Buhari said proceeds of the recovered assets will be paid to the nation’s treasury and utilized for developmental purposes.
Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Publicity, Garba Shehu, in a statement yesterday, said Buhari disclosed this when he received representatives of social groups in Daura Emirate.
The President assured that his administration will continue to pursue a robust, effective and legitimate anti-corruption campaign that safeguards the treasury and commonwealth of all Nigerians.
Buhari noted that many suspected looters of government’s resources had been denying ownership of their ill-gotten properties and assets across the country.
He explained that he was not surprised by the increasing number of those denying ownership or disclaiming the properties traced to them by the various anti-corruption agencies.
The President also said that his government would not allow a repeat of what happened in the 1980s when buildings and other ill-gotten property seized by his military administration were returned to corrupt officials following his ouster as Head of State.
“Some years back, one of my schoolmates in the primary school who worked at a cottage company before his demise predicted that we will come to a situation when looters will deny their loots in Nigeria.
“So, as a civil servant, you have 10 houses in Abuja and even in Kaduna and abroad, the more you show them the properties, the more they will swear that it does not belong to them.
“And we are still following the process, you know in a democracy, you have to follow due process and respect the rule of law.
“If you are following, you will hear that some of these looters were arrested, and for those who deny their loots, then instead of what happened before, this time around, we will sell those stolen properties and the proceeds will be deposited in government treasury.
“If the money is in the government treasury, I will see who will come back after we left and reclaim them,” he said.
The president pledged that government would ensure availability of fertilizer and other farm inputs to farmers to sustain the successes recorded by the farmers in the previous farming seasons.
He said: “Please tell Nigerians that we are trying our best, and I thank God, the rainy season will blossom, we will try to add more money to farmers, and ensure the availability of fertilizer and other farm inputs.
“We will also continue to reconstruct roads and railways and provide electricity and we promise we will continue to do so.”
Buhari told the groups that the APC-led government will consolidate on the gains and monumental achievements in the development of infrastructure across the country.
“For most ordinary Nigerians, if you give them good roads, railway and stable electric power, they will be happy to carry on with their lives.
“We are doing so much for our country and we will continue to do more out of the fear of God,” the President said.
The groups represented at the meeting were the Daura Emirate Coalition of Associations; the Amalgamation of Daura Emirate Political Associations; the Buhari Group; the Daura Emirate Development Forum; Women in Politics in Daura Emirate and the Daura Emirate Consultative Forum.
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