Press statement from the presidency...
President Muhammadu Buhari Saturday in Malta urged the international
community to do more to support the Federal Government’s efforts to curb
corruption in Nigeria’s oil and gas industry.
Speaking at a group meeting of Commonwealth leaders on corruption
chaired by Prime Minister David Cameron of Britain, President Buhari
said that corruption in the oil sector and outright theft of Nigeria’s
crude oil had been exacerbated by the culture of impunity which reigned
under previous administrations.
The President said that corruption in the sector had
also thrived because of the ease of transferring illicit funds abroad
and the institutional protection given to corrupt officials in the past.
“Now that we have the political will to stop impunity, we need the
cooperation and assistance of the international community.
“We must all work together to compel multinational oil companies,
international financial institutions and international shipping lines to
stop aiding and abetting corruption in the oil sector in Nigeria,”
President Buhari told the gathering which included the leaders of
Australia, Canada, Singapore, Malta, Sri Lanka, Botswana and Trinidad
and Tobago.
In his opening remarks at the meeting, Prime Minister Cameron said that
the Commonwealth and the international community must do more to fight
corrupt and promote good governance.
“We care passionately about this issue of fighting corruption. In my
view, this issue needs to have a much higher billing on the
international agenda, not just because fighting corruption is right in
itself, but because all the other things we want to achieve as countries
and members of the Commonwealth depend on our success in doing so.
“If we want fair economic growth, we need to reject corruption. If we
want to see fair and sustainable development, we need to deal with
corruption. I think this is an absolutely vital issue. It is an issue
for all of us because so much of the money stolen from developing
countries is hidden in developed countries.
“So dealing with money laundering, dealing with beneficial ownership and
making sure we stop stolen money being hidden away in developed
countries is absolutely vital,” the British Prime Minister said.
Garba Shehu
SSA to the President
(Media & Publicity)
November 28, 2015
