The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has described President Muhammadu Buhari’s mouthed fight against corruption as a circus show even as it urged the government to name the minister involved.
The party said the recent indictment of an un-named female minister, whom the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission alleged to have purchase a property worth $37.5 million has further certified the Buhari Presidency as a sanctuary of corruption.
In a statement by the National Publicity Secretary, Kola Ologbondiyan, the party said, “Such corruption can only be permissible under a leader like President Buhari, who, in a recent media, admitted that his Presidency is infested by corrupt officials but informed the world about how they are eased out with their loots instead of being exposed and investigated.
“Our party challenges the EFCC Chairman, Abdulrasheed Bawa, to name the said female Minister and stop the famous process of easing out corrupt people in Buhari’s cabinet.
“The PDP has also been made aware of how other cabinet ministers including those indicted for siphoning and diverting funds meant for parastatals and agencies under their purview are being shielded from prosecution.
“Nigerians are invited to note how ministers in the Buhari administration have not been prosecuted despite reports of seething treasury looting in the Treasury Single Account (TSA) as well as revenue generating and controlling agencies such as NNPC, NPA, FIRS, NEMA, NDDC, NIMASA, EFCC, among others.
“Moreover, the PDP is appalled by reports in the media that the President Muhammadu Buhari-led APC administration has failed to pay the 774,000 youths it recruited from the 774 local government areas across the country under the so called Extended Special Public Works (ESPW)
“Such callous act has further vindicated our position that the APC government is nothing but a scam which only thrives on fake promises and treasury looting.
“The PDP holds as wicked and sacrilegious that the Buhari Presidency and the APC could drag out our youths, onlu for government officials, as ministers and heads of parastatals, to use them as cover to divert public funds.
“Our party is shocked by reports in the media that thousands of participants are yet to be paid the monthly N20,000 while a few were only paid for one month, despite the huge allocation release for the scheme.
“It is, to say the least, despicable that at every turn, one is confronted by woeful tales of treasury looting, fleecing of Nigerians, lies, deception, and fake promises by an administration that parades a “holier than thou” posturing.”
Meanwhile the Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, Abdulrasheed Bawa, has said that the female Minister that purchased a property through a bank chief is a former Minister under the previous administration.
Recall that Bawa had on Tuesday in an interview with Sunrise Daily, a Channels Television programme, disclosed that EFCC investigated a female minister, who bought $37.5million property from a bank and deposited $20 million cash.
He had also identified the real estate sector as a major conduit for money laundering even as he observed that 90 to 100 percent of stolen public funds are used for the procurement of houses and lands.
He had said, “We investigated a matter in which a bank MD marketed a property to a minister and agreed to purchase it at $37.5 million.
“The bank then sent a vehicle to her house to evacuate $20 million from her house in the first instance.”
Speaking at a briefing organised by the Presidential Communications Committee at Aso Rock, the EFCC boss clarified that the Minister was not in President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration.
When asked to mention the name of the female minister involved in buying property worth $37.5 million, he said he was only making reference to Diezani Alison-Madueke case, insisting she will still be prosecuted once she is in the country.
He also said that the EFCC will soon begin to beam its searchlight in the Petroleum sector.