Transparency Int’l corruption index an indictment on all Nigerians, not Buhari govt —Adesina

The Presidency has reacted to the damning indictment of Transparency International which published its annual corruption Index on Tuesday, with Nigeria scoring 24 out of 100 available points, to drop in ranking.

Femi Adesina, the Special Adviser, Media and Publicity to the President on Wednesday during an interview on Channels TV ‘Sunrise Daily’ monitored by Ripples Nigeria, said that the TI’s report was an indictment on all Nigerians, and not the Federal Government led by President Muhammadu Buhari alone.

Nonetheless, he stated that the index does not reflect the Federal Government’s stance and fight against corruption in all facets of the public sector.

“My attitude to reports like that remains the same. We don’t need such reports to validate whatever FG is doing and anti-corruption is one of the core pledges of this administration.

“Would you rather believe the reports about arrests by EFCC or a foreign organization? Corruption is being tackled by this administration.

“Such reports are not an indictment of the administration but of the average Nigerian like you and me.

“There is no country that has succeeded in eliminating corruption as obtains in a country that executes such criminals and continues to execute. The scourge is a problem anywhere that this administration has continued to tackle. Once you are indicted, the judiciary takes over such cases without interference from the executive.

Read also: Nigeria drops in Transparency International’s Corruption Index

“This administration has done very well with statistics from Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, Independent Corrupt Practices Commission, Code of Conduct Bureau to back it up,” the Presidential spokesperson noted.

Adesina also reiterated the total removal of fuel subsidies at some point in the future once the oil sector is completely revamped via the rehabilitation of the refineries which will reduce corruption in the sector.

Consequently, the elimination of the payment of fuel subsidies is a matter of when but President Muhammadu Buhari decided to suspend the mandate due to a lack of the requisite structures to mitigate its effect on the populace, Adesina clarified.

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