President Muhammadu Buhari. |
The Peoples
Democratic Party (PDP) at a press conference today in Abuja described the ruling
All Progressives Congress (APC) as the headquarters of corruption, with a challenge
on the Federal Government to give account of the N800 billion, which the
Information Minister Lai Mohammed claimed to have been recovered from looted
funds.
The conference
addressed by the PDP National Publicity Secretary, Kola Ologbondiyan, the party
accused the Buhari administration of suppressing information on the corruption by
diverting attention from the stench of monumental corruption in its government.
The text of the PDP
press conference reads:
July 29, 2020
Press Conference
APC is Suppressing
Information on Corruption, Says PDP!
The Peoples
Democratic Party (PDP) alerts Nigerians of desperate efforts by the President
Muhammadu Buhari-led All Progressives Congress (APC) administration to divert
attention from the stench of monumental corruption in its government.
Nigerians have noted
the blackmails, intimidation and threats coming from government quarters, in
their feverish bid to frustrate whistleblowers and truncate on-going uncovering
of widespread corruption in ministries, departments and agencies, under the APC
administration, for which Nigerians cannot wait to see the exit of this party
of horrendous looters.
One of such antics
by this administration was the Tuesday July 28, 2020 press conference by the
Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, wherein he dared
Nigerians, particularly whistleblowers, despite revelations of rampant corruption
virtually in all aspects of government under the APC.
Our party is however
not surprised that this corrupt administration resorted to distortion of facts
and daring of citizens when its officials from the top to the bottom are all
soiled in the foul potage of corruption.
It is ridiculous
that this administration seeks to claim credit for the investigation and
unearthing of fraud in the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) when
it is already public knowledge that the investigation only came as a result of
pressure mounted by our party and other Nigerians.
This is more so as
the corruption in the EFCC under the APC had reached an embarrassing crescendo
that it could no longer be concealed.
Such humongous
corruption in the EFCC under the APC confirms the level of financial
malfeasance and a shameful breach of trust by this administration, in which
very top officials of the Buhari Presidency had been mentioned.
We challenge the APC
federal government to give account of the N800 billion, which Lai Mohammed
claimed to have been recovered, especially given allegations that recovered
monies have been re-looted and shared among topmost officials of the Buhari
administration and APC leaders.
Rather than
resorting to false performance claims, the expectation of Nigerians is that
this administration would have sent Lai Mohammed to apologise for this display
of gross abuse of position especially as it relates to the fight against
corruption.
We further invite
Nigerians to note that Lai Mohammed, in his press conference, admitted that he
could not go into the details of the various corruption issues in the Niger
Delta Development Commission (NDDC), the Nigeria Social Insurance Trust Fund
(NSITF), EFCC and other agencies.
Our party holds that
this is an evasion of gory tales of direct stealing, treasury looting and
barefaced embezzlements by government officials and APC leaders as already
exposed in on-going investigations at the National Assembly and at the
presidential panel.
With this shocking
suppression of information related to corrupt practices, by no other person
than the minister of information, Nigerians and the world at large are no
longer in doubt that concealment of corruption in ministries, department and
agencies is an official policy of the APC administration because their leaders
are involved.
This is the same
reason the APC and its government had suppressed the prosecution of officials
indicted in the N90 billion stolen from the Federal Inland Revenue Service
(FIRS) in which top members of the All Progressives Congress (APC) were
mentioned.
This is in addition
to the suppression of prosecution of APC leaders involved in the reported
looting of N33billion from the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), the
stealing of over N18 billion from the rehabilitation of IDPs in the Northeast
as well as the over N25 billion from the National Health Insurance Scheme
(NHIS) among others.
Of course, the APC
has not denied that it is the headquarters of corruption and also had nothing
to say to reports by reputable international organizations, including the
Transparency International (TI) that corruption had worsened under this
administration.
If the Buhari
administration is indeed fighting corruption, Nigerians wonder why it has not
addressed the involvement of APC leaders in the alleged looting of over N14
trillion, including the N9.6 trillion ($25 billion) as detailed in the leaked
NNPC memo; the over N1trillion worth of crude oil using 18 unregistered
companies linked to APC leaders as well as the sleaze in fraudulent oil subsidy
regime.
We also challenge
the minister of information to inform Nigerians why this administration has
failed to address the direct allegation by the First Lady, Aisha Buhari, that
the N500bn meant for Social Investment Program under this administration was
diverted to private purses.
Furthermore, we
challenge Lai Mohammed to name those behind the $2.5 billion (N1.175 trillion)
Chinese Gates oil theft scandal, in which officials of this administration were
alleged to have been involved.
We also challenge
the minister to name those behind the looting in NEMA, NHIS, FIRS North East
Development Commission and the NDDC.
Moreover, in doing
that, Lai Mohammed should also offer some explanations on his alleged role in
the reported National Broadcasting Commission (NBC) N2.5 billion fraud, for
which Nigerians had demanded his investigation by the ICPC.
Of course Nigerian
have not also forgotten how the nation was defrauded with a fictitious Nigeria
Air which only flew on the internet under the watch of this administration.
As a party, we
sympathize with our nation for having an administration that is replete with
looters, who in the last five years have been dipping their leprous hands into
the till at the expense of governance while Mr. President’s silence makes him
complicit.
Nigerians already
know that due to the level of corruption in this government the eight years of
this administration will unfortunately end up as a wasted era, in which life of
the ordinary Nigerians have failed to find any sort of improvement; be it on
the economy, security, education, healthcare, urban development and other
critical sectors.
Indeed, the stench
of humongous corruption oozing out of an administration that claimed to have
come to clean an alleged Augean stable have constituted a huge embarrassment to
Nigerians in the face of economic, political and security misery confronting our
people in the last five years.
The PDP stands with
Nigerians in stating that no amount of propaganda, blackmail, threats and
intimidation from the APC and the Buhari Presidency will stop them from
continuing to expose the monstrous corruption being perpetrated by APC leaders
and government officials under this administration.
As a party, it is a
sacred duty we owe our nation and we will not be cowed or intimidated to
abandon this cause for the good of our nation.
I thank you for
listening
Signed:
Kola Ologbondiyn
National Publicity Secretary
National Publicity Secretary
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