16th May, 2017
The Ministers of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed and Finance, Kemi Adeosun say the anti-corruption fight of the Federal Government is yielding fruits contrary to opinions in certain quarters that it is failing.
The two ministers gave their positions on Tuesday in Abuja at the special edition of Federal Government’s Town Hall Meeting to mark mid-term of the Administration of President Muhammadu Buhari.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that nine ministers gave reports of performances of their ministries and governance in general at the event organised by the Federal Ministry of Information and Culture.
Mohammed, the host minister who gave the overview of government performance, said that government had successfully taken on corruption at its core, contrary to what many may want to believe.
NAN recalls that Senate President Bukola Saraki had reportedly declared at a public presentation of a book on Monday, that the Buhari’s anti-graft war was failing to yield any measure of success.
Mohammed, however, said: “there are more prosecutions and there will be more convictions for public sector corruption than Nigeria has ever seen’’.
“We have acted to address the leakages in government spending that make corruption possible.
“The anti corruption war is yielding dividends through the zero- based budgeting, the Treasury Single Account (TSA), the government’s efficiency unit and the hugely successful whistle-blower policy,’’
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The minister recalled that before Buhari took over, corruption level in the society and the brazenness and impunity of those involved had become completely unacceptable.
According to him, the government is restoring the sanctity of the judicial system and implementing Economic Recovery and Growth Plan designed to reset the economy.
Mohammed said that the administration had also achieved a lot in its agenda of economic recovery and restoring security to the entire country and the North-East in particular.
Speaking in the same vein, Adeosun said that the anti corruption fight was not only yielding fruit but had become acceptable among Nigerians.
The minister said “the whistle-blowing policy has made every Nigerian a detective’’ and many of them were not even requesting for any compensation.
According to Adeosun, the Federal Government has gotten more than 2,500 tips that they are working on that will lead to the recovery of looted funds and blocking of leakages.
She said that the government was taking measures that would get the country out of recession, adding that Nigeria would come out stronger.