Former Nigerian minister and anti-corruption advocate, Obiageli Katryn Ezekwesili, recently defended her role in the Obasanjo administration during a heated interview.
The session, led by Mehdi Hasan at the Oxford Union, focused on the lingering question of corruption under Obasanjo.
Ezekwesili, popularly known as “Madam Due Process,” was asked to respond to claims made by the former head of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
The former EFCC chief had once claimed in a private conversation, later revealed by WikiLeaks, that “the president who appointed me is more corrupt than the military guy before him.”
In response, Mehdi asked Ezekwesili, “What’s your response to that?”
She replied, “Why did you wait until after the fact to make that? But actually he said it during, he just said it in a private conversation.”
The conversation then moved to whether the EFCC under Obasanjo’s government had been selective in fighting corruption.
Human Rights Watch had once reported that senior politicians suspected of corruption were not prosecuted.
The same report added that the EFCC’s actions were often influenced by Obasanjo himself.
Hasan then challenged Ezekwesili, saying, “You were basically window dressing for a very corrupt regime. And here today, even today, you won’t acknowledge that fact.”
However, Ezekwesili quickly disagreed.
“One thing that I was known for was my inability to be an image laundry for anyone,” she said. “I mean even the President Obasanjo that you are talking about would tell you that anytime, any day.”
Mehdi then pushed further, asking directly, “How corrupt was President Obasanjo in your view?”
Ezekwesili questioned the basis of the inquiry.
“Is that supposed to be a question on the basis of some factual thing that you’re putting before me?” she asked.
She emphasized that she did not work with assumptions. “I already said to you that I do not do anything on the basis of anecdotes.”
Despite repeated efforts by the interviewer to get a clear answer, she remained firm.
“You’re not going to make me say that somebody for whom I have…” she responded before being interrupted again.
When asked if she ever raised concerns about corruption while serving in government, she confirmed she had. “I did. I did. I wasn’t popular for that,” she noted.
“The issue that is very clear to me is that based on the track record of what happened in that administration, it had serious corruption challenges.”
Although Ezekwesili refused to directly state whether Obasanjo was corrupt, her admission about corruption within the administration was evident.
This interview highlights the broader conversation about how to fight corruption and hold institutions accountable, especially in nations still working toward stronger democratic systems.
