Resisting EFCC: Options before GYB, by Andrew Agbese
There are few options before former governor, Yahaya Bello, if he doesn’t want to report to the EFCC office.
But it is my candid view that all the options are not worth the efforts so the former governor should quietly submit himself to the EFCC and stop the childish pranks in the name of trying to resist arrest.
He is by so doing damaging his reputation before his supporters as the white lion they thought he is and worse still, putting the lives of many, including security agents in danger.
You can imagine what would have happened if the EFCC operatives had decided to engage the escorts that came with the governor to his house in a gun duel.
Something similar to that happened during the Abacha regime when operatives of the NDLEA pursued a group of young men they saw with huge sums of money and in the course of trying to overtake them, the escorts attached to the privileged young men opened fire on them.
READ ALSO: Nigeria Immigration Service places ‘wanted’ Yahaya Bello on watchlist
Resisting an invitation by security agencies and putting the lives of people at risk are not the turf of good leaders.
A good leader would always want to protect the lives and interest of his people first rather than expose them to danger.
Doing otherwise is more popular with criminals.
There was the case of Dudus, a Jamaican drug lord, who was helping his community especially the youths live better lives with the proceeds from his drug business and when the security agents came to take him, the youths surrounded his house and prevented the agents from gaining entry to the premises for days before he finally surrendered.
In Nigeria, resisting arrest has also not worked for politicians and even religious leaders who hide behind their supporters to resist arrest.
The youths at Oghara, a community in Delta state, were also ready to defend former governor of the state, James Ibori with their lives at the time the EFCC wanted to arrest him and managed to do so for days but the resistance only bought him time as the long arms of the law caught up with him in the long run
Leader of the Maitatsine religious sect, Muhammad Marwa Maitatsine, whose sect members even went violent and defended him with their lives did not go far. He was later arrested.
Several politicians have seen the futility in playing hide and seek with security agencies and have either chosen to man up to honour such invitations or simply disappear.
Joshua Dariye of Plateau after playing hide and seek with EFCC operatives knew he couldn’t continue in that manner the moment he was pronounced ‘impeached’ as governor and chose to disappear.
Former governor of Bayelsa state, Diepreye Alamieyeseigha was in a good position to use his influence as the acclaimed Governor General of the Ijaw nation to fight federal forces threatening to arrest him but he didn’t.
Peter Odili who was able to get a perpetual injunction to stop the EFCC from arresting him did not do that by playing hide and seek, he ran to the court.
Neither did Buruji Kashamu who successfully fought the bid to have him extradited.
The White Lion cannot go far in this hide and seek game. He should rather, prepare his defense and report himself to the EFCC.
But if he wants to continue the hide and seek game, I will advise he should first apologize to Dino Melaye so that the latter can accept him back as a friend.
Melaye may, after accepting his apology, teach the White Lion how to jump from moving vehicles; overrun his pursuers and how to climb trees to successfully hide from those after him.
These are the only options open to GYB.
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