The President of Nigeria has admitted to Sky News that his country is
corrupt, after David Cameron was caught on camera making the same point.
Asked by Sky News’ Diplomatic Editor Dominic Waghorn whether his country
was corrupt, he answered: “Yes.”
Speaking in London at an anti-corruption event hosted by the Commonwealth
Secretariat, Muhammadu Buhari said he would not be expecting the Prime
Minister to say sorry.
“I am not going to demand any apology from anybody,” he said.
To cheers from Nigerian delegates in the audience, he added: “What would I
do with an apology?”
Instead, he said Britain could be quicker to recover assets allegedly
wrongly brought to London: “I need something tangible,” he said.
Others were not so forgiving.
“I am taken aback. I am not happy about it,” said Senator Chukwuka Utazi,
chairman of Nigeria’s senate committee on anti-corruption and financial
crimes.
Senator Dino Melaye called the PM’s comments “reckless” and “demeaning”.
Cameron was caught on microphone on Tuesday telling the Queen that Nigeria
and Afghanistan were “possibly two of the most corrupt countries in the
world”.
His comments came ahead of him hosting an anti-corruption summit in London
on Thursday.
Mr Buhari will be attending, alongside Afghan President Ashraf Ghani.