Buhari to UK: I’m not going to demand any apology. All I will demand is return of assets. What would I do with apology? I need something tangible.
ABOVE PHOTO: Buhari with archbishop of canterbury: “But this particular president is actually not corrupt.” “Oh yes, he’s trying very hard this one.”. – Archbishop of Canterbury
Nigeria’s president, Muhammadu Buhari has stated that Nigeria is committed to signing the Open Government Partnership initiatives alongside Prime Minister Cameron during the Summit tomorrow.
Buhari made the statement while delivering a keynote address on corruption in London where the Commonwealth scribe says his brave leadership is tackling corruption frontally.
The British Prime Minister David Cameron had yesterday described Nigeria and Afghanistan as “fantastically corrupt” in a conversation with the Queen.
In what has been described as diplomatic gaffe, the PM was heard talking about the forthcoming anti-corruption summit when he made the comments.
Buhari stated that “Corruption is a hydra-headed monster and a cankerworm that undermines the fabric of all societies. It does not differentiate between developed and developing countries. It constitutes a serious threat to good governance, rule of law, peace and security, as well as development programmes aimed at tackling poverty and economic backwardness.” – See more here
Western media has criticized Cameron for the gaffe.
In an Editorial titled, ‘Corruption Statement : David Cameron Should Look Closer To Home’, UK Guardian wrote:
“When Mr Cameron was caught on camera on Tuesday boasting to the Queen of the “fantastically corrupt countries” turning up at Lancaster House this week, he mentioned that Nigeria and Afghanistan are teo of the most corrupt in the world but failed to state that they did not get any less failed over decades of British intervention.
“And he should certainly have mentioned that the president of Nigeria, Muhammadu Buhari, is coming to London to lobby it to sort out the tax havens in its own backyard.”
Nationwide anti-corruption efforts are often “undermined if countries such as your own are welcoming our corrupt to hide their ill-gotten gains in your luxury homes, department stores, car dealerships, private schools and anywhere else that will accept their cash with no questions asked. The role of London’s property market as vessels to conceal stolen wealth has been exposed in court documents, reports, documentaries and more.”
Muhammadu Buhari At The Commonwealth Event “Tackling Corruption Together: A Conference For Civil Society, Business And Government Leaders” Held At The Commonwealth Secretariat Malborough House London, United Kingdom On Wednesday, 11TH MAY 2016
In his speech today Buhari also stated:
“Our experience has been that repatriation of corrupt proceeds is very tedious, time consuming, costly and entails more than just the signing of bilateral or multilateral agreements. This should not be the case as there are provisions in the appropriate United Nations Convention that require countries to return assets to countries from where it is proven that they were illegitimately acquired.
“Our sad national experience had been that domestic perpetrators of corrupt practices do often work hand-in-hand with international criminal cartels.
“This evil practice is manifested in the plundering and stealing of public funds, which are then transferred abroad into secret accounts. I therefore, call for the establishment of an international anti-corruption infrastructure that will monitor, trace and facilitate the return of such assets to their countries of origin. It is important to stress that the repatriation of identified stolen funds should be done without delay or preconditions.
“Nigerian crude oil is being stolen on an industrial scale and exported, with the proceeds laundered through world financial centres by transnational organized criminals.
“Oil theft is a species of organized crime that is almost totally off the international community’s radar, as Nigeria’s trade and diplomatic partners have taken no real action.
“It is clear therefore, that the menace of oil theft, put at over 150,000 barrels per day, is a criminal enterprise involving internal and external perpetrators. Illicit oil cargoes and their proceeds move across international borders. Opaque and murky as these illegal transactions may be, they are certainly traceable and can be acted upon, if all governments show the required political will. This will has been the missing link in the international efforts hitherto. Now in London, we can turn a new page by creating a multi-state and multi-stakeholder partnership to address this menace.
“We, therefore, call on the international community to designate oil theft as an international crime similar to the trade in “blood diamonds”, as it constitutes an imminent and credible threat to the economy and stability of oil-producing countries like Nigeria. The critical stakeholders here present can lead the charge in this regard.”
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