Criminal Politics: Violence, âGodfathersâ and Corruption in Nigeria

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controversy, as its effect will be to force Anambra’s voters to wait seven years from their last chance at voting for a governor to the next election. Nonetheless, in unseating one of the PDP’s most powerful and well connected gubernatorial aspirants, the Supreme Court highlighted the impartiality and independence with which the Nigerian judiciary has generally comported itself in political cases surrounding the 2007 elections. Anambra’s example, however, also illustrates the limitations of what the judiciary can accomplish by itself. The authors of Anambra’s worst abuses—including murder, illegal possession of weapons, and the wholesale rigging of the 2007 electoral process in the state—continue to enjoy complete impunity for their crimes. Chris Uba no longer has the same political influence as previously, but this was largely the result of his brother Andy’s actions, and he remains a powerful member of the PDP’s national Board of Trustees. Andy Uba may have lost the election, but there has been no effort to investigate him or his associates for his campaign’s open recruitment of cult groups as political muscle. The government and electoral officials responsible for the brazen rigging of Anambra’s elections have not been held to account and there has been no move made to do so. There has also been no investigation into the use of corruption and the threat of selective prosecution to bring about Peter Obi’s impeachment in November 2006. Anambra’s citizens have remained without a meaningful voice in the selection of their political leaders since at least 2003. Without sustained action against cult gangs and their backers, violence, fraud and corruption are likely to remain features of the state’s political landscape. 79 Human Rights Watch October 2007
Case Study C: Rivers State They buy guns for our youths; destroy our schools and our amenities, and our communities. They ask our youths to kill one another and do others of their biddings…Most of these youths that the state had turned into cultists, hostage-takers, armed robbers, assassins, prostitutes and thugs would have been great and meaningful to this society, but today their future is rocked with violence and evil. —Patrick Naagbanton, Port Harcourt journalist and activist. 279 Rivers State is the unofficial capital of Nigeria’s booming oil industry and its state government is the wealthiest in Nigeria, with a budget of $1.4 billion in 2007. 280 Unfortunately Rivers state’s relative wealth has exacerbated rather than solved its many problems. Not least, the state’s wealth has led to high-stakes political competition and a resulting level of political violence that considerably exceeds even the nationwide norm. Sowing the seeds of Violence: The 2003 Elections in Rivers Since 1999, the PDP has maintained a virtual monopoly on elective office in Rivers State and throughout the Niger Delta through rigged elections. The 2003 elections in Rivers were both more violent and more brazenly rigged than in most other parts of the country. One local civil society group compared the 2003 electoral period to a “low-intensity armed struggle.” 281 Despite a widespread lack of voting, massive voter turnout was reported and the PDP swept elective offices across the state in landslide victories. 282 279 Patrick Naagbanton, “Funeral Song for Prince Igodo and Others,” The Port Harcourt Telegraph, June 6, 2007. 280 “2007: Assembly Approves N183 Billion as Rivers Budget,” Rivers State House of Assembly Press Release, http://www.riversassembly.org/news/58-2007%253A_ASSEMBLY_APPROVES_N183BN_AS_RIVERS_BUDGET.php (accessed July 13, 2007). This is roughly five times the national average across all state governments. See Human Rights Watch, Chop Fine, pp. 75-79. 281 Election monitoring report on the ongoing Nigeria federal and state general elections, April/May 2003 (executive summary), Environmental Rights Action. Reproduced in Nigeria Today, April 26, 2003. 282 Governor Peter Odili reportedly won roughly 98% of all votes cast. Human Rights Watch interviews with member of 2003 election observer mission, Abuja, Februay 2007. Criminal Politics 80
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Nigeria Criminal Politics Violence,
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The Nigerian Police and Impunity fo
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In 1999, Nigeria’s military relin
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to account for their open mobilizat
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Recommendations To the government o
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To the Nigerian Police Force • Pr
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Historical Background and Context N
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Many Nigerians initially welcomed t
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elections should it choose to do so
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Foreign observers and Nigerian civi
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undertaken by Human Rights Watch an
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killed during the weeks surrounding
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and I fell down. After I fell down
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dating back to their days at univer
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Nnamdi Azikwe campus in Awka had be
Page 31 and 32: Human Rights Watch days later, his
Page 33 and 34: There is no question we can’t rel
Page 35 and 36: over the eight years of the Obasanj
Page 37 and 38: Money flows up and down…these hon
Page 39 and 40: along with at least two to three bu
Page 41 and 42: The best thing you can get is a mul
Page 43 and 44: During the 2007 elections, oppositi
Page 45 and 46: followed up by any meaningful actio
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Page 49 and 50: police’s shortcomings as an insti
Page 51 and 52: One should expect by now that issue
Page 53 and 54: 2007 elections but then taken off i
Page 55 and 56: Case Study A: Oyo State This is whe
Page 57 and 58: Adedibu’s War Against Ladoja Rash
Page 59 and 60: The attempt to impeach Ladoja ended
Page 61 and 62: saw four or five people and they ju
Page 63 and 64: Ibadan. 197 Especially in Ibadan, A
Page 65 and 66: Box 4: A Future Governor Discusses
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Page 71 and 72: Among the politicians Chris Uba “
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Page 79 and 80: Fighting Over the Spoils According
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Page 87 and 88: esponse to concerns that Igodo was
Page 89 and 90: In 1999 and 2003, [Governor] Odili
Page 91 and 92: The night before the April 14 elect
Page 93 and 94: Tom, or their former political spon
Page 95 and 96: In parallel with other situations d
Page 97 and 98: Kalare Violence and the 2007 Electi
Page 99 and 100: International observers told Human
Page 101 and 102: eportedly urged his disgruntled opp
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Page 109 and 110: Yar’Adua has also promised to str
Page 111 and 112: The International Response to Niger
Page 113 and 114: after the rigged elections made no
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Page 125: H UMAN R I GHTS WATCH 350 Fifth Ave
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Criminal Politics: Violence, âGodfathersâ and Corruption in Nigeria

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