Criminal Politics: Violence, “Godfathers” and Corruption in Nigeria

Impunity for the Sponsors of Violence in Rivers
One of the most notorious theatres of pre-election violence in 2006 and 2007 occurred
in the town of Bodo in Gokana local government, where armed groups sponsored by
two prominent Rivers politicians, including the current Secretary to the State
Government, unleashed mayhem in the course of a long-running political turf war. 317
The example of Bodo is by no means atypical. No government official has been held to
account or even presented with criminal charges for having helped to arm the criminal
gangs that have grown so powerful in Rivers State in the years since 2003, least of all
former Governor Peter Odili. The impunity enjoyed by politicians is so widespread that
some residents of the state are not even aware that their sponsorship of armed gangs
is in and of itself illegal. One former gang member in Port Harcourt suggested to
Human Rights Watch that, “If the government would pass a law preventing the
politicians from giving arms to our people, it would help Rivers a lot.” 318
Impunity and 2007’s Post-Election Crisis
Soon after being sworn into office in June 2007, current Rivers Governor Celestine
Omehia announced a plan to award payments of N1 million ($7700) each to any
youths in armed groups who agree to “renounce violence.”
The Rivers State government’s “policy” was harshly criticized by local activists who
complained that it was unaccompanied by any measure to reintegrate members of
cults and other armed gangs into society, did not spell out who or how people would
qualify, and in fact did not appear to be part of any rational policy at all. The
government also made no mention of any plan to hold accountable individuals
responsible for large numbers of murders and other violent abuses, such as Ateke
317 Two prominent Rivers State politicians hail from Gokana— Kenneth Kobani, the State Commissioner for Finance, and
Gabriel Pidomson, a member of the Rivers State House of Assembly. In what local analysts called a struggle for position ahead
of the 2007 elections, gangs allegedly linked to the two politicians carried out a series of brutal attacks on one another in and
around Bodo during August 2006. At least a dozen people were killed and the community was plunged into a state of
insecurity and terror for several weeks. Apparently alarmed by the scale of the violence and worried that it might set a
precedent for the 2007 elections, the federal government’s State Security Service took the unusual step of arresting both
Kobani and Pidomson. After several weeks in detention, however, both men were released and left to resume their posts in
government. Neither was charged with any crime or received any other sort of formal sanction. See Patrick Naagbanton, “The
Bodo War of Attrition,” July 31, 2006, http://www.cehrd.org/files/The_Bodo_War_of_Attrition2.doc (accessed July 12, 2007).
318 Human Rights Watch interview, Port Harcourt, April 12, 2007.
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Human Rights Watch October 2007