By Dele Ogbodo
President Muhammadu Buhari on Sunday said it is impossible for his administration to identify and recover all looted fund by past administrations,
because the economy was massively looted.
He said the damage done to the Nigerian economy in the years of plunder was massive, but admitted that his government was doing its best to recover some of the loot.
In a statement made available to Sharpedgenews online, by the his Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Mr. Femi Adesina, quoted Buhari as saying that government will do its best to justify Nigerians’ trust in government, adding that, that confidence reposed won’t be abused.
The President, according to his Spokesperson made the disclosure in London while receiving the Buhari Diaspora Support Organization, led by Mr Charles Efe Sylvester.
The statement further revealed: “I am happy that people like you are here, on your own, defending the country. You have shown courage and sacrifice. I assure you that your confidence in us won’t be abused, we will do our best to justify it.” Buhari said.
Casting blames on past leaders, Buhari, noted that Nigeria was gifted with tremendous human and natural resources, but regretted that failure of some of the leadership we had in the past led to our not being able to capitalize on resources to improve the lot of the people.
The President said: “Wicked people plundered the country and kept Nigerians poor, looking at the condition in which the current administration met the country, without savings and the economy badly vandalized, we have not done too badly.
“If they had used 50 percent of the money we made, when oil prices went as high as $143 dollars per barrel, and stabilized at $100 dollars with production at 2.1 million barrels per day for many years, Nigerians would have minded their businesses.
“You could almost grow food on our roads, as they were abandoned. The stealing was so much, and they were so inept that they could not even cover the stealing properly. I wonder how all those things could have happened to our country.”
The Coordinator of the organization, Mr Sylvester, said the group was happy with the achievements of the Buhari administration so far.