The Sultan Said What Every Nigerian Already Knows About Pilgrimage Money

I was sitting in my office at Ikeja High Court on Wednesday when my clerk showed me the news on his phone. The Sultan of Sokoto, Muhammadu Sa'adu Abubakar, said something that made me put down my biro. He said politicians should not use stolen money to fund pilgrimage. Simple. Direct. And every Nigerian who has ever queued for a visa at Alausa knows exactly what he meant.

See ehn, I have seen this pattern in court for 26 years. A man steals from a local government account, then buys a first class ticket to Mecca and comes back with the title 'Alhaji' and a new G-Wagon. The law says in section 308 of the Criminal Code that receiving stolen property is an offence. But nobody arrests the pilgrim. The pilgrimage becomes the laundering machine. The Sultan just said what judges whisper in chambers.

The thing that pains me is that genuine worshippers are the ones who suffer. My neighbour, Mama Nkechi, saved for three years to go to Jerusalem. She sold her shop goods small small. Meanwhile a contractor who diverted road funds is on the same flight with her, sitting in business class. Tell me, is that not a mockery of the God they claim to serve?

So my question for una today: if a politician's pilgrimage money is dirty, does the prayer still count? Or is the whole thing just another transaction?