Human rights lawyer and elder statesman, Dr. Tunji Braithwaite, has said President Muhammadu Buhari is committing a bigger crime by not prosecuting corrupt public officials of the past government who have started returning their loots.
DAILY POST recalls that Buari while in Iran, said some of those who have looted public funds during the immediate past administration have started returning the funds.
Braithwaite while speaking yesterday said Buhari was encouraging impunity by recovering looted funds through plea bargaining rather than ensuring that justice takes it course as promise during his campaign.
The elder statesman said, “It is a crime against the state for anybody to steal public funds. Returning stolen funds quietly without being sanctioned is even worse than the crime of stealing the money. This is morally reprehensible and it can never serve as a deterrent to other corrupt politicians who might want to steal public resources.
“Buhari is pampering those corrupt leaders by just obtaining looted funds and not jailing them. With all the bragging and the promises he made during the campaign, we expected that his war against corruption will be rootless. These public thieves carted away our national assets and in the process, impoverished many Nigerians. Corruption is also responsible for the infrastructural decay we are experiencing. The roads are bad and many Nigerian youths cannot find jobs.”
The human right lawyer while urging Buhari to be more rootless in stamping out corruption said it was possible to recover stolen funds and still prosecute the corrupt public officials.
Braithwaite called on the President to identify the culprits and ensure that they are prosecute.
“I think it is morally reprehensible for any government to let those returning stolen funds to go scot-free. Buhari must mention their names and stop pampering them. Corruption has robbed us of valuable infrastructure and the opportunity to develop as a country.
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