Elder statesman, Dr.
Tunji Braithwaite, says President Muhammadu Buhari is pampering corrupt government
officials in the immediate past government by recovering looted funds from them
without prosecuting them.
President
Buhari had, during his recent visit to Iran, said that many of those who stole
public funds in the past government had started returning the funds. He,
however, did not mention the names of the looters.
But
Braithwaite said that allowing the corrupt government officials to return
stolen funds without being tried was a bigger crime than the act of stealing
the funds.
The human
rights lawyer, who spoke with Punch in an interview on Thursday, said the
President was promoting impunity by recovering looted funds through plea
bargaining rather than keeping to his promise of ensuring total justice.
He said, “It
is a crime against the state for anybody to steal public funds. Returning
stolen funds quietly without being sanctioned is even worse than the crime of
stealing the money. This is morally reprehensible and it can never serve as a
deterrent to other corrupt politicians who might want to steal public
resources.
“Buhari is
pampering those corrupt leaders by just obtaining looted funds and not jailing
them. With all the bragging and the promises he made during the campaign, we
expected that his war against corruption will be rootless. These public thieves
carted away our national assets and in the process, impoverished many
Nigerians. Corruption is also responsible for the infrastructural decay we are
experiencing. The roads are bad and many Nigerian youths cannot find jobs.”
While
advising the President to be more determined in wiping out corruption,
Braithwaite said it was possible to recover stolen funds and still prosecute
the corrupt public officials.
He,
therefore, advised the President to name those returning the looted funds and
prosecute them accordingly.
He added, “I
think it is morally reprehensible for any government to let those returning
stolen funds to go scot-free. Buhari must mention their names and stop
pampering them. Corruption has robbed us of valuable infrastructure and the
opportunity to develop as a country.
“I once had
a similar case and the criminals were convicted while the stolen funds were
traced and recovered. So it is possible to recover stolen funds and prosecute
those involved. He should prosecute the thieves, trace the stolen funds and
enforce restitution of the public resources. Not mentioning their names is tantamount
to pampering them.”
-Punch
No comments:
Post a Comment