Human rights lawyer, Femi Falana (SAN), has accused the Muhammadu Buhari-led administration of ‘scratching the surface’ in its war against corruption.
Falana made this allegation while speaking at the media campaign launch of the anti-corruption project by SCRAP-C (Strengthening Citizen’s Resistance Against Prevalence of Corruption).
Falana maintained that Buhari’s administration has performed better in loot recovery than the previous administration but what has been achieved so far could only be referred to as a tip of the iceberg.
Expressed dissatisfaction with the way the government has been handling recovery of looted funds from the federation account Falana said that he wrote a letter in 2016, requesting FG to recover over $100 billion, which was withheld, but nothing has been done about it.
“In March 2016, I request Federal Government to recover over $100 billion which had been looted or withheld from the federation account. While acknowledging the letter, the Finance Minister assured me that my request was receiving attention, nothing has been heard till now.”
He continued, “Thereafter, the NEITI disclosed that the sum of £16.8 billion had been withheld from the Federation Account by the NNPC.”
The foremost respected lawyer also mentioned that National Economic Council has indicted some Federal Government Revenue Generating Agencies over non-remittance of N526 billion and $21 billion dollars into the federation account between 2010 and 2015.
Falana posited that the government is busy celebrating the recovery of less than $2 billion from some politically exposed persons instead of chasing billions of dollars in the coffers of corrupt elements in the society.
He stressed that the huge money the federal government has refused to recover could be pumped into the economy and as such end poverty.
The anti-corruption crusader maintained that it is high time the Nigerian people led by the labour movement mounted pressure on the anti-graft bodies to recover the looted wealth of the Nation from agencies of the federal government and multinational corporations.
He added that unless these huge funds are recovered and channelled towards infrastructural and human capital development of our nation, a life of integrity would remain a mirage in Nigeria.”
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