…Says No Going Back
Pressure from some Nigerian elites to slow down the ongoing fight against
graft would not deter the Buhari presidency from ridding the country from
the problem of corruption, according to Vice President Prof. Yemi
Osinbajo.
“We get regular messages from some Nigerian elites saying cool down,” the
Vice President disclosed regarding pressures on the presidency to relent
in the anti-corruption fight, during a meeting today in his office with a
delegation from the Moslem Congress of Nigeria.
“It is a very strange morality that some of those people have, very
complicated but cutting across all tribes and religious differences,” he
noted. However he observed encouragingly that the masses of the Nigerian
people on the contrary have a clearer understanding of right and wrong.
According to him, “the masses don’t have that problem.”
Although some elites are saying “it is not a big deal,” and that
government should merely ask the looters of the commonwealth of the nation
to return the money and go, Prof. Osinbajo expressed gladness that “a new
tribe of Nigerians who would not compromise their values but would
maintain a sense of right and wrong is now emerging”.
“The man on the street is very clear, so whatever some of these elites
say, we shall keep our focus on the masses who voted for us,” the Vice
President declared. He said it is simply unacceptable that in the last 16
years there is not a single federal government completed road project, not
to even talk of rail. “The reason is corruption,” he asserts, adding that
the cost of projects are often inflated as people entrusted with public
trust struggle to enrich themselves at the expense of the people.
He said it was the same inordinate desire for enrichment that explains why
money meant to procure arms were being distributed among persons at a time
when the territorial integrity of the nation was being attacked.
“The insurgency has gone on for 6 years because government could not
adequately equip the military,” he stated
But the Vice President assured Nigerians that President Muhammadu Buhari
and himself would not relent. He said the president and himself have no
other agenda but “the progress of this country.”
Continuing, he reassured that “Mr. President and I are extremely focussed
on what we need to do. We will focus on critical things, infrastructure
and social investments.”
Speaking earlier, the leader of the delegation from the Moslem Congress of
Nigeria, Imam Abdulahi Shuaib conveyed the support of the organization to
the government in its programmes including anti-corruption, and expressed
readiness to offer assistance. According to him, “we are thankful that our
candidates of choice in the election emerged.” He said the choice of the
President and Vice President were made by God Himself during last year’s
presidential election.
The Vice President also received delegations from the Nigeria Society of
Engineers, NSE and the Facility for Oil Sector Transparency Reform,
FOSTER, a group composed of NGOs involved in different issues in the Niger
Delta areas.
At his courtesy meeting with the NSE, Prof Osinbajo praised the engineers
and highlighted the importance of the profession in national development.
“There is no question at all that engineers are central to the development
of the society,” he noted. The NSE delegation was led by its President,
Engineer Otis Anyaeji.
Speaking earlier while receiving FOSTER, the Vice President restated the
government’s commitment to the development of the Niger Delta. He also
commended the group for coming together to develop a common framework to
support the process of development in the area. The group which said it
adopted a common framework in order to avoid duplication was led by Mr.
Richard Oshowole.