President Muhammadu Buhari Tuesday in the United States vowed that his
administration would trace the accounts of individuals who stashed away
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 ever 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 country.