Muhammadu Dikko Yusufu

Muhammadu Dikko Yusufu
Inspector General of the Nigerian Police
In office
1975–1979
Preceded by Kam Salem
Succeeded by Adamu Suleiman
Personal details
Born (1931-11-10)November 10, 1931
Died April 1, 2015(2015-04-01) (aged 83)
Nationality Nigerian
Occupation Police Officer

Alhaji Muhammadu Dikko Yusufu also known as MD Yusufu or MD Yusuf (November 10, 1931 – April 1, 2015) was a Nigerian policeman, Inspector General of the Nigerian Police Force, public servant and politician.[1] Muhammadu Dikko Yusufu rose to the position of Inspector General of the Nigerian Police, a post he held from 1975 to 1979 during the military rule of Generals Murtala Mohammed and Olusegun Obasanjo. He was appointed chairman of Nigeria Liquefied Natural Gas (NLNG) in 1994.[2] In 2003, he ran as a presidential candidate.

Dikko Yusufu was chairman of Nigeria LNG in 1994 when a consortium led by Halliburton's KBR subsidiary was bidding for a contract to construct a LNG export facility in competition with the US corporation Bechtel. In a letter to Yusufu in September 1994, the oil minister Don Etiebet said that the NLNG board had "seriously tinkered with the integrity of the pending contract award". He considered that there had been breaches of commercial confidentiality, that may have benefited the consortium led by KBR.[2]

During a probe into alleged bribes by KBR, a London-based consultant, Mr Jeffrey Tesler said he had advanced money to Muhammadu Dikko Yusufu in the form of a repayable loan.[3] The $70,000 loan was made during a visit by Yusufu to London in 1998 or 1999.[4] Attempts were made to implicate US Vice-President Dick Cheney in the corruption scandal, which involved over $180m of bribes on behalf of a consortium led by Halliburton.[5]

Muhammadu Dikko Yusufu headed the Grassroots Democratic Movement in Nigeria during the period of transition to democracy launched by General Sani Abacha in 1997–1998. The organization had a left wing orientation.[6] In 2000, he became chairman of the Arewa Consultative Forum, a Northern cultural and political association.[7]

After the April 2003 elections, both Muhammadu Buhari of the ANPP and Dikko Yusufu, who had run as presidential candidate of the Movement for Democracy and Justice (MDJ), challenged the election victory by President Obasanjo.[8] However, in June 2003, Muhammadu Dikko Yusufu, said that defeated contestants who were not ready to go to court should accept their defeat in good faith.[9]

In November 2003, Muhammadu Dikko Yusufu said the grant of asylum by President Olusegun Obasanjo to the deposed Liberian president, Charles Taylor could not be defended on the ground of either justice or commonsense, and was therefore impeachable.[10]

MD Yusufu died on April 1, 2015 in Abuja.[11]

References

  1. Okoi-Uyouyo, Mathias. M.D. Yusufu: beyond the cop. Profiles & Biographies, 2005. ISBN 9783424254.
  2. 1 2 PATRICK SMITH AND LUCY KOMISAR (25 May 2009). "Halliburton & Nigeria's missing millions". Business Day. Retrieved 2009-11-24.
  3. Olusegun Adeniyi. "The Alleged NLNG $180 Million Bribe Scandal: The Unanswered Question...". ThisDay. Retrieved 2009-11-24.
  4. Russell Gold, Charles Fleming (Sep 29, 2004). "Out of Africa: In Halliburton Nigeria Inquiry, A Search for Bribes to a Dictator". Wall Street Journal. Retrieved 2009-11-26.
  5. Stephen Foley (4 September 2008). "Cheney colleague admits bribery in Halliburton oil deals". The Independent. Retrieved 2009-11-24.
  6. Kalu Okwara (1 October 2009). "Nigeria At 49 - Any Hope for Party Democracy?". Daily Champion. Retrieved 2009-11-24.
  7. Steve Nwosu and Tokunbo Adedoja (2001-09-01). "One North, Different People". ThisDay. Retrieved 2010-04-02.
  8. Kunle Ajayi. "Security Forces, Electoral Conduct and the 2003 General Elections in Nigeria" (PDF). University of Ado-Ekiti. Retrieved 2009-11-24.
  9. "Acceptance Speech by Bashorun J. K. RANDLE, FCA". The Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria. June 3, 2003. Archived from the original on October 20, 2008. Retrieved 2009-11-25.
  10. Habeeb I. Pindiga (November 10, 2003). "Asylum for Taylor an impeachable offence - MD Yusufu". Daily Trust. Retrieved 2009-11-25.
  11. "Former Inspector General Of Police, MD Yusuf Is Dead". Leadership Nigeria. Retrieved 2 April 2015.
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