Oil region governor jumps bail, flees

The governor of one of Nigeria’s oil region states, who is facing trial in London for money laundering, has jumped bail and fled home - apparently disguised as a woman - to face a hero’s welcome. Governor Diepreye Alamieyeseigha of Bayelsa State was welcomed by thousands of cheering supporters on his arrival back in the state capital Yenagoa on Monday and gave thanks to God for making possible his return. Police picked up Alamieyeseigha at Britain’s Heathrow Airport in September while he was en route to Nigeria from Germany and charged him with money laundering over a sum of 1.8 million British pounds, over US $3 m, found in his London home. He was later granted bail but his travel documents were confiscated and he was barred from going within three kilometres of any port. His claim to diplomatic immunity was thrown out by the authorities with the support of Nigeria’s President Olusegun Obasanjo, who encouraged his prosecution as part of his war against widespread corruption by officials in the oil-rich country. Nigeria has made some progress in fighting corruption, according to Berlin-based watchdog Transparency International. Its 2005 corruption perceptions index showed Nigeria in 7th-to-bottom place worldwide against second-last in 2004. When he appeared in court, Alamieyeseigha, who is a member of the ruling People’s Democratic Party in Nigeria, had protested his innocence. He later accused Obasanjo of engineering his arrest to punish him for supporting Vice President Atiku Abubakar in a political dispute rocking the party. Nuhu Ribadu, head of Nigeria’s Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, told reporters that the governor had escaped London dressed as a woman and travelled with forged documents. He expressed regrets that his agency was powerless to arrest Alamieyeseigha because he had immunity from prosecution as a governor, under Nigeria’s constitution. The British High Commission in Nigeria described the governor’s escape as “shocking and pathetic” but said Britain still hoped to bring him to justice. “The Metropolitan Police in London will apply to the court that granted him bail to issue a warrant for his re-arrest if he ever ventures to set his feet on London soil,” British spokesman Graeme Bannatyne said. Alamieyeseigha is the second Nigerian state governor facing charges of money laundering in Britain. Plateau State governor Joshua Dariye was arrested last year and later granted bail that allowed him to travel to Nigeria. But he subsequently failed to show up for appointments with the Metropolitan police.