Vice president Yemi Osinbajo has said that no volume of pressure or calls from the elites would derail president Mohammadu Buhari or himself from carrying the anti-corruption war to its logical conclusion.
And that in the last 16 years there was not a single federal government completed road project including rail, as the cost of projects were inflated, saying that “The reason is corruption”.
Revealing that there had been a plethora of calls and efforts by the highly placed Nigerians to stop the probes, the Vice President stated that said both of them had no other agenda but “the progress of this country.”
Osinabjo spoke yesterday during a meeting in his office with a delegation from the Moslem Congress of Nigeria led Imam Abdulahi Shuaib at the presidential villa, Abuja.
His submission was contained in a statement by his spokesman, Mr. Laolu Akande.
According to the statement, the Vice President said that the development was a strange morality emanating from some Nigerians across ethnic and religious lines.
“We get regular messages from some Nigerian elites saying cool down. It is a very strange morality that some of those people have, very complicated but cutting across all tribes and religious differences.
“Mr. President and I are extremely focussed on what we need to do. We will focus on critical things, infrastructure and social investments”, he said.
Osinbajo who was miffed by the attitude however noted that the many Nigerians could still discern between what is right and wrong.
He said “the masses don’t have that problem.”
Re-echoing that the elites who felt unperturbed were saying “it is not a big deal,” stressing that government should merely ask the looters of the commonwealth to return the money and go, Osinbajo expressed gladness that “a new tribe of Nigerians who would not compromise their values but would maintain a sense of right and wrong is now emerging”.
“The man on the street is very clear, so whatever some of these elites say, we shall keep our focus on the masses who voted for us,” the Vice President declared.
He said it is simply unacceptable that in the last 16 years there was not a single federal government completed road project including rail, the Vice President added that cost of projects were also inflated, saying that “The reason is corruption”.
He said it was the same inordinate desire for enrichment that explains why money meant to procure arms were being distributed among persons at a time when the territorial integrity of the nation was being attacked.
“The insurgency has gone on for 6 years because government could not adequately equip the military,” he stated.
Speaking earlier, the leader of the delegation, Shuaib conveyed the support of the organization to the government in its programmes including anti-corruption, and expressed readiness to offer assistance.
According to him, “we are thankful that our candidates of choice in the election emerged.” He said the choice of the President and Vice President were made by God Himself during last year’s presidential election.
In a similar note, the Vice President also received delegations from the Nigeria Society of Engineers, NSE and the Facility for Oil Sector Transparency Reform, FOSTER, a group composed of NGOs involved in different issues in the Niger Delta areas.
Speaking with the members of NSE, who were led by their President, Engineer Otis Anyaeji, Osinbajo while highlighting the importance of their profession in national development extolled the engineers for their contributions to the society.
“There is no question at all that engineers are central to the development of the society,” he noted.
Also speaking while receiving FOSTER, also led by Mr. Richard Oshowole, the Vice President restated the government’s commitment to the development of the Niger Delta.
He commended the group for their initiating a common framework to support the process of development in the area.
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