Buhari talks about his encounter with a “corrupt” governor
President Muhammadu Buhari speaks on his concern to the “unfair treatment” of the local government administration by state governors on Thursday.
After giving his remarks at an event given for members of the Senior Executive Course 44 (2022) of the National Institute of Policy and Strategic Studies (NIPSS) at the Presidential Villa in Abuja, the President talked extemporaneously.
Buhari, citing a personal experience involving an anonymous governor, described the dishonest activities perpetrated by some governors in the distribution of funds intended for the management of local councils.
It is incomprehensible, according to him, that some state governors would collect money on behalf of council areas in their states and then send only half of the allocation to the council chairman, who would then further deplete the remittance by stealing public funds.
“Speaking from personal experience, as the chief executive of a state and a skilled attorney, I can speak to the treatment of local governments and what they did. Let’s assume that the funds from the federal government to state governments total 100 million (Naira). The chairman would receive N50 million along with a letter stating that he received N100 million.
“The governor will pocket the surplus and distribute it with whomever he wishes, and then the local government’s chief executive officer will learn how much he must pay in compensation; development is doomed.” The salary will be paid and the remainder will be placed in his pocket. This is the current situation.
“This is Nigeria, and it’s a terrible thing. You cannot say the individual involved was uneducated; he was a licenced attorney with years of expertise, yet he participated in this type of corruption. Therefore, it is an issue of conscience, regardless of our position. As a leader, you sit here while the country makes sacrifices to put you through institutions and prepare you for leadership. The most important factor is personal integrity. May God assist us”, he prayed.
The President vowed that the government would carefully examine the suggestions contained in the presentation of SEC 44 with an eye toward implementing them.
President Buhari, who stated that his administration had done a great deal to build trust between the government and the people, stated that the report would significantly aid in the provision of good governance to the people at the grassroots level, thereby restoring the people’s faith in the government.
“It is evident that the administration cannot afford to merely pay lip respect to the suggestions in this report.
I guarantee you that the Report will be examined with the urgency and seriousness it merits. The government will examine the report with an eye toward implementing the suggestions,” he said.
