The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has called on the National Assembly to immediately undertake a forensic probe of the Muhammadu Buhari administration.
This follows reports in which the United States Department of Justice alleged that the Nigerian government plans to hand over about $100m out of the money looted by late former Head of State, General Sani Abacha, to Kebbi State Governor, Atiku Bagudu.
In a statement on Saturday by its National Publicity Secretary, Kola Ologbondiyan, the PDP decried the alleged huge corruption in the Presidency insisting that the recent revelation has further exposed that the government has been living a lie – parading as saints with false anti-corruption posturing.
According to the main opposition party, the Presidency has been swimming in “a huge ocean of corruption and massive treasury looting”.
The statement said, “PDP’s call is predicated on the stinking reports by the US Department of State that the President Buhari-led Government plots to funnel the repatriated money to certain individuals connected to the Presidency, including a particular state governor allegedly involved in the initial looting of the money.
“The PDP says the report that the Buhari-led government has been blocking attempts to recover part of the looted funds traced to Kebbi State Governor, Atiku Bagudu, the Chairman of All Progressives Congress (APC) Governors Forum, who was reportedly indicted by the US for allegedly helping in transferring billions of dollar out of the country during the military era, speaks volumes of the corruption and concealments going on in the Buhari Presidency.
“Moreover, further revelations in the report that instead of recovering the stolen money, the Federal Government is even in the process of funnelling $100 million (N36.3 billion) out of the looted funds to Governor Bagudu, highlights the humongous sleaze, duplicity, and treachery that pervade the Buhari administration.
“From the report, it is clear that the Buhari Presidency has further smeared itself, and no longer commands the trust and confidence of stakeholders within and outside the country in its fight against corruption.
“There are already apprehensions in the public space of huge complicity and patronising of corruption under President Buhari’s watch, which is directly responsible for our worsening corruption rating, a comatose economy, hardship, and untold suffering which have turned our nation into world’s poverty capital.”
The PDP, therefore, called on the National Assembly to redeem the image of the country by invoking its statutory instruments to order a forensic investigation into the handling of repatriated funds.
