other States pay for such too? PDP must be very rich by now.

This sounds like the market women sharing the gift from the Politicians. When their leader took the lion share and the rest of them were looking for a way of disgracing their leader, they started revealing the pact. The revelation from Dariye was evidence that Plateau State misappropriated the State Ecological Funds.

Ironically, the Ecology money already resurfaced in the accounts of Plateau State. If in fact that money were given out in 2003, and now it was easily returned, some members of the PDP must be filthy rich that they were able to return the money as quickly as they did. Amazing!

You don't have to be a practicing Lawyer to understand that when you were accused of doing something wrong and you admitted that you did it because of something; you have already admitted the guilt. Dariye's admittance shows no sense of being an elected Chief Executive of a State. It is not honorable at all. Nigerians know that PDP is putrefying from its toe to its head, since the PDP Chair has not come out to deny Dariye's claim, as being "the practice".

To my readers, there is no setup that could claim absolute transparency, but the way it is done in Nigeria is pathetic. With Dariye's admittance, it would be honorable for him to just take the heat and find an honorable way out as the Governor of Plateau State. If he chooses to hang on till May 29, 2007, he might join the disgraced members of the teething Governors or Public Servants, such as DSP and Ngige.

Bode George, who was South-West vice chairman of the party when Dariye made the monstrous donation, said "money was given to an individual, rather than the party." If the money was given to an individual, how did George know about this? He must have been proxy to the individual whom the money was given to. How much did Bode George make during the 2003 election? Was part of Plateau money given to Adedibu? What was George's reaction when such money was given to that individual? Would you allow such money to be taken? Is it not for the campaign, or it was for their pocket money. If the money was spent on the campaign, why did they have to return the money? Did they pay the people that actually worked in the campaign, or the money was for payment for the postal services, commercials, gasoline used in the campaign trips, feeding, accommodations, if those actually took place, or paid to the Village and Traditional rulers. Are those ones refundable if the money was actually paid for the campaign, and did not end up in the individual pockets?

What is that between Mantu and Dariye? Senator Ibrahim Mantu described Governor Dariye as acting like a suicide bomber. Is that Power tussle between Mantu and Dariye? Mantu is a Senator and Dariye is the Executive Governor of Plateau State by the grace of the People of Plateau State and some State money that elected both of them into their positions. It seems that these two might have to settle their differences thereafter they have been voted out in 2007.

I doubt if Dariye likes the position Mantu is building around himself. Because Mantu is attaining a position of leadership that is one of the reasons he gave him 8million Naira? Dariye alleged that

"What is the evidence of leadership? What has he done? Right in his backyard in Gindiri where a dam is suppose to be located, he has taken the money upfront and diverted it".

Dariye went on "Between Mantu and me, I gave him N10 million." When Dariye gave this money to Mantu, what did he tell him the money was meant for? Did Mantu force Dariye to give him the money? Was it a gesture from Dariye to Mantu? Did he put the gun on Dariye's head to sign the check for him, or gave him the cash in Ghana Must Go bag?

"I told Mantu when we met in Benue that since they have decided to blackmail me, if I am asked to return this money, you should also be ready to return the N10million I gave you."

Dariye still on Mantu,

"Like I said, he is struggling to become a supreme leader, the ultimate; his majesty….That is why he wants to be an emperor. We will not take that. For what? Leader of his on congress or what? It is very appalling… he called General Onoja and asked him to give him N80m facilitation fee."

Pitching a battle with EFCC would not help Dariye in this case. All he has to do is to present the document requested by EFCC from the State. Allow EFCC do its work. Dariye should find some ways of defending himself without further dragging his name deeper into the mud. According to Dariye,

"I am from Mushere and we eat dogs, my brothers from Pankkshin eat dogs also, likewise Anaguta and Berom; if these dogs come from Abuja again, we will eat them… is not appropriate. Enough is enough. This will be the last time that EFCC will come to Plateau State to harass our people. You know some of our tribes eat dogs. When next they come, they might end up in our pot of soup."

He went on,

"Enough is enough for EFCC. I cannot allow a repeat of the way they harassed the wife of the Speaker who is pregnant. They traumatized her and even overturned their mattresses. That will be the last time EFCC will harass the state that way. I will never run away."

Nigerians are not too sure if EFCC is blindly going after Plateau State (Executive and the Legislature) without any just reason. EFCC has explained that members of the Plateau State House of Assembly collected N5 million each for constituency projects and another N4 million for car loan without executing any project in their constituencies. According to the information from EFCC color="808080">"Between 2003 and 2004, the budget of the state has a fixed amount of N860, 000.00 what it calls constituency project which were disbursed to the plaintiffs prior to the payment of the aforesaid N5m. That the Executive Governor of the State also approved the payment of N4m to each of the plaintiffs as car loan. That the said N4m was paid in cash to each of the members of the House and there was no re-payment agreement between the state Government and the Plaintiffs. That the plaintiffs collected the said N4m each without repaying a dime to the State Government."

Dariye should not mix up EFCC and Mantu, saying that EFCC is an agent of Mantu. He should just face his dilemma and find a legal way out of it honorably. According to Dariye,

"And if EFCC is doing its proper job…but of course the EFCC is an agent of Mantu because before they came to Plateau they spent five hours at the National Assembly complex for briefing. I have authority to prove that one".

We would wonder if Mantu is from Niger Republic after all. Dariye might have the inside information about Mantu when he said that "So what kind of nonsense are they saying? I am not from the Niger Republic". Is Mantu from Niger Republic? Say it loud, I am a Nigerian and I am proud of it. Can Mantu say that? Is that what we are getting at? "I am a Nigerian. A bonafide Nigerian, properly elected". Oga Sir, no rigging under PDP mandate?

On the State of Emergency, of which, according to Dariye, "Mantu, made a fortune of it". Did the fortune come from the unpaid request to the Administrator, as he claimed? Or from the sources Nigerians are not aware of? Some Nigerians, including this writer, sympathized with Plateau State on that fateful State of Emergency decision of Sheikh Obasanjo. That notwithstanding, Dariye's later actions are unacceptable to Nigerians, his alleged escape from London, and the latest revelation on how he siphoned State Development money to other areas, is not commanding Nigerians' sympathy.

Other areas some Nigerians have sympathy for Dariye are on the Foreign Account. I might say that what Dariye has in his foreign accounts, put together, was not too much of his savings within four years as a Governor of a State. Most Nigerians disagreed with the Foreign Account policy as well. The foreign account deal is wrong for the Nigerian Government to say that in the faces of the failed banks in Nigeria, no Nigerian serving public officials should have foreign accounts, under a democratic setting.

Other areas that Nigerians might not be comfortable sympathizing with Dariye at, are some of the unanswered questions for sharing the State Money with PDP in other States? Unfortunately, as a Chief Executive, Dariye stooped too low, like an elementary school child, to make the public statements about his soiled Party. He is politically immature after his seven years as the Chief Executive of Plateau State.

Dariye should get his lawyers to defend him on the charges leveled against him, regardless the third term or immunity coverage approved by his 'mentor', Senator Mantu. Dariye's lawyers, when they come back from their strike, should mount up a strong defense on Dariye's properties acquired during his Governorship been questioned by EFCC at Yelwa Club, Bukuru, Jos; Residential Building near Federal Housing Authority (FHA) Staff Quarters, Maitama, Abuja; Residential Building at Ebenezer Close, Asokoro, Abuja; Undeveloped expanse of Land at Aminu Kana Crescent, Opposite Maitama District Hospital, Abuja; Building at Wuse II, Off Aminu Kana Crescent, Opposite BPE Office, Abuja.

In addition, the lawyers would work on the alleged money laundering, economic crimes; Illegal transaction in foreign exchange; False Declaration Maintaining foreign bank accounts (most Nigerians, including this writer opposed to, but law is law, it has to be obeyed); and answer to the questions regarding his bank accounts. Various amounts of money in different currencies totaling well over £90,000.00 recovered from him on Wednesday, November 17, 2004. The property known as Flat 28, Regents Plaza Apartments, 8 Greville Road, London NW6, allegedly purchased in September, 2001 for £395,000.00 under the assumed name of Joseph DAGWAN; the property at No.8 Greville Road allegedly paid for by Dariye in September 2001 through one Babatunde Lucky OMOLUWA, the Managing Director of Pinnacle Communications Limited. Operate eight (8) UK Bank accounts, seven (7) of which are sterling accounts while one (1) is in a dollar account.

Regrettably, Joshua Chibi Dariye just caught up in the filthy "practice" created by the Military leaders, endorsed by the 'Peoples Deceit Party'. Joshua Chibi Dariye needs to take some honorable steps so that he can walk with his head above his shoulders in the Plateau State city known as Jesus Our Savior, (JOS).