Pantami’s fall: Who stands to lose more?

Nigeria is at a crossroads – to keep its Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Isa Pantami, or turn him over to the United States government for investigation and prosecution for an alleged act of terrorism.

Recently, archived written speeches and audio visuals emerged wherein the minister, over 10 years ago, openly expressed radical religious views and sympathy for Islamic extremist groups – Al-Qaeda, Taliban and local fundamentalists, Boko Haram.

Today, he is a leading government functionary. Pantami is a minister and the immediate past director-general of the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA).

It is now pay-back time. First, news making the rounds claimed that the US intelligence agencies had placed the minister on the ‘terror list’ or ‘watch list’, and that Washington might pressure the Nigerian government to turn him over.

It all began with a local newspaper report quoting unnamed ‘intelligence’ sources. Few other online news sites regurgitated the news, added videos and circulated same virally in a bid to provide sufficient ground to return guilty-as-charged verdict on the minister.

Did the US place Pantami on its ‘terror list’ or ‘watch list’? The answer is No. Even, should the US or any country for that matter consider the views of any foreign citizen potentially dangerous, does it have the right to place such individual on a ‘watch list’? But in the claim made against Pantami, those who made the allegation are yet to substantiate this charge till date.

Contrary to the claims by the news platforms, checks from the US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) and State Department respectively indicated there was no evidence to the effect that Pantami was on the US terror list or watch list for terrorism.

It has also been established that the sources quoted by the news platforms were fictitious. For failing to substantiate the allegation, the media outfits have pulled down the fake story, retracted and apologised to the minister.

Now, flashback to some significant timelines: 11th September 2001, Al-Qaeda terrorists led by Osama bin Ladin hijacked four airplanes and attacked key American monuments including the twin towers of the World Trade Centre in New York, The Pentagon outside Washington DC, among others. Over 3,000 people were killed.

On 25th December 2009, Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab, a young Nigerian undergraduate, attempted to blow up a US commercial plane in a suicide mission for Al-Qaeda. He was sentenced to life in prison for act of terrorism in 2012 after pleading guilty of the charges.

Abdulmutallab was a major dent on Nigeria’s low global image, and formed a critical consideration in various rebranding and reputation recovery initiatives by government.

Without any substantiated proof or evidence of Pantami being a member, supporter or financier of any terrorist group, the linking of his present status to his past religious views, which he says he has purged himself of, could amount to a deliberate attempt by the minister’s enemies to create a bad image for Nigeria.

The attack on the minister could just be a smokescreen of sinister moves by some disgruntled enemies of the country, who are hell-bent on pushing Nigeria farther into low reputation zone among the comity of nations.

One believes that on-going efforts to attract more Foreign Direct Investments (FDIs) into the country would be jeopardised if those sponsoring and profiteering from the ongoing campaign of calumny against the minister, nay, Nigeria, do not desist.

While it is true that Pantami may not be the only Nigerian with the requisite knowledge to run the Ministry of Communications and Digital Economy, it goes without saying that sacking the minister would impact negatively on the gains recorded in the Information Communication Technology (ICT) sector.

Pantami, a scholar of no mean repute with a PhD from Robert Gordon University, Scotland, and other professional certifications from world’s best institutions, has leveraged his wealth of experience to expand broadband penetration in Nigeria by about 10 percent in a year, up from the average annual increase of about 1.7 percent.

The ICT sector under his watch also contributed an unprecedented 17.83 percent to the national Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in the second quarter of last year, while the sector was the fastest growing sector of the Nigerian economy in the fourth quarter of 2020, contributing 14.7 percent.

For whatever it is worth, those after Pantami should be aware that the collateral damage to our collective heritage would also affect them in a way. If not directly, definitely, their children and generations yet unborn.

So, reason should prevail in the matter of minister Pantami. Throwing the baby out with the bathwater simply amounts to the grave error of eliminating something good when trying to get rid of something bad.

Igwe, a civil and citizens’ rights activist, writes from Umuahia.