"There is another reason when large amounts of money may have to be withdrawn: when LARGE delegations of foreign officials visit. For example, certain officials from Nigeria have estacode of $1000 per day, $600 per day etc,. [As Vice-Chancellor, my estacode is $600 per day for foreign trips, although I am yet to claim it for any ENTIRE trip that I have taken because I consider it rather high.] Typically, they are supposed to be paid their estacode AHEAD of such travel, either Naira equivalent (in which case they seek their own foreign exchange themselves) or in the foreign currency (if the agency has a funded domiciliary account.) But if the agency FOR WHATEVER REASON asks the Nigerian Embassy in the US to help DEFRAY the estacode of certain visiting officials, it is VERY EASY to see the Embassy WITHDRAW $50,400 to pay the estacode for a 7-day visit of (say) ten delegates, three of who have $1000 per day estacode and seven of who have $600 per day estacode. So the loud concerns about some withdrawal of $50,000 on one occasion is a little bit hyperbolic, and it is just calling a dog a bad name to hang it." -Bolaji Aluko
So these Government officials earn $7000.00 a WEEK -not a month oooo! And this is NOT salary, but just estacode -the perk of office. Fellow countrymen, many of you have invested years and sweat to earn an admirable education. Many of you are hardworking. Every single day, like an unsung and under-appreciated hero, you step out there, and you do whatever it takes to put food on your family’s table, or send your kids to college.
I am curious: with all the hard work you do, how many of you earn $7000.00 US Dollars in a week? In a month even? Am I the only poor guy around here?
God knows I have seen my own share of work-related traveling, but I don’t remember a time when I was paid $7000.00 US dollars, in just one week, on just travel estacode! The Niger Bridge is creaking as we speak. It will collapse at any moment, probably taking hundreds of hard-working citizens with it, and cutting off livelihood for many more. Many police men have not been paid for months. Many civil servants have not been paid for months. Many schools have no roof, and many of our compatriots literally scavenge from the dust-bin.
And yet, in the midst of so much need and suffering, money belonging to the public is being squandered to fund $1000-per-day estacodes? With that kind of greed and indulgence, how will a wrtetched country, such as we have, save the money needed to build roads and schools? Where will we get the resources to build the future?
Nigerian public officials are a distressing lot! You put them in charge of money, and they will vote most of it to themselves. If University admission opportunities open up, they will share it out among themselves, and use it as an opportunity to extort money from citizens who are struggling to get themselves educated.
If Government job opportunities open up, the elite will corner them, share it out among themselves, and then turn around to extort money from unemployed graduates wearing threadbare shoes.
If there are scholarships, the elites will share it out among themselves, and use it an an opportunity to extort money.
If there are contracts to be awarded, they will share it out among themselves, and use it as an opportunity to make money.
If there is an criminals to be arrested, they will use share out the criminals among themselves and use it as an opportunity to extort money.
If there is a public hearing or investigation, they will use it as an opportunity to make money.
What is wrong with us Africans, and why do we behave like children who are seeing candy for the first time? Tufiakwa! Its disgusting!
Dominic Ogbonna
Posted on June 22, 2012
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