Bode George Vows Not To Wear His Prison Uniform

Sacred-cow Syndrome: Bode George vows not to wear his prison uniform
By CHRISTOPHER OJI

Wednesday, November 4, 2009
Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) chieftain, Olabode George who is serving a two-and-half year jail term in Kirikiri has vowed not to wear his prison uniform. George, nicknamed Lagos Boy vowed not to touch the uniform newly sewn for him, let alone of putting it on.



Olabode George


 
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A source at the prison said: “When we took measurement, he did not object. So, we did not know he had ulterior motive. When we finished sewing the uniform, he shouted at us never to bring it close to him.”

Continuing, the source said: “We have no objection because there is order from above not to disturb the man. They told us that he is a government pikin (child) and that he would soon be bailed.”

He said the prison staff were handling the former National Ports Authority (NPA) boss carefully because they did not know the next action or directive of the government.

According to the source, there was no big deal about Bode George wearing uniform as it was normal for “bigwigs not to wear uniform. There are other big guys convicted that are not wearing uniforms.

On why they measured and sew the uniform when they knew he would not wear it, he said: “There are other big guys like the late Gani Fawehinmi, former president Olusegun Obasanjo who did not care whether they put on the uniform or not.

He observed that in his many years as a prison staffer, it was those people whose hands were not clean that declined wearing uniform. “Those whose hands are clean or are being persecuted unjustly don’t object to wearing uniform.”

The source said since Sunday when a PDP chieftain (names withheld) and a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN) visited George, he had been happy.

He suspected that the man has been assured of victory in the Appeal Court “because, he now eats regularly, prays, sings and crack jokes.


“The man has been so confident. He now sings and the major aspect of it all is that his blood pressure is now normal. You know his doctor visits him everyday. Initially, the doctor was complaining of high blood pressure but today (Tuesday) when he examined him, he shook his hand and told him that his blood pressure was normal.”

He also revealed that the number of high profile visitors to George has increased.

He said: “We tried to discourage them from visiting by asking them to drop their passport photographs but the visitors especially the PDP members dropped their passport photographs so as to see him.”

Last Monday, George who was a former chairman of the Nigeria Ports Authority board between 2001 and 2003 was convicted and sentenced along with five other members of the board for disobedience to lawful order, abuse of office and contract splitting. Other convicted former members of the board include former managing director of NPA, Aminu Dabo, Captain Olugbenga Abidoye, Alhaji Aminu Tafida, Alhaji Zanna Maidaribe and Engineer Sule Aliyu.

They were sentenced and convicted by a Lagos High Court sitting in Ikeja which found them guilty of 35 out of the 68-count charge preferred against them by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) in a N85 billion contract scam which took place under George’s tenure as the NPA board chairman.

George and his co-convicts were arraigned on August 8, 2008 on a 182-count charge which was later amended and reduced to a 69-count charge over alleged contract splitting, inflation of contracts, conspiracy and disobedience to lawful order. The trial lasted 14 months.