“Old Lies, New Excuses: How the Nigerian Government Continues to Insult Public Intelligence”
By George Omagbemi Sylvester

In a stunning yet all-too-familiar display of condescension toward the Nigerian people, the Nigerian Presidency has declared that “nothing new has been revealed” in the decades-old FBI and DEA reports implicating certain high-profile individuals in drug trafficking and money laundering. According to their recent statement, the information “has been public for over 30 years.” While this may be factually true, the real question is: does the age of a crime nullify its relevance or accountability? The answer, in any democracy with a shred of integrity, is a resounding no.

This is not just about dusty files or forgotten scandals. It is about integrity, national image, and the dangerous precedent of shielding political elites from scrutiny while expecting ordinary citizens to abide by the law. When governments trivialize criminal histories under the guise of “old news,” they mock the very foundations of justice and accountability.

1. The Facts: Public but Never Prosecuted
Let us begin with the basics. The U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) released reports in the 1990s implicating several individuals—including now-prominent Nigerian political figures—in drug-related activities. Among these, the most infamous is the case involving Bola Ahmed Tinubu, the current president of Nigeria. According to court documents from the Northern District of Illinois (Case No. 93C4483), U.S. authorities confiscated over $460,000 linked to Tinubu as part of a drug trafficking investigation.

While Tinubu was never formally indicted in the U.S., the forfeiture of such a staggering amount, without any legal contest, is not a minor issue. In the U.S. legal system, civil asset forfeiture—especially of such magnitude—almost always suggests deep suspicion and probable cause. No ordinary citizen could forfeit nearly half a million dollars to the U.S. government without triggering career-ending investigations, but in Nigeria, it earns you the presidency.

2. If It’s “Old News,” Why Is It Still Relevant?
The Presidency’s attempt to dismiss the scandal by calling it “nothing new” is intellectually insulting. Crimes do not expire simply because time has passed. If anything, they become more pressing when perpetrators ascend to greater positions of power. Consider the case of Augusto Pinochet in Chile. His crimes against humanity were decades old by the time he was arrested in London in 1998. Yet, democratic nations supported his prosecution because the rule of law demands that no one is above accountability.

The same logic applies to Nigeria. The relevance of Tinubu’s past is not diminished by the passage of time; it is amplified by his current position. If someone once linked to drug money can become Commander-in-Chief without explanation or legal exoneration, what message does that send to the youth of Nigeria? That crime pays—especially if you’re politically connected?

3. The Global Impact: Nigeria’s Image in Tatters
The world is watching. International investors, diplomats, and foreign governments have access to these same reports. While Nigerian officials downplay the severity, external stakeholders are not fooled. The 2023 Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI) by Transparency International ranked Nigeria 145 out of 180 countries. The World Bank’s Governance Indicators show a steady decline in Nigeria’s control of corruption since 2015. These metrics are not coincidental—they reflect a system that promotes impunity and suppresses transparency.

When the President of a country is associated—even by forfeiture—with narcotics and financial impropriety, global trust in that nation’s governance plummets. Foreign direct investment dries up. Credit ratings drop. Diaspora professionals become hesitant to return. Tourists and scholars think twice before visiting. The long-term economic and diplomatic damage is incalculable.

4. Weaponizing Ignorance: An Assault on Intelligence
Let us not overlook the arrogance embedded in the Presidency’s statement. It assumes the Nigerian public is too ignorant or apathetic to care. It dismisses educated critics, legal scholars, and concerned citizens with the wave of a hand. “Nothing new,” they say, as if moral decay becomes acceptable with time.

But the Nigerian people are not fools. A new generation of politically aware youth, empowered by the internet, is beginning to ask hard questions. Why was this man not investigated locally? Why do we have an EFCC that cannot probe elite politicians but enthusiastically arrests poor youths for internet fraud? Why are pastors, professors, and professionals expected to maintain ethical standards, but politicians are allowed to skate through history with blood on their hands and cocaine in their past?

5. Silence from the Legislature: Complicity in Cowardice
Perhaps even more alarming than the Presidency’s defense is the deafening silence from Nigeria’s National Assembly. The job of any legislature in a democracy is oversight. Yet, our lawmakers have chosen to be quiet spectators, perhaps fearful of implicating their own skeletons in the process.

Contrast this with the United States, where congressional hearings have investigated presidents and vice presidents for far less serious allegations. In South Korea, two former presidents have been imprisoned for corruption. In Brazil, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva was jailed, released, and had to go through rigorous legal review before being re-elected. But in Nigeria, once you reach a certain echelon, your past is magically erased, sanitized, and glorified.

6. The Judiciary’s Abdication of Duty
The courts have also failed Nigerians. When activist lawyers attempted to bring these issues to court during the 2023 election, the Nigerian judiciary found clever procedural ways to sidestep the real questions. Technicalities were prioritized over substance. Evidence was deemed “inadmissible.” And so, justice was not denied, it was simply postponed indefinitely.

A nation where the courts fear the political elite is a nation on the brink of democratic collapse. The judiciary must regain its spine and remember that its allegiance is to the Constitution, not the cabals who occupy Aso Rock.

7. Public Reaction: Indifference or Boiling Rage?
It is true that many Nigerians have grown numb to scandal. From fuel subsidy fraud to missing billions in defense budgets, corruption fatigue is real. But apathy is a slow poison. It turns citizens into spectators and societies into graveyards of hope.

We must resist this inertia. Every university lecturer, journalist, religious leader, and civil society advocate must keep this issue alive. Not because we enjoy the drama, but because the moral health of our republic depends on it.

8. Furthermore: Accountability Has No Expiry Date
The Presidency’s statement that the reports are “over 30 years old” is not a defense—it’s an indictment of the failure of Nigeria’s justice system. Time does not absolve wrongdoers; it only reveals the depth of institutional rot.

If we allow this to slide, we are telling future leaders that no matter what crimes they commit, power will wash them clean. That is not democracy. That is a kleptocracy wrapped in stolen garments of legitimacy.

To those in power: history is watching. The world is watching. And more importantly, Nigerians are awakening. You may dismiss the truth for now, but the pursuit of justice, no matter how delayed, remains relentless. Accountability may be slow in coming, but it is inevitable.