Buhari: ‘I‘ll reveal officials who returned loot soon’

‘No going back on anti-corruption war’
• Says premature disclosure may put bigger looters on the run

President Muhamma­du Buhari, yester­day, explained why his administration is yet to release names of corrupt former officials in the last administration who volun­tarily surrendered monies allegedly looted in office.

Speaking in Abuja at this year’s edition of the annual Osigwe Any­iam-Osigwe Foundation Lecture, President Buhari said “any disclosure now may jeopardize the possi­bility of bigger recoveries”.

Buhari said, “As I stated recently, a good number of people who abused their positions are voluntarily returning the illicit funds. I have heard it said that we should disclose the names of the people, and the amount returned.

“Yes, in due course, the Central Bank of Nigeria will make information available to the public on the surrendered funds, but I must remark that it is yet early days, and any disclo­sure now may jeopardize the possibility of bigger re­coveries.

“But we owe Nigerians adequate information, and it shall come in due course. It is part of the collective ef­fort to change our land from the bastion of corruption it currently is, to a place of probity and transparency.”

President Buhari spoke during his keynote address at the Osigwe Anyiam-Osig­we Lecture. Titled, ‘ In­corruptibility: A spiritual premise for material well­being’, the president stated that the theme of his talk tied with his vision on cor­ruption.

“The topic of discourse at this session, which is corruption, significantly ties into my vision for our great country, Nigeria, that we must kill corruption be­fore corruption will kill us. My being here to deliver the keynote address at today’s session is instructive on the resolve of this government to interface with initiatives that are fundamentally pa­triotic and assisting in our path to socio-economic and political recovery.

The president further stated that the image of Nigeria as corrupt nation is further amplified by ratings of global corrup­tion watches. For instance, the President recalls that Transparency Interna­tional has shown little im­provement in how things are done in the country. He also stated corruption cannot be fought as a lone battle.

“Any effort to try to deal with corruption without a convinced populace will end as spasmodic, ephem­eral exercise, lacking the appropriate social impact. When we are talking about corruption conventionally, it is a manifestation of the human mindset. It is the human beings that mani­fest corruption.

“To win the war on cor­ruption, therefore, begins with the people accepting that there is an error to be corrected in their lives, that there is a need to re­focus and re-orientate the values that we cherish and hold dear. It requires change of mindset, change of attitude, and change of conduct,” the president said.

Buhari further added that the fight against cor­ruption is not personal. “It is about building a country where our children, and the forthcoming genera­tions, can live in peace and prosperity. When you see dilapidated infrastructure round the country, it is of­ten the consequence of cor­ruption. Poor healthcare, collapsed education, lack of public utilities, decayed social services, are all prod­ucts of corruption, as those entrusted with public re­sources put them in their private pockets. That must stop, if we want a new Ni­geria. And that was why I said at another forum that people need not fear me, but they must fear the con­sequences of their actions. Corrupt acts will always be punished, and there will be no friend, no foe. We will strive to do what is fair and just at all times, but peo­ple who refuse to embrace probity should have every cause to fear.”

The president urged Nigerians to see the fight against corruption as a war they must join in wag­ing.

“Look at the corruption problem in the country, and tell me how you feel as a Nigerian. Our com­monwealth is entrusted to leaders at different lev­els of governance, and instead of using the God given resources to better the lot of the citizens, they divert them to private use. They then amass wealth in billions and trillions of naira, and other major currencies of the world, ill gotten wealth which they cannot finish spending in several lifetimes over. This is abuse of trust, pure and simple. When you hold public office, you do it in trust for the people. When you, therefore, use it to serve self, you have be­trayed the people who en­trusted that office to you,” Buhari said.