By Ikugbadi Oluwasegun
Vice President Kashim Shettima has called for transparency and accountability in Nigeria’s public service, urging former and current public officials to summon the courage to document their life and stewardship while in service. He noted that public servants live under perpetual scrutiny, as life itself is a litigation with no end and no final adjournment in the pursuit of justice.
Senator Shettima spoke on Thursday during the public presentation of “OPL 245: The Inside Story of the $1.3 Billion Oil Block,” a memoir written by former Attorney-General of the Federation (AGF) and Minister of Justice, Mr. Mohammed Bello Adoke (SAN) where he recalled the highly litigious (Oil Prospecting License 245) OPL 245 deal.
VP Shettima described the culture of secrecy in Nigeria’s public institutions as a form of silence that must be broken.The Vice President described Adoke’s personal reflections in the book as courageous, saying the former minister’s claim of being “bloodied but unbowed” will resonate with anyone who has walked the corridors of power in Nigeria.
Earlier, Chairman of the occasion, former President Goodluck Jonathan, who was represented by the former senate president Anyim pius Anyim applauded the author’s wisdom, courage and doggedness in the face of intimidation, and blackmail, describing the public presentation of the book as a celebration of victory over deliberate persecution while cautioning politicians against recklessness and abuse of public offices. On his part, Governor of Oyo State, Engr Seyi Makinde, commended the commitment and hard work of the author in chronicling his account of stewardship as Attorney General of the Federation.
The author of the book, and former Attorney General of the Federation, Mr Adoke (SAN), said the motivation behind writing the book was not to denigrate any individual or group, but to set the records straight and provide insights into the issues surrounding the $1.3 billion Nigerian Oil Bloc transaction. While reviewing the book, former Special Adviser to ex-President Jonathan on Media and Publicity, Dr. Reuben Abati agreed with the author that the book is, indeed, therapeutic, stressing that the book actually needed to be written to set the records straight for posterity.
