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THE NATION, SATURDAY, APRIL 28, 2012
M
ITT Romney the US Republican Party Presidential candidate won five primaries in one day this week and effectively became the sole opponent of incumbent President Barak Obama for the presidential election slated for November this year. Romney immediately pledged to wage a campaign war on Obama’s handling of the economy claiming that his five -in - a -day primaries victory marks the beginning of ‘a better day for all Americans’. In Europe the EU warns Argentina that it would face sanctions and scare investors if it goes ahead with its nationalization of Argentina’s biggest oil company in which Spain’s national oil giant Repsol has controlling interests .In global business, the world’s biggest supermarket Wal – Mart is accused of bribing Mexican officials in securing contracts for its Mexican subsidiary while at the same time trying to derail the application of a 1977 anti bribery law against such practices in the US. Yet in the UK at the Levenson Media Inquiry Rupert Murdoch perhaps the most influential media mogul of our time stunned his questioners when he insisted that his publications’ support for governments , and political parties at elections were always based on issues and not on some future business favors. Today however I want to analyse these events in comparison with some regional issues and events in the ECOWAS sub region. The essence of the comparison is not to say political or corporate operators in one part of the world are better or dirtier than the other, since no two environments are the same in context, leadership, resources and objectives as we shall highlight in the various analyses. My ECOWAS nominees for this exercise therefore are Mali and Nigeria. Let us go back to the Romney challenge to the US president this week. Romney reportedly said that Obama has wasted the euphoria and high expectation that catapulted him into office four years ago . He then gave an uppercut by saying that since Obama‘s economic policies have failed woefully he expects the Obama campaign team to wage a counter campaign of diversion, distraction and distortions against him but such campaign will not succeed in this age and time. He then rephrased the 1992 campaign message of former President Bill Clinton which said–it’s the economy stupid–and went on to clinch the presidency for Clinton. This time Romney said this week – Yes, we know it’s the economy, but this time we are not stupid. Which to me is quite brilliant and brings an historical perspective to this clash of two millionaires bidding for the highest office in the US. For while Romney is said to have paid a tax of $ 13m which his critics say is underpayment, Obama too is a wealthy man who raised more money than his opponent at the last presidential elections and did not receive any official grant from the state as he was entitled to. In the 1992 elections Bill Clinton went on to reduce his Republican opponent
Big money, power and democracy
George Bush Snr to a one term president on the basis that the economy is not working and there is need for change. Can Romney do the same to Obama in 2012? The answer is dicey because November is still far away and Romney is not yet formally a candidate as the primaries for the Republican party are still on but Romney has shown his hand with regard to the quality of his campaign , his mettle and courage. In addition he has shown that he is unusual and unique like Obama did four years ago as the first front running black candidate for his party who went on to clinch the US presidency. Romney will be the first Mormon Christian candidate for the US elections and pollsters have said that while most US Christians regard Mormons as a cult they say that will not influence their voting decisions .So the battle line is drawn between two unique millionaires for the powerful office of the US President. In Argentina President Christina Fernandez de Kirchener seized 51% of the 57.4% shares of Repsol in Argentina’s largest oil company leaving YPF leaving Repsol with a paltry 6%. Spain which owns Repsol and was Argentina’s former colonial master has protested vehemently to the international community especially the EU which is now acting at Spanish behest. Repsol has asked for astronomic compensation for its loss of controlling interest in YPF but Argentina’ response was that while it is ready to pay compensation for acquired shares it is not going to pay for the moon. Argentina said it took action to nationalize YPF because the company was not
investing enough to increase output from Argentina’s oil fields to lessen the need for oil import. Which translates into the plain fact that while Argentina is awash in oil, its oil bills were mounting and since new oil fields were being discovered, no responsible government can allow the trend to continue. Anyway the nationalization is popular with most Argentines who fault the free market policies of the IMF of the 1990s as being responsible for Argentina’s past and present woes which reached an anti climax in the debt default of 2001/2. During the time of economic hardship in Argentina, Spanish companies bought prized Argentine ones at rock bottom prices but now Argentina has struck oil like Brazil and Venezuela in Latin America and it seems it is doing a revaluation of sovereign assets and asserting that he who pays the piper dictates the tune. Which is a pity for their former colonial overlords ,Spain which is in very dire economic straits in the austerity and strikes embattled euro zone nowadays. In the Wal Mart Mexican bribe Inquiry and anti bribery lobbying in Washington it is necessary to discuss the issues involved alongside the Murdoch revelation at the Levenson Inquiry in London . The issues involved here are corporate ethics, transparency and integrity. It has always been taken for granted that Rupert Murdoch had always used his immense media might and clout to make or break government for some contracts or business benefits from the governments his media possessions supported. Now the man insists that he
is more interested in issues and cited the example of Governor Bloomberg in New York that his publications normally criticize even though they have always supported his election bid . He also told the Inquiry that Gordon Brown , Tony Brown’s successor was probably out of his mind when he told him on phone that the Labor Party was at war with him for his declared support for the Conservative Party in the 2011 elections which Labor lost. Murdoch said he never asked any favor from Tony Blair in spite of his friendship with him in the 10 years he was in office and asked his interrogator to phone Tony Blair there and then. To me the old warrior of global media Rupert Murdoch has effectively dislodged a dirty myth about his media clout and integrity and he should be allowed some peace of mind at least for now. In similar manner Wal Mart also blew a myth but in the opposite direction of corporate ethics and integrity. Wal Mart was founded on the corporate values of customer satisfaction and low prices which seem at odds with the corporate objective of most companies of making profit at all costs at customers expense. But Wal Mart, the text book corporate giant on corporate integrity and service delivery has become a do or die business behemoth giving bribes to the tune of $24m in Mexico to secure construction contracts and lobbying with other corporate giants to kill an anti bribery law in US. The US law involved is the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act which prohibits US companies from offering gifts or fees to foreign officials to advance corporate interests. The US Justice
Department has reportedly commenced investigations against Wal Mart but the company along with other corporate giants have through the Institute of Legal Reform –ILR - a part of the US Chamber have led the way in criticizing the law and changing it the way it was formed to combat bribery in foreign lands. Reportedly other members of the ILR are General Electric, Exxon Mobil, and Dow Chemical which shows that the Wal Mart that we know for corporate excellence is in very strange company indeed and that is an unfortunate metamorphosis indeed for this super mart which grew from very humble corporate origins based on high moral values. During the week two events took place in Nigeria and Mali in the context of our topic. In Mali the Interim PM a creation or imposition of ECOWAS like its boss the Interim President, after the military coup in that nation, announced some 24 cabinet appointments. Three of those for defence, interior and civil protection went to the military. The PM Cheik Modibo Diarra made the announcement in Bamako this week. In a nation at war with the desert Tuaregs who have seized the northern part of Mali there is no doubt that the army has seized power again in Mali behind the back of ECOWAS. Although the constitution which ECOWAS invoked requires 40 days for elections due this month before the coup - to be conducted there is no doubt that this is not possible. The army is therefore in charge of security in Mali and is the de facto government and the Interim President the de jure government. In addition security is the issue of the day and the army ministers in charge of security in the three key ministries mentioned before will oversee all contracts and procurement of military wares, materiel and equipment. To me this is a strange development different from the ECOWAS intervention in similar coups in GuineaConakry and Niger Republic. We are watching ECOWAS reaction to this army manipulation of power again in Mali by ceding power to civilians in a diarchy and seizing the se-
curity industry and apparatus of that nation. In Nigeria the security analogy with the Mali situation exists to a stage with the influx of security gadgets and equipment into the country but the control is in civilian hands . This is because of the growing power and influence of the Boko Haram menace especially in the North and the fact that government is ready to spend anything to fight Boko Haram as the President himself has been reportedly targeted by spokesmen of the terrorist organization . But the main problem I want to discuss, since Boko Haram containment is not a real priority of government, are the big money fraud in pensions, and the fuel subsidy report of the House of Representatives. The amounts involved and the number of dubious and illegal payments are mind bogging and unbelievable . One thing is clear though and that is that the House of Representatives is determined to be up to the task in exposing and punishing the criminal beneficiaries of the stealing of our national largesse and patrimony. It has always been said that our legislators earn too much. But this time they face pension fraudsters and oil importers richer than banks who will give the legislators a run for their high earnings and political clout. It will be cruel to say may the better side win because there is big money on both sides. But our common wealth is being stolen in broad daylight and the House of Representatives is saying that it can not be business as usual. Really I wish the House of Representatives the very best in the way it is conducting its investigations on both pensions and the fuel subsidy report. It is the best approach we have had so far in cleaning our public life and very dirty Augean stables. I wish them God speed and sustainable progress in this regard. Amen
Correction The headline of this column last week should have read ‘Justice, Corruption and Development ‘ instead of ‘Leadership, politics and sportsmanship’. The mix up is regretted.