N1trn recovered from local looters –Sagay

Fri, Oct 11, 2019
By publisher
3 MIN READ

Crime

CHAIRMAN of the Presidential Advisory Committee Against Corruption (PACAC), Prof. Itse Sagay, on Thursday disclosed that so far about N1 trillio1n has been recovered locally from proceeds of corruption perpetuated by Nigerians. 

He said the panel has also stopped N400 billion yearly loss to fuel subsidy.

Sagay made the disclosure while fielding questions from State House Correspondents after meeting with President Muhammadu Buhari at the Presidential Villa, Abuja, yesterday.

The N1 trillion, he said, did not include those recovered from outside the shores of the country.

According to him, the recovered funds are being ploughed back into the nation’s economy as part of the annual national budget.

He said the funds was part of what is being used to fund the activities of the Buhari’s administration Social Investment Programmes (SIP).

Sagay insisted that corruption has been brought low under the current administration notwithstanding the sentiments out there.

Meanwhile, President Buhari has promised to beam a searchlight on cost of governance and weed out possible corruption that exists anywhere.

He appreciated the members of the committee for the “major sacrifice they have made in accepting the assignment to serve the country.

“Some of the elite won’t trust you, and you will be alienated, no matter how close you are to them.’’

Buhari recalled experience of the past, in which assets were seized from officials, who could not explain how they got them, “only for those assets to be returned to them when government was changed,”

He, therefore, vowed that such would not recur, as he had given instructions that all forfeited assets be sold, “and the money put in the Treasury Single Account.”

“Let’s see who will now take back the money from the treasury, and give back to those people, as was done in the past,” the President added.

Chairman of PACAC, Prof. Itse Sagay, who led the delegation, said Nigeria was lucky more than ever to have a person of President Buhari’s credentials as leader of government.

“We congratulate you for being a star of the anti-corruption struggle in Africa.

“You attach a lot of importance to the fight against corruption, and we have tried to achieve the aims you had in mind when you established PACAC.”

According to him, the committee trains, builds capacity of anti-corruption agencies, and has helped to develop a programme of non-conviction assets recovery, which is recording great successes.

Presidential spokesman, Mr. Femi Adesina,  in a statement, said PACAC made some recommendations to the president, in order to move the anti-corruption war many steps forward.

The recommendations include reestablishment of the jury system for criminal cases in the country and setting up of a judicial commission on corruption in the judiciary, to be headed by retired judges under the auspices of National Judicial Council (NJC)

Sunonline

-Oct 11, 2019 @08:30 GMT |

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