Daily Independent Online.
*
Thursday, July 22, 2004.
Buhari
faults Obasanjo’s loot recovery, indicts Babangida
By Akanimo Sampson
Bureau
Chief,
Port Harcourt
A former Head of State and All Nigeria
Peoples Party (ANPP) presidential candidate in the 2003 poll, General Muhammadu
Buhari, has lashed out at President Olusegun Obasanjo administration’s
loot recovery effort, describing it as a total failure.
He also took on his successor in office,
General Ibrahim Babangida, on his purported 2007 presidential ambition, noting
that Babangida ruined Nigeria.
Buhari, told Jackson Ude, managing editor
of the United States-based bi-weekly, African Post, that recovery of
stolen money from some former military rulers in the country was not whole
heartedly done.
“I understand that there are
negotiations between Nigeria and some countries for the release of the alleged
stolen monies by the late General Sani Abacha and his families. The truth is
that it is not only Abacha that has stolen money, there are a lot of others who
have done it and so, they should go after them too,” Buhari said.
He argued that government would be shooting
the anti-corruption campaign on the foot if it failed to go after such past
military rulers, stressing that the anti-graft crusade seemed to be favouring
some people.
According to him, it is a paradox that
Nigeria under Obasanjo is being rated as one of the most corrupt countries in
the world. He regretted that President Obasanjo used to be a director of
Transparency International, a global group against corruption.
