- Says Indicted Serving and Ex-officials at War with Buhari’s Administration
- Wants Foreign Financial Institutions and Collaborators Abetting Offshore Looters Prosecuted
By ‘Dotun Akintomide
Disturbed by the monumental corruption in Nigeria and other African countries, Acting President Yemi Osinbajo has prescribed austere punishment for political looters similar to treatment given terrorists and drug traffickers so as to set new monument of deterrents in the country.
Likening political malfeasance to terrorism and trafficking of narcotic drugs, Osinbajo lamented that the looting of public treasury is even more dangerous than terrorism calling on Nigerians to raise new level of consciousness and severe measures against perpetrators of evil.
Osinbajo who spoke in Abuja at a Conference on ‘Promoting International Co-operation in Combating Illicit Financial Flows and Enhancing Asset Recovery to Foster Sustainable Development’ worried that it was unfair that proceeds of political corruption are not being treated like that of illegal drugs warning that there are dire consequences if nothing is done to address that.
“Even though we have been able to convince ourselves that the proceeds from drug trafficking were dirty money but proceeds of corruption are not dirty money.
“Many countries have signed treaties that stringent measures should be taken against proceeds from drugs, illegal trafficking in persons. Somehow proceeds from political corruption has not attracted the same outrage that proceeds from narcotics and trafficking in persons have attracted.
“It took years for some people to agree that when somebody loot money where others live decently that is more criminal than crime against humanity, more dangerous than trafficking in drugs.”
He pointed out that looters of commonwealth always have their abettors and collaborating financial institutions in safe havens abroad partnering together to milk the nation dry.
“There is no way the transfer of these assets can happen without a handshake between the countries that they are being transferred and the international banking institutions in the countries in which they are transferred, there is no way it will happen without some form of connivance.
We have to look at somehow delegitimizing those kinds of financial institutions and criminalizing them, so that banks and financial institutions that actually engage in this are called out and made to face the consequences of engaging in criminal practices. If that isn’t done we are not likely to go very far.
“For there to be collaboration there must first be connivance, in the agreement and conventions we will be signing we must find away and ensure that financial institutions are not given a free run and hold them accountable,” the Acting President said.
According to him, another point is that African countries and developing countries must realize it is their responsibility not to only ensure the discovery of these monies but to make sure they are returned.
”It is not enough to talk about it. Some countries are somehow reluctant about it, many have civil processes that makes it difficult, they say our courts are handling this matter and there is very little we can do about.
We must make it a national call, a call for other developing countries to have the same outrage for drugs, terrorist like they will have for illicit financial flows. We must emphasis at every point and call out institutions that are not cooperating and ensuring that they recognize that this for us a serious issue.”
Alluding to President Muhammadu Buhari statement that “if we don’t kill corruption, corruption will kill Nigeria,” Osinbajo disclosed that those who have stolen from public treasury amassing unto themselves ill-gotten wealth are fighting hard to tear down the current administration in their quest to cover their mess.
“When corrupt monies find safe havens, it will begin to fight back and if government is not careful it can fight back. In Nigeria for instance, where corruption fights back so eloquently that government itself if not careful can be overwhelmed.
If you look at the anticorruption fight in Nigeria there is a major fight back in the media. There is a media war, between people fighting corruption and those behind the stolen funds. It is called media trial, I don’t know what that means. If you discover for instance large sums of money in an air condition room there is no where it will not make news anywhere in the world.
So, this whole idea of trying to legitimize corruption is definitely being fueled and sponsored by those who have these resources, who have stolen funds. Unless we see it as a problem that can bring down our system then we will never be able to fight. I hope we will be able to advance this with other African countries.”
He revealed that the Mbeki’s report shows that most of the illicit funds flow that comes out of Africa are from Nigeria, saying that shows clearly especially in the security agencies that the nation simply have to do more. “It is evident that so much money is leaving our shores.
“I was arguing with somebody about the fact that they were stopping certain funding, and he kept telling me Nigeria is no longer a poor country but now a mid-income earning country so they shouldn’t be giving us those kinds of aids.
“It was barely a week after that a large sum of money was found at the Kaduna airport and it was roughly about half of the money we were looking for. So, he sent me a text telling me that money has been discovered at the Kaduna. Of course, I didn’t reply him but when he persisted and called him and asked if this was his own form of a joke.
“But clearly it’s sometimes absurd that when we are asking for aid and so much money is being stolen. So, we ourselves must take responsibility and ensure we keep talking about this,” Osinbajo stated.”
