Nigeria’s former President Muhammadu Buhari has claimed that his administration rescued the country from corrupt tendencies planted to expose its economy to imminent collapse.
Buhari was responding to the former Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Mohammed Adokie’s comment on the Process & Industrial Developments (P&ID), Paris Club, and the Ajaokuta steel company, in a statement through his spokesperson, Garba Shehu on Sunday.
According to Buhari, Adoke’s reference points for the Buhari administration’s corruption were cases that originated in a government in which he was the man responsible for the administration of justice.
The former president noted that the contract and incidental judgement in the P&ID were inherited by his administration, while maintaining that he succeeded in stopping its execution even when the previous administration that was responsible for the creation of the liability watched helplessly and exposed Nigeria to over $10 billion in liability.
“The Paris club saga that Adoke cited as an example of corrupt practises of the Buhari administration is not in any way different in origin and circumstances from the case of P&ID.
“It was rooted in administrations that predated that of President Muhammadu Buhari. Adoke was a product of the administration that planted the evil foundation and the judgements that resulted therefrom.
“The logical conclusion any reasonable person can draw on P&ID, Paris Club, and Ajaokuta is that President Buhari came on a rescue mission and effectively saved Nigeria from corrupt undertones that were planted to expose its economy to imminent collapse. The success of the Buhari administration in the fight against corruption is unprecedented.
“New legislation was introduced, major recoveries were made at home, stolen monies were repatriated from abroad, and they were judiciously deployed in infrastructure development. High-profile convictions were recorded in unprecedented numbers, with enhanced percentages over and above the records in existence.
“It is in international recognition of these efforts that the African Union chose the former President as its African Continental Anti-Corruption Champion. Additional recognitions by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Corruption (UNODC), among others, were also lauded by the former president and his administration.
“Adoke also made some wild allegations in the aviation sector. The efforts of the Buhari administration in aviation are known: They were visible in terms of capital infrastructure development, safety, and policy; they changed the face of the aviation sector into an attractive one for investment, resulting in new airlines coming on board. No major commercial airline incident was recorded throughout this period.
“All Nigerians, by right, can say whatever they want about the Buhari administration. No one is offended by their actions, right or wrong. But when you come out with innuendos of corruption written all over your face and say that you want to moralize and pontificate, Nigerians in different walks of life will have problems with that,” Buhari stated.
