President Muhammadu Buhari has said the resolve of his administration to fight corruption is not just for the virtue and righteousness of Nigeria but to save the soul of the country.
“It is the primary reason for poor policies, wastages and bare-faced theft of public resources. It is the mean reason why a potentially prosperous country struggle to feed itself and provide jobs for millions of its people.
“Hundreds of thousands of infant and maternal mortality statistics, hundreds of thousands deaths from communicable diseases are traceable to the greed and corruption of a few.”
Buhari spoke on Sunday at the second plenary meeting of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Nigeria (CBCN), held at the Catholic Pastoral Centre, Igwurita, near Port Harcourt.
The meeting was attended by Governor Nyesom Wike, Prelate of the Methodist Church of Nigeria, Samuel Uche; Archbishop, Province of Niger Delta (Anglican Communion), Most Rev. Ignatius Kattey.
The President said, “Our fight against corruption is not just a moral battle of virtue and righteousness in our land, but it is a fight for the soul and substance of our nation. Corruption in our country is endemic that it constitutes a parallel system.
Buhari, who was represented by the Vice President, Prof. Yemi Osibanjo, said two-third of Nigerians live in extreme poverty, saying the country must trail the paradigm of thinking about the economy.
He said, “We must trail the paradigm of thinking about our economy, and the ultimate goal of the majority. For one that will create an enabling environment for enterprises, we must reason, plan and budget with the understanding that two-third of Nigerians are poor. They must be helped, first to survive, and then, fully participate in the economy of the nation.
“Consequently, we must create tenets for the very poor and vulnerable while ensuring that social spending also resurrects investments in the economy. We must invest substantially in relevant education; teachers training and vocational and entrepreneurial training.
“The country is today experiencing its worst economic situation in decades. A terrible combination of waste, corruption and severe down turn in all earnings have drastically reduced our esteemed resources. We must urgently now find it in investing in infrastructure and all crucial components in the medium and long term means of diversifying our economy. Meanwhile, we must block all leakages and improve on our revenue base.”
