Minister of Information and
Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed on Tuesday assured Nigerians that none of the
recovered looted funds would be allowed to be looted again. The minister gave
the assurance in Kaduna at the second Town Hall meeting to mark the one year
anniversary of President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration. He said that the
Federal Government was committed to ending corruption in line with its campaign
promise and would be meticulous in driving the campaign.
Mohammed said so far, the
government’s war on corruption had helped to sensitise Nigerians on the
devastating impact of corruption on their livelihood.
“Today, Nigerians are less
tolerant of corruption and corrupt people than before. This is because we have
raised the bar in the fight against this cankerworm. We have also brought to
the attention of Nigerians the cost of corruption. Thanks to the sensitization
campaign we launched earlier this year, Nigerians now know the cost of
corruption, instead of just talking about it in the abstract. In other words,
it is not just that money is stolen, but such action also deprive the people of
the benefits that would have accrued to them if the funds have been spent for
the purposes they were meant for. For example, those who shared in the 2.1
billion dollars meant for arms didn’t just take the money meant for the
purchase of arms and ammunition for the military; they also contributed to
sending many innocent soldiers and civilians to their early graves. Let me
state here that the revelations from the 2.1 billion dollars are just a tip of
the iceberg, because the total funds involved in the arms purchase is 15
billion dollars! Now, those who pocketed the money meant for upgrading the
power infrastructure also succeeded in putting Nigerians in darkness. Of course
the government is also diligently prosecuting those alleged to have looted our
commonwealth. With the support of the judiciary, these cases will be disposed
of expeditiously.”
