Politics

Jonathan hits back at Tinubu over corruption

Published

9 years ago

November 21, 2017

Former president Goodluck Jonathan has hit back against at the national leader of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, over his statement at the book presentation inn Abuja on President Muhammadu Buhari’s midterm report that the past administration was ‘nothing but corruption’.

Reno Omokri, an aide to former President Jonathan, in a statement, remarked that former President Jonathan still maintains the best record on ranking by Transparent International on global index. He maintained that despite the monumental corruption criticism by the APC, nobody that served in the Jonathan administration has been convicted by the APC government, except condemnation in the media.

The former President declaring that he does not own any property or bank account overseas, challenged APC leaders and Tinubu to make same declaration before Nigerians.

There are indicati0ons that every time any APC stakeholder wants to please President Buhari and show relevance in the country, the only tool is to either insult the former President or the PDP on corruption.

Meanwhile, Omokri, in the statement declared inter alia: “Nigeria made her most improvement in Transparency International‘s annual Corruption Perception Index in 2014 under President Jonathan when we moved from 144 to 136 representing an improvement of 8 points. He said: “From that time till today, Nigeria has not made any improvements and has remained at 136 where Jonathan left us because Transparency International deals with facts, not opinions or media trial.

“President Buhari’s government has been unable to get any convictions of officials in the Jonathan era other “than media sensationalism.

“However, we do know that it is a fact that the allegedly corrupt pension thief, Abdulrasheed Maina, was dismissed and declared wanted by the Jonathan administration.

ALSO SEE: Zimbabwe’s ZANU-PF plots Mugabe’s impeachment

We also now know that it is a fact that the present Attorney General of the Federation, Abubakar Malami, met with Maina in Dubai. We know that Maina’s family revealed in a press conference that Maina was invited back to Nigeria by the present government. It is also a fact that Maina was recalled, reinstated and given double promotion by the current administration. Moreover, we know from the Head of Service’s leaked memo that President Muhammadu Buhari was aware of this entire saga.”

He maintained that Jonathan does not have accounts or property abroad, contending that, “nobody has been able to contradict that statement because it is true.” He challenged APC leaders: “Can Bola Tinubu or anybody in the APC leadership make a similar claim?”

Tinubu had at the presentation of a book titled, “Making Steady Sustainable Progress” authored by President Muhammadu Buhari’s media aides at the State House, Abuja, said that the last administration of the PDP won bronze in governance but won gold on corruption.

The APC national leader declared: “The prior government used the public treasury as a private hedge fund or a charity that limited its giving only to themselves.

“So much money grew feet and ran away faster than Usain Bolt ever could. That which could have been spent on national development was squandered in ways that would cause the devil to blush.”