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| President Muhammadu Buhari (PMB) Vows |
Muhammadu Buhari Tuesday in the United States vowed that his
administration would trace the accounts of individuals who stashed away $150
billion ill-gotten oil money, freeze and recover the loot and prosecute the
culprits.
Reacting to questions from members
of Nigerians In Diaspora Organisation (NIDO) in the United States and Canada at
the Nigerian Embassy in Washington DC on the third day of his visit, the
President lamented that “Corruption in Nigeria has virtually developed into a
culture where honest people are abused.”
According to him, “250,000 barrels
per day of Nigerian crude are being stolen and people sell and put the money
into individual accounts,” adding that the United States and other developed
countries “are helping us to trace such accounts now. We will ask that such
accounts be frozen and prosecute the persons. The amount involved is
mind-boggling. Some former ministers were selling about one million barrels per
day. I assure you that we will trace and repatriate such money and use the
documents to prosecute them. A lot of damage has been done to the integrity of
Nigeria with individuals and institutions already compromised.”
Citing the example of the Nigerian
National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), President Buhari said unlike what
obtained during his tenure as Federal Commissioner for Petroleum under military
regime when the NNPC had only two traceable accounts before paying oil proceeds
into the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), “now everybody is doing anyhow.”
The President, who expressed
skepticism on the existence of oil subsidy, said if subsidy was removed,
transport, housing and food prices would go out of control and the average
worker would suffer untold hardship.
While agreeing that the “economy
is in an extremely bad shape,” following 16 years of bad government by the
Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) which ran down the oil refineries and had the
“treasury in their pockets,” he said the All Progressives Congress (APC)-led
administration would fulfill its three-pronged campaign manifesto of providing
security, turning around the economy with a major focus on youth employment and
fighting corruption.
According to him, agriculture and
mining would receive priority attention as faster job-creation avenues for the
teeming unemployed youth, adding that some foreign investors had agreed to take
advantage of the immense business opportunities in Nigeria.
President Buhari when asked if the
Federal Government (FG) would agree to negotiate with the Boko Haram insurgent
and terrorist organization to pave way for the release of the abducted Chibok
schoolgirls, replied that the FG would only negotiate if genuine and confirmed
leaders of the militant sect came forward and convinced the FG of the current
conditions of the girls, their location and the sect’s willingness to
negotiate. “Our objective is that we want the girls back, alive and returned to
their families and rehabilitated. We are working with neighbouring countries if
they will help,” he said.
On when he would form his cabinet,
the President, who observed jokingly that the question was chasing him around
the world even to the point that at home he had been nicknamed, “Baba Go
Slow!”, noted that not even the PDP during all the years it ruled the country
never formed a cabinet within the first four months.
“I am going to go slow and
steady,” he assured, as he called for patience to allow the new administration
“put some sense into governance and deal with corruption.”
President Buhari promised that his
administration would at the right time tap into the enormous talents available
amongst members of NIDO especially as consultants while their requests for
voting right in 2019, a Diaspora Commission and opening of new consulates in
parts of the United States and Canada would be looked into.
The President had
earlier met at the same venue with a group of young professionals in the United
States and assured them of his government’s resolve to fight corruption, remain
steadfast and invest heavily in education which he said was the answer to
taking the youth out of poverty and ignorance. The youth in their
huge numbers took turns to express their best wishes for the President and the
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