Nigeria's Curious Broker!

Dr. Ndi Okereke-Onyiuke

Director-General of the Nigeria Stock-Exchange (NSE), Dr. Ndi Okereke-Onyiuke, comes under intense criticisms through her "Obama for Africa" campaigns, which some say is symptomatic of her Third Term gambit
By George Umunnakwe
Certainly, these are trying times for Dr. Ndi Okereke-Onyuike, Director-General of the Nigerian Stock-Exchange (NSE); indeed, not only is she entangled in a web of international controversy, Okereke-Onyuike may well be on her way out of the NSE.
Her current travail is not unconnected with the August 11, 2008 fund-raising dinner which she spearheaded in support of the United States Democratic Party Presidential candidate, Senator Barack Obama. With the catchy slogan‘ Yes We Can. Her group, ‘Africa' for Obama’ had organised the most expensive dinner in the history of Nigeria. The red carpet event held at the Shell Hall of the Muson Centre in Lagos, raised the sum of N100 million purportedly for the United States first black presidential hopeful.
This, however, has become Okereke-Onyiuke's albatross, as not only has the event drawn the ire of most Nigerians, the Obama Campaign Organisation has unequivocally denied any involvement in the dinner/ fund-raising. On the other hand, the Security and Exchange Commission (SEC) has disassociated itself from the event, while the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), acting on a petition is said to have been arrested Okereke-Onyiuke by the anti-graft agency.
The NSE Director-General had in 2003, under the umbrella of Corporate Nigeria, raised millions of naira for the successful re-election bid of former President Olusegun Obasanjo. She did not stop at that, as in 2006 Okereke-Onyiuke who was a staunch supporter of ex-President Olusegun Obasanjo’s anti-democratic Third Term agenda also helped to raise funds to the success of the illfated bid via Transcorporation Nigeria, otherwise called Transcorp. She was one of the original promoters of the company which has failed to transform the Nigerian Telecommunications Limited (NITEL) it (Transcorp) bought. The director-general of NSE was said to have raised the money by at the Stock Exchange in yet unclear circumstances.
Perhaps, thinking it was business- as-usual, Africans for Obama 2008, a non-Governmental Organisation (NGO), superintended by the Iron lady of NSE, had organised a 56-buffet table dinner. Each of the tables was loaded with champagne, red wine, beer and assorted drinks. The stage was also massively decorated with the Obama for President posters. The group did not stop at that as ‘Yes We can’ was boldly inscribed on a 25-metre Long rug which stretched from the entrance of the hall to the stage.
A week earlier, the group, through advertisement in some national dailies and Television had placed a whopping N2.5 million for a platinum corporate Table; individual: N325,000, God table: two million naira (for eight people) and N275,000 for individuals. Of course, it was over subscribed, as by Okereke-Onyiuke's own admission, over N100 million was realised from the dinner.
Feeling fulfilled, Okereke-Onyiuke informed guests at the dinner, who included the who-is-who in Nigeria's corporate world, that the money realised will be used to further the quest of Senator Obama to get to the White House come November 2008.
Alarmed, some notable Nigerians querried Okereke-Onyuike's curious moves and reminded her that the United States Laws does not accept outside funds for any of its presidential candidates. This piece of information was followed by the publication, by a national newspaper, of a letter written to its editor by the Obama 2008 Campaign Organisation.
The letter signed by Kendall .C. Burman, Staff counsel for the Obama for America, distanced themselves from the Okereke-Onyiuke group:
“We want to inform you that Obama for America, Inc, which is the principal campaign committee for senator Barack Obama in his campaign for President of the United States, and the Democratic National Committee are in no way affiliated with this event or with this organisation,” the letter dated August 8, 2008, stated.
Making their stance clear, the group further explained that Obama for America and the Democratic National Committee will not accept any funds raised at the event or through any fund raising activities of the group.
“We want to make it clear that the event and the organisation are in no way associated with Obama for America and the Democratic National Committee will not accept any funds raised at the event or through any fund raising activities of the group.
“We want to make it clear that the event and the organisation are in no way associated with Obama for America or the Democratic National Committee,” Burman said.
But in a swift reaction, the NSE boss denied ever raising funds for the Senator Obama campaign. According to her, funds raised by Africa for Obama will be used to sensitise Africans living in America.
“At no time did we say we were raising money for Obama. What we are saying is that Obama is for the world and he has been getting support from Europeans, from Arabs and from all over the world. Nigerians should not be different.
“We are not collecting money for Obama...We are just mobilising people who are eligible voters to go out and register and vote for him and I don’t know why this should be an issue”, Okereke-Onyiuke said.
Speaking further, she said that the event was a private concert and tickets bought were on people’s own volition, adding that the guests came in their personal capacity, whether they work in banks or anywhere else.
But while the embattled boss of the NSE is making efforts to free herself from the web of controversy, concerned Nigerians have come hard on her. Leading this pack is Femi Falana, a human rights advocate and lawyer who described the event as an illegal action that could impact negatively on Obama’s presidential aspiration.
He explained that going by what the ‘Africans for Obama’ tagged the event, “Obama is surely going to be scandalised by a powerful section of the US media controlled by the Republican Party.
“The funds raised at the dinner will be contributed to the Barrack Obama campaign fund, contrary to the Electoral Laws of the US, which forbids any form of external financing of political campaigns,” he noted.
Also criticising the fund-raiser, Nimi Walson-Jack, former Secretary-General, Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), observed that the laws of the United State does not allow donations from individuals who are neither US citizens nor permanent US residents as flaunted by Okereke-Onyiuke when she stated that she is a US green card holder.
Adding his voice to the league of those who have come in the open to criticise the event, Gabriel Giwa-Amu, also a lawyer, noted that the NSE boss is on familiar grounds. “Remember, this is not the first time she is organising such high profile fund-raising. She used Corporate Nigeria to organise it for ex-President Obasanjo. She also did it through Transcorp, when they openly supported the former president’s Third Term bid.”
Giwa-Amu likened the new project of the embattled NSE boss to that of Kenny Martins of the Police Equipment Fund. “Now she is saying that the funds will be used to mobilise campaigns and voting for senator Obama. Remember, Martins said that money for the PEF was used to get vehicles for the police and other arms of the security agencies. These are things that are not connected with fund, leaving the police force with nothing. "This group of people when they perpetrate their crime have a way of selling or fine-tuning statements that will raise sympathy from the public,” he observed.
SEC in an advertorial published in one of the national dailies who dissociated itself from the now infamous fund raising dinner.
The Musa Al-Faki-led SEC had questioned the appropriateness of the involvement of the NSE boss in the campaign, contending that her involvement could compromise the professional standing and political neutrality of NSE within and outside Nigeria. The SEC warned that the body would no longer tolerate such from the NSE boss.
Requesting the Mrs. Farida Waziri-led EFCC to look into the case, Festus Keyamo, a human rights lawyer, observed that the group has created a forum through which it collects huge sums of monies from unsuspecting Nigerians and corporate organisations under the false claim that the monies are meant to boost the presidential campaign of United States presidential hopeful, senator Obama.
The petition made available to The Source read in parts: “The chairman of the group, Dr. Okereke-Onyiuke has suddenly denied that the monies and the various funds raised were meant for senator Barack Obama, so the question now is: who have they been collecting these huge sums for? For what purpose have they been organising fund-raising dinners?”
This and many more apparently compelled the anti-graft agency to arrest on Wednesday, August 20, the embattled NSE boss for questioning.
According to the agency’s spokesman, Femi Babafemi, she was invited for questioning over the purpose of the event, largely perceived as a fund-raiser for the US Senator, who is not allowed to accept donations from non- US citizens or residents.
Sounding tough in the face of her travails, Okereke-Onyiuke maintained that as a Nigerian she has all the right to do anything she wants with her money and time.