By Kolawole Olaniyan
President Muhammadu Buhari of Nigeria
President Muhammadu Buhari has rather wisely turned the spotlight on recovering stolen funds. The President recently confirmed that his government has “received firm assurances of cooperation from the U.S. and other countries on the recovery and repatriation of funds stolen from Nigeria. According to the President, “the government in the next three months will be busy getting facts and figures needed to help us recover our stolen funds in foreign countries.”
It’s no coincidence that the first priority of the Buhari government is not to throw corrupt officials in jail but to recover stolen funds. Nigeria is broke, and several of its 36 states can’t even pay their workers’ salaries. But this is hardly surprising given that for many years the country has fallen victim of systematic stealing by career politicians and soldiers dabbling in politics. Previously considered a matter of “little brown envelopes” corruption is now a huge “profitable business” for politicians (and their families and friends, the so-called go-betweens or ‘looting pipes’), corporations and financial institutions and centers.
Stealing is odious, illegal and immoral but stolen funds don’t stink, as corrupt officials continue to empty the public treasuries for personal gains–to amass luxury cars, buy extravagant homes, and enjoy exotic vacations–to the amazement and anger of millions of Nigerians. Images of government officials lining their pockets with the treasure of the poor are stark and raw.
Yet, corrupt officials are allowed to keep their looted funds and thus reaping the benefits of their corruption. The abundance of wealth of the ruling class stands in stark contrast to the poverty of the majority of Nigerians.
Allowing corrupt officials to benefit from their crime has a degenerative effect on the institutions of governance, human rights and the rule of law. Therefore, the Buhari government is spot-on to focus …Read More
Source:: PM Newspaper
